Rwanda

Data on women

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Basic information > About parliament

Speaker

Speaker
François-Xavier Kalinda (Male)
Year of birth
1962
Additional information
Elected on 9 Jan. 2023.
See historical data for this field.

Secretary general

Secretary General
Sosthène Cyitatire (Male)

Members

Current number of members, by sex
Men The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
17
See historical data for this field.
Women The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
9
See historical data for this field.
Percentage of women Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
34.62% See historical data for this field.

Age

Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
4 See historical data for this field.
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
22 See historical data for this field.
Total per sex
Total of male
17 See historical data for this field.
Total of female
9 See historical data for this field.
Total per age interval
18-20
0
21-30
0
31-40
0
41-45
4 See historical data for this field.
46-50
5 See historical data for this field.
51-60
7 See historical data for this field.
61-70
8 See historical data for this field.
71-80
2
81-90
0
91 and over
0
Number of members, by age
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Totals per age interval 0 0 0 4 5 7 8 2 0 0
Total <= 45: 4 Total >= 46: 22
Male 0 0 0 1 2 4 8 2 0 0 17
Female 0 0 0 3 3 3 0 0 0 0 9
Percentage of members, by age
Age as last election or renewalOverallMaleFemale
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger0%0%0%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger0%0%0%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger15.38%3.85%11.54%

Reserved seats and quotas

Electoral quota for women Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Notes
At least thirty per cent (30 %) of the Senators shall be women
Elections > Election results

Candidates

Total number of candidates Total number of people who registered as candidates for election. Does not include people who stood as candidates to become "substitute members".
63

Results

Members elected, by sex
Number of men elected
12
Number of women elected
6
Percentage of women elected The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women elected in the election and the number of seats at stake at the election.
23.08%
Number of women after election or renewal, by mode of designation
Women Indirectly Elected
6
Women Appointed
4

New legislature

Total number of men after the election The total number of male parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
16
Total number of women after the election The total number of female parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
10
First Speaker of the new legislature
First Speaker of the new legislature First name of the Speaker of the new legislature following the election or renewal.
Augustin Iyamuremye (Male)
Political party
Social Democratic Party (PSD)
Date of election
17.10.2019
Elections > Historical data on women

Women's suffrage

Date of independence For countries that become independent after 1940
1962
Women’s right to vote
Women’s right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1961
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
Prior to independence, the Legislative Decree of Rwanda - Urundi (L.D.R.U.) N° 02/269, issued by the Belgian administration of the UN Trust territory on 17 August 1961 (and first exercised in the legislative elections on 25 September 1961) granted universal suffrage to women. This right was confirmed at independence when suffrage was granted in the 1962 Constitution.
Women’s right to stand for election
Women's right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1961
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Restricted
Detail of restrictions Stand for Election: Restrictions detail
Right to stand for election was granted for all positions except that of President (granted in 1978, in the new constitution)
Women's right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1978
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Universal
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament Year in which first woman entered parliament
1981
First woman speaker
Year of first woman speaker Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
2008

Specialized body - Women's caucus

Rwandan Women's Parliamentary Forum (RWPF)
(January 1996)
Formal or informal
Formal
The caucus is open to male MPs
No
The caucus is cross-party
No
Notes
In addition, men interested in joining the caucus can be granted membership by the General Assembly. Members of the Rwandan parliament and other politicians who so request are also welcome to join the Caucus.
There are rules governing the functioning of the caucus
Yes

Activities

Issues dealt with by the caucus

- Women parliamentarians have contributed to the establishment of a legal and policy framework providing a clear mandate for gender equality in the Rwandan Parliament, helping to forge the national political will needed to pass the the 2003 Constitution and related legislation on the electoral process, gender-based violence, inheritance, labour, nationality and citizenship, access to reproductive healthcare, crime (including the Penal Code and the criminalization of rape during genocide) and the governance of political parties.
- Legislation on the rights of children, a Family Code, and gender mainstreaming in the national budget.
- Yes
- The number of women in Rwanda's parliament is high, with women accounting for 56.3% of all seats in the Chamber of Deputies and 38.5% of all seats in the Senate.
The caucus has a strategic plan or plan of action
Yes
The caucus has a communication plan
No