CEDAW Anniversary: Redefining Gender Roles in Kyrgyzstan

In honor of the 33rd anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), IFES colleagues from around the world share their thoughts on gender discrimination in their countries and how they are working to overcome it.

Name: Guljan Mamadiyeva
Title: Program Officer
Country: Kyrgyzstan

How does discrimination against women affect their participation as citizens in Kyrgyzstan?

In Kyrgyzstan, parents in traditional families typically raise boys and girls differently. Education levels also influence how much discrimination women face.

While performing election observation in remote areas of Kyrgyzstan, I have personally witnessed many examples of discrimination against women. For example, couples will enter a polling station to vote, and the man will instruct the woman whom to vote for.

Please tell us about your work with IFES related to combating discrimination against women and promoting women’s empowerment.

IFES always tries to ensure equal participation of men and women in its activities; further, most of the trainers IFES uses to conduct trainings are women. This is true for IFES' election assistance activities and civic education programs.