The Congress is undertaking work on women participation to public life, equality between men and women, as well as on women’s rights, for example by introducing quotas in its national delegations, adopting resolutions and recommandations on gender equality, and contributing to actions fighting violence against women.

Introduced in 2008, in accordance with the Congress Charter, the participation of a minimum of 30% of the under-represented sex in national delegations has been ensured since 2011 as a precondition for the approval of the credentials of a delegation.

  • Between 1994 and 2014, 73% (132) of the posts of President and Vice-President were held by men and 27% (49) were held by elected women;
  • For the first time in 2010, the Vice-presidents of the Congress were in equal numbers. Today (mandate 2021-2026), women constitute 50% (8 out of 16 members) of the executive of the Congress (Bureau);
  • For the first time in 2016, a woman was elected President of the Congress.
  • During 2006-2008, the Congress was actively involved in the “Stop domestic violence against women” campaign, and launched in particular a poster campaign in streets and subways of many European cities with the slogan “Cities and regions take a stand”.
  • In co-operation with the Parliamentary Assembly, the Congress organised a photo exhibition entitled “Break the silence on domestic violence“, inaugurated in 2008 and conducted in several cities.
  • In 2009, the Congress adopted Resolution 279 and Recommendation 260 on combating domestic violence against women and called for the development of strategies and measures at local level, to prevent and combat violence against women.
  • In 2020, the Congress adopted Resolution 459 and Recommendation 449 on fighting sexist violence against women in politics called on local and regional elected representatives to position themselves as political leaders against sexist discourse and violence.

Назад Innovative mechanisms, legal frameworks, quotas and training: ways forward for gender equality at local level in Ukraine and Georgia

Innovative mechanisms, legal frameworks, quotas and training: ways forward for gender equality at local level in Ukraine and Georgia

“We need innovative gender parity mechanisms, a legal framework to protect women against machismo in politics, legitimized quotas, awareness raising for children from primary school and gender mainstreaming in education programmes from nursery school onwards”. These were the proposals of the thirty representatives of Ukrainian and Georgian local authorities at the workshop on "Gender equality at the local level: promoting participation and equal opportunities" organised on 22 November 2018 by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe.

The interactive exchanges allowed elected officials and agents of local authorities to work in groups and reflect on ways to bring about change at the local level in terms of gender equality and equal opportunities in their respective countries. They discussed the challenges, stereotypes and cultural barriers, and ways to overcome them, by proposing concrete initiatives in their communities: training, communication campaigns in schools, awareness-raising on the economic benefits of parity, media actions and the involvement of NGOs and civil society, among others.

Participants stressed the responsibility of every citizen, both men and women, and the need for continuous awareness-raising at all levels, as two conditions for eliminating macho stereotypes and reflexes associated with a patriarchal culture which suggests that women should first and foremost take care of children and family. "The fact that Ukraine and Georgia are working together on this issue can be an asset in our respective countries for advancing the cause of gender equality," they stressed.

The Association of Ukrainian Cities and the National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia presented their respective activities in promoting gender equality - including the promotion of the European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life - and initiatives to harmonise national legislation with gender equality objectives.

With regard to Ukraine, participants welcomed the adoption of several texts by the government to accelerate the implementation of international standards on gender equality. This also requires better protection of women against domestic violence, based on a legal framework, in accordance with the principles of the Istanbul Convention, in particular with regard to prevention, protection of victims and prosecution of perpetrators.

The workshop enabled participants to consolidate a network for the exchange of knowledge and experience. This will allow them to share the results of their respective projects, developed both during the workshop and during their participation in the 2018 edition of the World Forum for Democracy.

The workshop was organized by the Congress on the sidelines of the World Forum for Democracy (19-21 November 2018) on the theme "Women/Men: Same fight?" in which the Ukrainian and Georgian delegations participated. It was a follow-up to meetings between local authorities in both Georgia and Ukraine, notably the 5th World Summit of the Partnership for Open Government, held in Tbilisi, Georgia, in July 2018, and in order to implement the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Association of Ukrainian Cities and the National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia in June 2017.

This study visit was organised as part of the project "Strengthening democracy and building trust at local level in Ukraine", implemented as part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2021. The objective is to improve the quality of local democracy in Ukraine by strengthening institutional frameworks and supporting local authorities and their national associations in their efforts to promote ethical decision-making and more civic, inclusive, responsive and transparent local governance.

Contacts:

Marité MORAS, Head of Unit, Cooperation and External Relations Department, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe, Tel: +33 3 88 41 41 22 33

Svitlana GRYSHCHENKO, Project Manager, Council of Europe Office in Ukraine,

Tel: +380 96 340 13 83

Cooperation Strasbourg, France 28 November 2018
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In the Resolution 404 (2016), the Congress stresses the importance of adopting and implementing the European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life, launched by the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) in 2006, as a sound step towards gender equality, gender mainstreaming and the promotion of equal opportunities for women and men in local political and public life.