Gender and Power Sharing

The document examines the intersection of power-sharing institutions and gender equality, noting that while power-sharing is a common tool for peacebuilding, it is often 'gender blind'. It argues that consociational models focusing on ethno-national identity can risk embedding patriarchal attitudes or sacrificing women's claims for equality to maintain communal unity. However, the authors suggest that because power-sharing already utilizes group proportions and quotas, it provides a 'natural environment' for securing gender-based quotas. The briefing highlights that power-sharing agreements are seven times more likely to have gender quotas than those without such provisions.

• Power-sharing frameworks are frequently 'gender blind', often ignoring gender aspects and failing to theorize the gendered implications of these arrangements in conflict regulation.
• Consociational power-sharing models, which prioritize elite cooperation among ethno-nationalist groups, can lead to the marginalization of women's interests and the reinforcement of patriarchal norms. In some cases, opposing power-sharing partners may agree on the 'conservative retrenchment of womens rights', particularly regarding reproductive services, or sacrifice equality claims to preserve 'communal unity'.

APA

Azba, N., & Tank, P. (2021). Gender and Power Sharing. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6f9f12b5-8f11-4c1f-93f4-6b1f0fcea4e6/Backgrounder 7 Azba and Tank 2021 _ Gender and Power Sharing.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Azba, Natalie, and Pinar Tank. Gender and Power Sharing. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2021. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6f9f12b5-8f11-4c1f-93f4-6b1f0fcea4e6/Backgrounder 7 Azba and Tank 2021 _ Gender and Power Sharing.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Azba |first1=Natalie |last2=Tank |first2=Pinar |title=Gender and Power Sharing |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=8 June 2021 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6f9f12b5-8f11-4c1f-93f4-6b1f0fcea4e6/Backgrounder 7 Azba and Tank 2021 _ Gender and Power Sharing.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{azba2021gender, author = {Azba, Natalie and Tank, Pinar}, title = {{Gender and Power Sharing}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2021}, month = jun, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6f9f12b5-8f11-4c1f-93f4-6b1f0fcea4e6/Backgrounder 7 Azba and Tank 2021 _ Gender and Power Sharing.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }