Step 6: Setting gender equality objectives

Rationale

Different goals for the advancement of gender equality are appropriate for different organisations, depending upon the organisation’s exact policy area and field of activity.

Rationale

Key aspects

Using this framework as a background for the implementation of gender mainstreaming, it is essential to specify the overriding equality goals for the respective policy areas and spheres of activity. These goals can then act as a driving force and offer clear guidance to staff members, e.g. for developing gender equality action plans.

Developing specific major goals for advocating gender equality within a specific organisation involves ‘translating’ general – and often very abstract – goals for a specific policy area or field of activity.

Whilst defining specific major goals for gender equality:

  • considerations should be made about how to observe and evaluate the attainment of these goals
  • use an organisation’s regular reporting and controlling procedures to examine the objectives for gender equality
  • all evaluations should include the organisation’s equality goals as part of the analysis and assessment

The objectives of public institutions are prescribed by policy. At an international and European level, the overriding framework for the national gender equality politics of EU member states is formed by the following documents: ‘Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)’, the ‘Beijing Platform for Action’, the EU Treaty (Articles 1a & 2) as well as resulting directives, the ‘European Pact for Gender Equality’ concluded by the Council of the European Union (7 March 2011) and the Women’s Charter, launched by the European Commission in 2010 (COM (2010) 78 final).

Examples

In the Gender Equality Framework Programme of Berlin there are ten defined overarching gender equality principles used as guiding policy goals:

  1. “Women and men define and characterise equally the social life in its political, economic, cultural and social facets.
  2. Women and men have equal rights and self-determination in all aspects and stages of their lives.
  3. Women and men earn their own livelihood and poverty-proof pension, based on good education and training, equal pay 4) and equal access to the labour market.
  4. Women and men share equally in household work and family care, child education and care while maintaining their independent living.
  5. Women and men partake equally in the resources of the Federal State (of Berlin).
  6. Women and men can rely on an administration that talks, writes and acts gender just.
  7. Women and men learn and teach in a gender sensitive way in schools, kindergarten and all other educational institutions.
  8. Women and men receive gender just services in health care and sports.
  9. Women and men feel safe and live free from violence as well as sexist discrimination in the private and public sphere.
  10. Women and men develop freely their personality and are perceived and respected in their diversity.”

View Example