In January 2007, according to the statistics of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,1 the world average proportion of women members of nationallevel legislatures stood at a mere 17.2 per cent. This was in spite of the fact that countries around the world have recognized the underrepresentation of women in politics and started to adopt measures to help women enter politics and the national legislatures. In 1995 the Beijing Process was initiated, striving for 30 per cent women’s representation in national legislatures, 30 per cent being seen as a ‘critical mass’ needed for women to be able to make a meaningful contribution in an otherwise male domain. Despite slight improvements during recent years, only 19 countries in the world had achieved the goal of 30+ per cent women’s representation in national parliaments by January 2007.