NEW DELHI: A recent Indian law reserving 33 percent seats in local elected bodies such as civic bodies and village councils for women has impressed US State Department officials. Reta Lewis, a special representative for Global Integovernmental Affairs, which functions under the US State Department, has said that the measures the Indian government have taken to “include women in governance through requirements for one-third representation of women in the legislature and one-half representation in their local governing bodies, panchayats,” were impressive. Global Intergovernmental Affairs serves the global needs of the US's intergovernmental officials and their counterparts abroad for collaboration on international issues such as trade, investment and economic development, energy, climate change, urbanization, citizen security and global health. By an act of parliament, local bodies including civil bodies and village councils have 33 percent of the seats reserved for women. The move is regarded as a precursor to similar reservation in the state legislative bodies and finally on to the highest lawmaking body in India, the parliament itself. Lewis, who was in India in 2011 said that during her visit, she had interacted with numerous women business, state, and local leaders who were empowering women through self-help groups, and using their leadership to highlight women's issues, such as cervical cancer. “I met with Chief Minister Jayalalithaa of Tamil Nadu who was very supportive of our efforts to connect Indian state leaders with their US counterparts,” Lewis said. She further said that the US is working with all Asian/Pacific economies to remove barriers to women's economic participation. “The 21 economies of APEC are among the most dynamic in the world. Together, we represent more than half of total economic global output, and more than 60 percent of women in the APEC economies are part of our formal workforces,” she added. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/JjL0Y Tags: Govt, India, Women Section: Latest News, North America, South Asia, Women
