Open Debates is a series of public events such as conferences, meetings, and workshops held by Open Think Tank in collaboration with its partners. For the seventh of these events, on 17 and 18 October 2019, the Syria/Iraq Office of the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation and Open Think Tank brought together members of the two parliaments of Iraq in a conference in Erbil where they were able to discuss one of the main political arguments: the woman quota system. In addition, the conference was an opportunity for legislators from both parliaments to discuss further possibilities of working together in promoting the rule of law in Iraq.

During the two days of the conference, the current status regarding laws and implementation of the woman quota in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq were discussed. While the Council of Representatives provides a quota of 25%, the Kurdistan Parliament set its quota slightly higher at 30%. However, questions arose as to what extent the women representation and participation is actually secured by the quota system, what the advantages or disadvantages of the system are and if women are included in decision-making positions. To answer these questions, the conference gathered experts from all over Iraq, discussing for example social and traditional boundaries of woman political participation, the implementation of the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in the case of Iraq, women in election processes as well as woman political recruitment.

The conference concluded with suggestions and recommendations for further improvements of the woman quota system as well as offering an alternative source and qualitative data for political and scientific use.