The problem of achieving gender equality in public administration is one of the priorities of political development in many countries. Modern political history and the theoretical foundations of crucial “female” transformations in modern politics are of great scientific interest, which goes far beyond the framework of a single state. Understanding an objective need to study the previously unclaimed leadership potential of women, as well as identifying internal and external factors affecting women's participation in political life and shaping them as an active participant in decision-making we tried to examine how it works (or not) in comparative perspective in Russia and Finland.
These two countries differ in scale and political structure, but they are neighbors, have a period of common history and exert mutual influence on each other indeed. While Finland postulates gender equality as part of state policy, in Russia the issue of women's representation in the highest echelons of power remains unresolved. Our presentation will shed light on the reasons why in the two countries, which equally early adopted laws on women's rights, these rights are implemented so differently right now, especially to female officials. The presentation will be based on the materials of collected interviews with women employed in public organizations, state and municipal agencies and bodies of Russia and Finland.
