On December 10-11, 2024, the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) held its second Gender Equality Forum in Brussels, an event that comes at a pivotal moment for Europe. With a new European Parliament elected and a fresh European Commission set to take office, the Forum serves as a critical platform to chart the course for gender equality in Europe through 2030.
The two-day gathering united a diverse group of participants, including experts, youth leaders, policymakers, academics, and representatives from civil society, media, business, and the arts. Through engaging panel discussions, interactive workshops, and strategic sessions, attendees explored two central themes:
- Assessing gender equality in Europe now and beyond 2025. At the Forum, the 2024 Gender Equality Index was presented, which became the foundation for analyzing the current state of gender equality in the EU. In addition, the Gender Equality Index of Ukraine was presented for the first time. It was developed by the Ukrainian Women’s Fund in collaboration with the State Statistics Service with the support of the Government Commissioner for Gender Equality Policy.
- Addressing gender-based violence. Participants tackled the pervasive crisis of gender-based violence, identifying urgent measures to protect victims, hold perpetrators accountable, and rebuild lives.
Urgent Action Needed: EU Leaders Push for Stronger Gender Equality Measures
Carlien Scheele, the Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE), opened the Forum by addressing the urgency of advancing gender equality amidst political shifts, security threats, and emerging challenges such as artificial intelligence. She stressed that gender-based violence must be treated as a crisis, affecting homes, workplaces, and public spaces across Europe.
«Gender-based violence needs to be treated like what it is, a crisis, just like any other. It is happening in our homes, in our workplaces, and in our streets. To the people we know and love, by the people we know and love. How many more public cases and all the unreported cases will it take for the EU to get its act together to better prevent gender-based violence, protect victims, prosecute perpetrators, and support the rebuilding of lives?», – said Carlien Scheele, Director of the EIGE, during the opening of the Forum.
Scheele emphasized the importance of collaboration across generations and sectors, urging participants to define the Europe they envision for future generations.
«A Europe where democracy is on thin ice and women’s rights, our hard-fought victories, are under more threat than ever before. We are turning into a new era, with fresh ambitions, with a new European Commission and European Parliament, and a strategic agenda 2024-2029», – she added.
Lina Gálvez Muñoz, the Chair of the European Parliament’s FEMM Committee, addressed the urgency of addressing gender-based violence and highlighted key challenges in Europe. She emphasized the significant changes happening in the political landscape, stressing that gender equality remains a pressing issue that requires collective action from policymakers, academia, and advocates.
She focused particularly on the persistent issue of gender-based violence and the critical need for continuous efforts to combat it. She noted, “Violence is going to affect all member states, all cities, and all regions. No member state is immune to this crisis. This requires determination, collaboration, and unwavering commitment.”
Gálvez Muñoz also underlined the importance of the Istanbul Convention as a gold standard for preventing and combating violence against women. She expressed her concern over some member states still not ratifying it, saying, “Every day we wait is a day too many for women who need this protection.”
Furthermore, she acknowledged the importance of the new EU directive on combating violence against women and domestic violence, stating, “This directive is vital to establishing robust measures for prevention, protection, and support for victims in the EU. It was a collective effort, a real collective work.”
Rareș Voicu, President of the European Youth Forum, spoke passionately about the challenges faced by young people, especially young women and non-male identifying individuals, in accessing essential opportunities and resources. He stressed the importance of creating spaces where young people can be heard and drive change.
Voicu highlighted the significant barriers faced by non-male identifying youth in areas such as education, employment, healthcare, and political participation. He said, “We know that young women and young non-male identifying people face greater barriers than young men… they are harder for non-male and actually much harder for non-male identifying young people to access and to be in.”
He also discussed the gender disparities revealed by the Gender Equality Index, noting that while progress has been made, disparities persist across member states. “We see that the Gender Equality Index score has risen, so we’re doing better overall, but we still see such disparities among member states,” Voicu explained.
Voicu emphasized that these gaps represent more than just numbers—they represent spaces in society that reveal where progress is still needed. “These gaps, they’re not just the distance. They’re spaces. Spaces that reveal where our society is falling short, where our policymaking is falling short.” He called for action to fill these gaps with inclusion, hope, and equality.
He concluded by stressing the importance of data and policymakers who listen to it, urging everyone to work together for a future where every space is filled with equality and opportunity. “We need solid data… policymakers who listen and engage in database policymaking as a responsibility,” he stated.
Maria Adriani Kostopoulou, the President of GREVIO, emphasized the importance of a holistic approach to addressing gender-based violence (GBV) and the role of GREVIO in monitoring the implementation of the Istanbul Convention. She stated: “The Istanbul Convention is the most far-reaching instrument in this field. We need not only political will but also resources, time, and guidance to bring meaningful change. It is critical to support specialized services for victims, such as shelters, and to ensure legislative reforms are followed by efficient implementation. Training of professionals is crucial to ensure the success of these efforts. We must also embrace the intersectional approach to policy-making, ensuring that the experiences of marginalized groups, including LGBTQI+ individuals, people with disabilities, and ethnic minorities, are considered in the fight against violence.”
Kostopoulou highlighted that, while progress has been made in some areas such as the adoption of national action plans, improvement in specialized services for survivors, legislative reforms, there are still significant gaps, particularly in the training of professionals who are responsible for implementing laws aimed at preventing and combating violence against women.
The recent discussions on gender equality within the European Union emphasize the urgent need for a comprehensive and unified approach to women’s rights. As Robert Biedroń, Member of the European Parliament from Poland, aptly stated, “After so many years of existence of the European Union, we have managed to standardize so many issues — we have one standard for license plates, one standard for telecommunications, one standard for bananas and carrots. But we still don’t have one standard for women’s rights.” This statement starkly reflects the disparity in addressing gender equality compared to other areas where significant progress has been made.
Despite the significant strides made by the EU in various domains, gender equality remains a topic still fought for, even in 2024. The lack of a unified standard for women’s rights in the EU is a glaring issue that speaks to the broader societal and political challenges still faced by women. This is a critical moment for all sectors of society to recognize and act on the importance of achieving gender equality, not just as a moral imperative but as a necessary step for true progress.
He also underscores the importance of solidarity and the role of women in pushing for change, citing personal experiences from Poland, where restrictive abortion laws have had devastating consequences for women’s health and rights. His speech emphasizes the urgency of achieving gender equality and the need for collective action, acknowledging both the progress made and the challenges ahead.
The 2024 Gender Equality Index for the European Union
Davide Barbieri, a Statistics Officer at the EIGE, provided valuable insights into the development and analysis of the Gender Equality Index, which serves as a key benchmark for monitoring gender equality across the EU. Reflecting on the last decade, he acknowledged the significant impact of global events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and other evolving challenges like technological changes, climate change, and demographic shifts. Barbieri discussed how these events have affected gender equality and noted that EIGE’s role is to track these developments in relation to gender across various domains.
The Gender Equality Index measures gender equality in several dimensions of life, including work, income, education, time, power, and health. These domains provide a comprehensive view of gender equality, with a focus on issues such as women’s participation in the labor market, the gender pay gap, education segregation, the distribution of unpaid care work, and women’s representation in political and economic spheres. According to Barbieri, while there has been slow but steady progress over the years, significant disparities persist, particularly in areas such as the domain of power, where women remain underrepresented.
The 2024 Gender Equality Index for the European Union stands at 71 out of 100 points, marking a modest 0.8-point improvement compared to the 2023 score. Since 2010, the overall score has increased by 7.9 points.
Convergence analysis indicates that gender equality disparities within the EU have decreased between 2010 and 2022. While Member States started from different points, 15 countries are now closer to the EU average than they were in 2010, reflecting positive progress toward gender equality across the Union.
He also pointed out that one of the main challenges in the pursuit of gender equality remains addressing gender-based violence. Although not part of the core index, violence against women continues to be a critical issue that hinders true gender equality. According to Barbieri, “Without eradicating gender-based violence, we cannot have full equality in our countries.” This highlights the urgent need to tackle gender-based violence as a central issue in the broader gender equality agenda.
Barbieri further discussed the importance of intersectional analysis in understanding the diverse experiences of gender inequality, noting that factors such as age, family type, educational background, and disability influence how individuals experience gender discrimination. He concluded by reinforcing that while the EU has made progress, there is still much work to be done to ensure full gender equality, particularly in addressing deep-rooted inequalities in education, work, and political representation.
During the “Why Gender Equality Is Still So Important in Times of Full-Scale War?” session, Milena Horiachkovska, Projects’ Coordinator at the Ukrainian Women’s Fund, and Emiliia Nitsevych, Chief Specialist at the Apparatus of the Government Commissioner for Gender Equality Policy, Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, emphasized that despite the ongoing war, gender equality remains crucial for Ukraine’s resilience and future.
Horiachkovska highlighted a sociological study showing that 91% of Ukrainians, regardless of gender, believe in equal opportunities for men and women, linking gender equality to the country’s European integration.
«The high results, including the best score among EU countries in the time domain, demonstrate the resilience of Ukraine’s society and its compliance with European values», – said Projects’ Coordinator at the Ukrainian Women’s Fund.
Nitsevych stressed that gender equality is a government priority, even during wartime, as it directly impacts recovery and resilience. She also explained that the development of a Gender Equality Index, aligned with European standards, reflects Ukraine’s commitment to gender equality and EU integration, ensuring that recovery encompasses not only infrastructure but also the recovery of human capital. «It’s a joint effort of the government of Ukraine and civil society to develop, monitor, and adjust these policies», – said Emiliia Nitsevych.
“European integration of Ukraine will expand opportunities for women in different spheres of life, from political life to social life to economy and so on and so forth.” “European integration is really something that we own. It’s not imposed on us», – added Milena.
They both noted that the Gender Equality Index is an essential tool for monitoring progress in various areas, such as employment, education, and participation in decision-making, and is crucial for guiding long-term strategies for Ukraine’s recovery and integration into the EU.
For the first time in history, the Gender Equality Index is being calculated in a country that is at War.
It is worth recalling that in November 2024, the Ukrainian Women’s Fund, together with the State Statistics Service and the Government Commissioner for Gender Equality Policy, presented the validation report to an expert circle in a roundtable format to discuss methodological approaches and receive professional comments that will be considered in the preparation of the final report of the Index.
This work is being carried out by the Ukrainian Women’s Fund as part of the project “Gender Analytical Centers Network: Strengthening Capacity for Advanced Policy Development, Impact Assessment, Strategic Advocacy, and Focused Communication on Policies,” funded by the European Union.