Fruitful discussions at the 24th GEC plenary meeting on 14-16 November 2023 in Strasbourg led to the approval of the draft Gender Equality Strategy 2024-2029. It will be for the Committee of Ministers to adopt the Council of Europe’s third Gender Equality Strategy. The new Strategy is structured around six thematic objectives addressing existing and emerging challenges and will provide the framework for the work of the Council of Europe and its member States in the field of gender equality for the coming years. At the meeting the GEC also adopted the report on the implementation of the Council of Europe’s Recommendation on preventing and combating sexism presenting information from 28 member States on measures taken in line with the Recommendation. The report includes several promising practices and also details initiatives from 9 civil society organisations. 

A highlight of the meeting was the GEC’s very interesting exchange of views with the President of the European Court of Human Rights, Síofra O’Leary, on gender equality and the caselaw of the Court, including emerging trends. The discussion with the President of the Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO), Maria-Andriani Kostopoulou, was an opportunity to discuss legal and policy changes on the criminalisation and prosecution of sexual violence and to share updates about possible new ratifications of the Istanbul Convention by member States. 

Finally, the GEC elected its Bureau, renewing the mandates of Ralph KASS (Luxembourg) as Chair, and Maria Ellul (Malta) as Vice-Chair and electing Sara Slana (Slovenia) as the new Bureau member.