This essay takes a look at how the European Union deals with questions of gender equality and especially focuses on the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen with her 2019 - 2024 strategy to fight gender inequality.
The EU as a supranational political and economic union has achieved many positive things for its citizens. The Schengen Area formed in 1985 has erased border controls, the Euro has made it a lot easier to pay in the EU by getting rid of most of the member states’ old currencies, and the Erasmus-program makes it possible to study abroad in other EU countries. When it comes to concrete societal impacts, the union also has different topics on its agenda. It not only aims at strengthening democratic participation, but it also pushes for more gender equality in all of its institutions.
The most current data is provided by the Global Gender Gap Report 2023. The paper released by the World Economic Forum lists 146 countries and ten out of the first 25 are members of the EU. The EU itself circulates around the upper half of its member states – at least following the EU’s own Gender Equality Index. The report from 2023 states that the EU-average progress in gender equality is 70.2 out of 100 – with 11 member states doing better than the average and 16 ones doing less good.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Body
- Her ambitious goals
- What she achieved
- The one blemish
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This essay analyzes Ursula von der Leyen's efforts to advance gender equality within the European Union during her presidency from 2019 to 2024. It explores the goals she set, the achievements made, and the limitations encountered in achieving comprehensive progress.
- Von der Leyen's commitment to gender equality in the EU
- Specific initiatives implemented under her presidency
- Assessment of the progress achieved in closing the gender gap
- Challenges and setbacks faced in advancing gender equality
- The significance of Von der Leyen's actions for future efforts
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- Introduction: This chapter introduces the context of the European Union's commitment to gender equality and highlights the relevance of Von der Leyen's agenda in this domain. It also provides data on the EU's progress towards gender equality and positions the EU within global gender equality rankings.
- Body: This chapter outlines Von der Leyen's ambitious goals for gender equality, focusing on the establishment of a gender-equal College of Commissioners and the implementation of a new European Gender Strategy. It then describes specific achievements made under her presidency, including the implementation of mandatory quotas for women on corporate boards, the adoption of the Pay Transparency Directive, and the EU's accession to the Istanbul Convention.
- The one blemish: This section discusses a major setback in Von der Leyen's agenda, specifically the failure to include a consent-based definition of rape in the EU's first-ever law on violence against women. It analyzes the reasons behind this failure and its impact on achieving comprehensive progress in gender equality.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
The essay focuses on the key topics of gender equality, European Union, Ursula von der Leyen, gender strategy, gender gap, corporate quotas, pay transparency, Istanbul Convention, violence against women, and consent-based definition of rape.
- Quote paper
- Tobias Wagner (Author), 2024, European Union and Gender Equality. Von der Leyen's Strategy (2019 - 2024), Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/1490702
