Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine

The Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on Ukraine’s Integration into the EU, in cooperation with the UN Women in Ukraine and with the support of the governments of Denmark and Sweden, discussed gender equality in EU Integration.

The goal of the event was to raise the awareness of MPs and state servants about their role in promoting gender equality, protecting rights and expanding opportunities for women.

The participants discussed best practices of the EU member states, in particular, regarding the analysis and monitoring of legislation, legal approximation, as well as legislative initiatives aimed at achieving gender equality.

The discussion was moderated by the Chair of the Committee on Ukraine's Integration into the EU Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze and the first deputy Chairman of the Committee Vadym Halaychuk. Members of the European Parliament, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, representatives of embassies, international development partners and civil society organisations took part in the discussion.

Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze noted that after the start of Russia's war against Ukraine awareness of the role of women was raised. “It is clear to us that women are underrepresented in various areas of political and economic life at the decision-making stage. Before the war, women made up 55% of the population of Ukraine. Therefore, we should use this potential for the development and addressing challenges of our state,” said the Chair of the Committee. She noted that Ukraine is currently at a very important stage moving towards its strategic goals. “We have candidate status, the decision of the European Council to start membership negotiations with Ukraine was made, and now we are at the stage where we are waiting for the approval of the negotiation framework with Ukraine. We hope that we will be able to get this framework already in June so that we can move forward. Gender equality is one of the important values in the European Union. It must be reflected in our laws, rules and procedures,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze. According to her, it is necessary to improve procedures both in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and in the Government with the involvement of civil society, which for many decades was the only promotor of gender equality, and today is a partner of state authorities. The Council of Europe, according to the Chair of the Committee, defined the prioritisation of gender policy as the reorganisation and evaluation of policy development processes so that the gender perspective is included in all policies, at all levels, by all actors involved in the decision-making process. “We are still far from the gender equality policy focus at every stage of the decision-making. We still have a lot of work to do,” said Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze.

Vice-speaker Olena Kondratiuk noted that today the presence of women in politics is still low compared to Europe (21% here versus 31% in EU countries). Therefore, focus should be made  on finding possibilities to ensure quotas for women in the supervisory boards of enterprises and the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada committees, launching a gender examination of draft laws, so that they take into account the needs of women. Women with temporary protection in the EU countries should also be granted not only a right to vote, but also to run for office.

The first deputy Chairman of the Committee, Vadym Halaichuk, emphasised the extreme importance of the topic of gender equality in various aspects since the legislative initiatives previously adopted by the Parliament in this area had a wide resonance, and this shows how sensitive this topic is for Ukrainian society.

According to him, observance of formal obligations and a formalistic approach does not guarantee the achievement of the declared result. There is still a lot to work to do, in particular, in the context of the legislative changes, including in the process of EU integration, and the need to observe the gender balance of the state budget. “The focus of the conference participants on specific problems and proposals for their solution is a very good result of our today's panel Gender-specific topics in Parliaments,” noted Vadym Halaichuk.

The EU Ambassador to Ukraine  Katarína Mathernová noted that there is no direct regulation of many aspects of ensuring gender equality in European law. There is regulation of certain issues, but in general, gender equality is a basic principle. And it is rather about the spirit, and not about the letter of the law. The EU has 27 members, and extremely different approaches to gender equality issues. Katarína Mathernová noted that, on the one hand, the process of European integration is a driving force and impetus for changes in matters of gender equality in Ukraine. But on the other hand, how these issues will be implemented in practice, how the gender lens will be applied in various areas during the formation of various policies, also depends on Ukraine's internal efforts.

At the same time, there are directives related to gender issues, which Ukraine will have to implement in its legislation. They regulate equal pay, the participation of women in corporate boards, and the balance of work and rest. “This is an important piece of legislation, but this legislation does not fully regulate the issue. It is rather the spirit of the law, the adoption of which largely depends on local traditions, policies, and activities,” said the EU Ambassador to Ukraine. To help prepare for the widest possible provision of gender equality, the EU supports several projects in partnership with local authorities, non-governmental and international organisations. Katarína Mathernová also noted that during the war, the attitude towards minorities in Ukraine improved. Discourses that seemed impossible three years ago have appeared in society. “This is a good basis for the fully participation of women in the process of making important, strategic decisions,” said Katarina Maternova.