* Women still only 16 percent of Davos participants
* Few women on panels, miss out on networking
By Emma Thomasson
ZURICH, Jan 26 (Reuters) - A quota imposed on top companies to try to lift the number of women at the annual meeting of the corporate elite in the Swiss resort of Davos has made a minimal impact so far, mirroring slow boardroom progress on diversity.
For the first time, the World Economic Forum (WEF) requires that its around 100 "strategic partners" -- comprising many of the world's top firms -- include one woman among their five delegates to the meeting which started on Wednesday.
The WEF said the scheme more than doubled participation of female executives from the strategic partners, although women still only made up around 16 percent of the 2,500 participants.
Some 20 of the 100 partner firms have still chosen to bring all-male delegations to Davos, even though that means forfeiting a coveted extra badge for the event where top businessmen get a unique opportunity to rub shoulders with world leaders.
"It added 43 or 44 women. A pimple on an elephant's rear end in the scheme of Davos but it's symbolically important," Beth Brooke, Ernst & Young global vice chair for public policy, sustainability and stakeholder engagement, told Reuters.
Women provided a dash of colour amid the sea of dark suits in the corridors of the Davos conference centre, but many were trailing spouses or were journalists covering the event.
Brooke said the WEF still had a long way to go to improve female participation on its panel discussions, with its opening session on the global economy typical of many in its lack of women on the platform and questions only from men.
"On panels, it's still not good enough," she said, adding that more female involvement in Davos was crucial to allow women to join the cosy club of leaders from both the private and public sector "trapped in a town on top of a mountain".
"One of the biggest problems for women that holds them back is the lack of access to networks," she said.
Carol Realini, chief executive of mobile payments firm Obopay, expressed her disappointment at the lack of women, particularly on Davos panels, in a message on Twitter.
DIVERSITY
The WEF noted that fewer than 3 percent of the Fortune Global 500 chief executives are women and less than 20 of the world's presidents or prime ministers are female.
Its quota comes after France this month approved a law forcing big companies to reserve at least 40 percent of boardroom positions for women within six years, mirroring similar schemes in Norway and Spain.
An Ernst & Young/Economist Intelligence Unit survey of 1,050 executives released in Davos found that 53 percent believe diversity of teams and experience improves both the financial performance and reputation of their organisations.
Talal Al Zain, chief executive of Bahrain's sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat [BHMUT.UL] -- one of the strategic partners -- said the new Davos quota was a small, but significant step.
"The goal of gender parity will not be achieved overnight," he said in a blog on the WEF's website, adding that more than 15 percent of Mumtalakat top executives were now women compared with none at the end of 2009.
"It is clear that in the modern, highly competitive world economy, a country that fails to capitalise on the skills of half its workforce; on the drive of half its population; or the imagination of half its minds will be left behind."
Those issues will be discussed at two panel discussions on gender in Davos, including one featuring Finnish Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi and Botswana central bank governor Linah Moholo.
But perhaps "Davos Man" can learn the most from a dinner discussing the women characters in Shakespeare's plays.
"Shakespeare was ahead of his time in portraying forceful, brilliant and ambitious women," the invitation says. "How do his plays reinforce the importance of bringing new and diverse perspectives into decision making?" (Editing by Mike Peacock)