The Management Board of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) is pleased to announce that it has reappointed Ms. Virginija Langbakk as Director for a further period of five years.

Ms. Langbakk, who has Swedish and Lithuanian roots, oversaw the establishment of the Institute, a statutory independent Agency of the European Union, which is located in Vilnius, Lithuania.

EIGE’s role links to the commitment in the European Treaties to foster gender equality as a fundamental principle. EIGE works closely with the European Institutions and with the Member States to strengthen gender equality by collecting and disseminating cross European comparable data on a range of indicators; developing tools to enable administrations at both EU and national levels to integrate gender equality into all policies; encourage the exchange of research and good practices and to promote the public consciousness of gender equality

Drawn from a very wide range of activities and outcomes, a key achievement of the first five years was the publication of the European Gender Equality Index in 2013, which offers a comparative base by which all Member States can evaluate their progress to the achievement of gender parity.

The Management Board looks forward to collaborating with the Director and her excellent team over the next five years, during which the Board is confident that EIGE will continue to go from strength to strength, serving as the premier centre for expertise on all aspects on gender equality within the European Union.

Further information on the extensive work to date and future work plans of EIGE can be found on its website www.eige.europa.eu.