Women In Power: Azerbaijan's Political Gender Dynamics

Women in Azerbaijan have the same legal rights as men, but societal discrimination remains a problem. While there are no legal restrictions on the participation of women in politics, men hold over 90% of the highest offices in the country. In 2020, Azerbaijan had one female cabinet minister, one regional cabinet minister, one state committee chair, one head of a regional executive government, three ambassadors, and one head of a diplomatic office. In the same year, women constituted only 17.6% of the country's parliament. Despite these low numbers, Azerbaijan was the first Muslim-majority country to grant the right of suffrage to its female population in 1918. In recent years, there have been efforts to increase female representation in politics and protect women's rights.

Women's representation in Azerbaijan's government

Women in Azerbaijan have the same legal rights as men, but societal discrimination remains a problem. There are no legal restrictions on the participation of women in politics, and the country was the first Muslim-majority country to enfranchise women in 1918. However, men hold over 90% of the highest offices in the country, and around 80% of judicial positions.

The State Committee for Family, Women and Children's Affairs of the Azerbaijan Republic is the primary government agency responsible for overseeing the protection of women's rights in the country. In 2020, there were 22 women in the 125-seat parliament, including the Speaker of the National Assembly. The percentage of female members of parliament increased from 11% to 17.6% between 2005 and 2020. In the same year, Azerbaijan had one female cabinet minister, one regional cabinet minister, one state committee chair, one head of a regional executive government, a Commissioner for Human Rights, three ambassadors, and one head of a diplomatic office. Women also constituted 3 of the 16 members of the Central Election Commission and chaired 4 of the 125 district election commissions. Despite these gains, as of 2016, only 11% of the country's professional judges were women, the lowest proportion in Europe.

In 2017, the president's wife, Mehriban Aliyeva, was appointed Vice President of Azerbaijan, the highest position a woman has occupied in the country since the abolition in 1994 of the office of Secretary of State. In 2020, Sahiba Gafarova was appointed the Speaker of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan has taken steps to increase women's representation in government. In 1998, the country implemented the State Committee on Women's Problems (SCWP) to safeguard women's rights. Shortly after, in 2000, the president enforced a "state policy regarding women in the Republic of Azerbaijan," which identified the roles women could participate in regarding social and state administration. This marked a period of growth in female participation in Azerbaijan, with women gaining easier access to running businesses, working in the government, and participating in the military.

Azerbaijan has also committed to mainstreaming gender in all State programs and legislation to help working women. The government has made specific budgetary allocations to ensure a steady increase in the gender mainstreaming process and has committed to ensuring gender equality at all levels and in all spheres. The country is working to ensure more girls pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and has pledged to introduce new legislation to help working women, including flexible working and accessible childcare.

Despite these efforts, women's rights activists in Azerbaijan still face challenges. In May 2021, Amnesty International published a briefing on gender-based reprisals against women in the country, documenting systematic attempts to defame and silence women activists through smear campaigns, accusations, and the publishing of private information.

Azerbaijan's commitment to gender mainstreaming

Azerbaijan's dedication to gender mainstreaming is also reflected in its efforts to increase women's participation in public and social life. The government actively undertakes measures to distribute opportunities equitably and promote equal and balanced involvement of women and men. Specific budgetary allocations have been made to ensure a steady increase in gender mainstreaming across all State programmes and services, aiming for gender equality at all levels and in all spheres.

The country is committed to encouraging more girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It plans to introduce legislation to support working women, including flexible working arrangements and accessible childcare. Azerbaijan is also prioritising the reintegration of refugee women into society and promoting their participation in political, economic, and public life.

Azerbaijan has taken steps to address the economic empowerment of young women, promoting their employment in the tourism sector, establishing business centres, and providing financial literacy training. The country has also worked to protect women and children with disabilities, prevent human trafficking, and improve women's reproductive health and economic participation.

In recent years, Azerbaijan has made significant progress in removing legal barriers to women's employment. Until 2022, women were prohibited from working in 674 jobs across various sectors, including transport, energy, and agriculture. However, Azerbaijan repealed these restrictions, adopting a health risk-based approach to certain jobs instead of blanket prohibitions. This development aligns with international conventions calling for occupational health measures for all workers, regardless of gender.

Women's rights in Azerbaijan

Women in Azerbaijan have the same legal rights as men, but societal discrimination remains a problem. Azerbaijan was the first Muslim-majority country to grant universal suffrage to women in 1918, and women can now hold office without legal restrictions. However, men hold over 90% of the highest offices in the country, and women are underrepresented in high-level jobs.

Women in Politics

In 2020, there were 22 women in the 125-seat parliament, including the Speaker of the National Assembly. The percentage of female members of parliament increased from 11% to 17.6% between 2005 and 2020. In 2017, the president's wife, Mehriban Aliyeva, was appointed Vice President of Azerbaijan, the highest position a woman has occupied in the country's recent history. In the same year, Sahiba Gafarova was appointed Speaker of the National Assembly. Azerbaijan also had one female cabinet minister, one regional cabinet minister, one state committee chair, and one head of a regional executive government, among other positions.

Women in the Workforce

Although the majority of Azerbaijani women have jobs outside the home, they tend to work in lower-wage careers such as health and education, while men dominate better-remunerated fields like transport, storage, energy, and construction. This segregation contributes to a high gender pay gap, with men earning 35.2% more than women on average. In November 2022, Azerbaijan repealed job restrictions on women's employment, allowing them to work in a wider range of roles. However, women still face "soft" barriers to entering male-dominated sectors, such as gender stereotypes and a lack of encouragement to study STEM subjects.

Domestic Violence and Reproductive Rights

Domestic violence and access to reproductive healthcare are major issues for women in Azerbaijan. Around 74.2% of husbands beat their wives, and women report only 44 rapes per year, although the actual number is believed to be much higher due to underreporting. A 2012 survey found that 40% of Azerbaijanis believed that women should tolerate domestic violence to keep their family together, and 22% agreed that a woman deserves to be beaten at times. In 2010, a new domestic violence law criminalized spousal abuse, including marital rape, but societal attitudes have been slow to change.

Forced Marriage

Azerbaijan does not have "marry your rapist" laws, but families often coerce young women into marrying their rapists to avoid public stigma and shame. This occurs in an estimated 80% of sexual assault cases, according to Kamala Agazade, a director of a children's shelter and reintegration center. Additionally, families and authorities often cover up incidents of sexual assault and discourage public discussion of gender-relations issues.

Education and Empowerment

The government of Azerbaijan has committed to mainstreaming gender in all state programs and legislation to support equal participation of women and men in public and social life. They are working to encourage more girls to pursue careers in STEM fields and have implemented projects to promote women's reproductive health and economic participation.

Women's employment in Azerbaijan

Women in Azerbaijan have the same legal rights as men, but societal discrimination remains a problem. While Azerbaijan was the first Muslim-majority country to grant women the right to vote, back in 1918 or 1919, and there are no legal restrictions on women's participation in politics, men hold over 90% of the highest offices in the country.

In 2020, there were 22 women in the 125-seat parliament, including the Speaker of the National Assembly. The percentage of female members of parliament increased from 11% to 17.6% between 2005 and 2020. In the same year, Azerbaijan had one female cabinet minister, one regional cabinet minister, one state committee chair, and one head of a regional executive government. Women constituted 3 of the 16 members of the Central Election Commission and chaired 4 of the 125 district election commissions.

Despite these recent changes, women in Azerbaijan still face "soft" barriers to employment in traditionally male-dominated sectors. These include gender stereotypes that influence education and career choices, as well as workplace health, safety, and inclusion issues such as sexual harassment. Women are underrepresented in high-level jobs and top business positions. As of 2017, they accounted for 28.7% of civil servants and 20.9% of registered business owners. However, women made up 78.1% of teaching staff (including 51.9% of university lecturers), 64.9% of medical staff, and 40.2% of athletes in Azerbaijan.

The government of Azerbaijan has committed to mainstreaming gender in all state programs and legislation to support the equal participation of women and men in public and social life. Specific budgetary allocations have been made to ensure a steady increase in gender mainstreaming, and the country is working to encourage more girls to pursue careers in STEM fields. Azerbaijan is also prioritizing the reintegration of refugee women into society and promoting their participation in political, economic, and public life.

To address the "soft" barriers to women's employment, the World Bank has launched a technical assistance and capacity-building program called "Strengthening women's human capital for their better labor market outcomes: 2023-2024". This initiative aims to tackle soft barriers through public awareness campaigns, supporting state-owned enterprises to identify and address gender gaps in their human resources policies and practices, and nurturing the female talent pool by strengthening pathways between employers and educational institutions.

Women's safety in Azerbaijan

Women in Azerbaijan are said to enjoy the same legal rights as men. However, societal discrimination remains an issue, with women facing violations of privacy in political and social relations, such as interference in their private lives, the sharing of private information, and unauthorised access to their private spaces.

Azerbaijan has made significant progress in terms of women's rights and safety in recent years. In 2022, the country repealed 674 job restrictions on women, allowing them to work in sectors previously reserved for men, such as transport, energy, and agriculture. This move towards gender equality in the workplace is expected to benefit the economy and society as a whole.

Despite these advancements, women in Azerbaijan still face challenges when it comes to their safety and well-being. One of the main concerns is gender-based violence, including domestic violence and rape. While the government has implemented laws to address these issues, such as the 2010 domestic violence law and the criminalisation of rape, societal attitudes lag behind. According to a 2012 survey, 40% of Azerbaijanis believed that women should tolerate domestic violence to keep their family together, and 22% agreed that there are times when a woman deserves to be beaten. This perception of violence against women as a "family matter" leads to underreporting and a lack of accountability for abusers.

Female activists and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play a crucial role in advocating for women's safety and increasing their representation in the country. They work to change societal attitudes towards gender-based violence and improve access to reproductive healthcare and education. Shahla Ismayil, the leader of the Women's Association for Rational Development (WARD), is one such example, working to expose civil and academic society to women's issues and establish maternity schools to ensure safer childbirth.

Azerbaijan is also taking steps to address the issue of street harassment. While it is generally considered safe for solo female travellers, with Baku, the capital, being particularly safe, there have been isolated reports of inappropriate comments and attention. Women are advised to dress modestly, especially in rural areas, to avoid unwanted attention.

Overall, while Azerbaijan has made notable progress in terms of women's rights and safety, there is still work to be done to address societal discrimination and gender-based violence. By tackling these "soft" barriers and continuing to promote gender equality, Azerbaijan can create a safer and more inclusive environment for its female population.

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