In India's 2024 election, half of the registered voters are women. Yet only a small percentage of them are running for office. In this video, we explore why are there so few female politicians.

India's mammoth elections are now under way, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi widely expected to win a third term. Since coming to power in 2014, Modi has expanded subsidy programmes for the poor and women. These programmes include measures like equipping homes with butane gas by offering free cylinders or distributing free food rations. Some 60 percent of the population benefits from Modi’s food distribution scheme, which he has pledged to renew for another five years. Another success story is the nationwide rollout of digital payment services. Meanwhile, critics say the prime minister is eroding democracy by targeting opposition parties and controlling the media.

Solomon Islanders began voting on Wednesday in a crucial election that will decide China's foothold in the Pacific region. Polling booths opened at 7 a.m. local time on Wednesday (2000 GMT on Tuesday), with almost 420,000 registered voters to elect 50 members of the national parliament. There are more than 1,000 polling stations scattered across the Solomons archipelago, 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) off Australia's coast.

Indian police said on Wednesday that they had killed 13 Maoist insurgents in the central state of Chhattisgarh, in the run-up to India's general election. The latest police encounter, which according to the police lasted for 14 hours, brought the total number of Maoists killed this year to 50

Former South African president Jacob Zuma is barred from the May 29 election because of his past convictions. We take a closer look at the implications.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has defied masses of protesters calling for early elections, claiming the move would only benefit Hamas and jeopardize negotiations for the release of hostages.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's coalition government has its work cut out as economic turmoil forces it to tackle deep-rooted structural problems.

Senegal's election commission said opposition candidate Bassirou Diomaye Faye has won almost 54% of the vote, with 90% of the ballots counted. Faye had been released from jail just days ago.

Portugal's general election has been called two years ahead of schedule and is unlikely to produce a clear winner. But the far-right Chega party could play a decisive role in the ensuing coalition talks.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League party has won a record fourth straight term in power. But the election victory was tarnished by significantly low voter turnout and the main opposition’s boycott.

Following days of protests, Sall's government released 300 prisoners in Senegal. The civil society now wants the election to be held before the end of his term in April.

Senegal's top court says President Macky Sall's decree that postponed the presidential election is unconstitutional. Also, escalating violence in DR Congo is pushing more than 500,000 people to flee fighting in the east. And music is back on in Ethiopia after two years of conflict, as a new generation of musicians emerges in Addis Ababa.