OSCE foreign ministers renew commitment to gender equality and women’s leadership on the 20th anniversary of the Gender Action Plan

A high-level side-event held on 5 December on the margins of the OSCE Ministerial Council marked 20 years of the OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality (GAP). Adopted in 2004, the GAP sets a firm political commitment and objectives to advance gender equality across the Organization and in participating States, as an essential prerequisite for peace, security, and sustainable development across the OSCE region.

The OSCE Chair-in-Office, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism of Malta, Ian Borg, opened the Ministerial Council side-event. He spoke alongside OSCE Troika partners Elina Valtonen, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of North Macedonia, Zoran Dimitrovski.

The discussions reflected on two decades of progress against the objectives set out in the GAP by the participating States as well as the important support provided by the OSCE Secretariat, the Institutions and the Field Operations. Ministers underscored the strong evidence that gender-responsive approaches are the best approach to addressing contemporary security challenges and reaffirmed the importance of comprehensive action to advance the Women, Peace, and Security agenda.

The side event, moderated by the OSCE Senior Advisor on Gender Issues Lara Scarpitta, also featured two beneficiaries of the OSCE Gender Issues Programme. Khrystyna Kit, Head of the Ukrainian Women Lawyers Association (JurFem), and Heela Yoon, Founder of Afghan Youth Ambassadors for Peace Organization, shared testimonies about their work advancing gender equality in conflict impacted countries, supporting women’s rights and fostering dialogue and resilience in their communities.

Chair-in-Office Borg, highlighted the Chairpersonship work this year to prioritise inclusion and mainstreaming gender. He asked participating States to use the event to “reaffirm their support for the obligations and objectives set out in the Action Plan on promoting Gender Equality. We must all address the remaining gaps and accelerate efforts to deliver full gender equality.”

Organized as part of the ‘16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence,’ the side event also stressed the importance of combatting violence against women. Given the prevalence of gender-based violence across the OSCE, including in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine. Participants acknowledged that more work was needed.

This year’s side-event also provided a platform to look to the future, assess challenges, and express a recommitment to future progress on gender equality, to ensure inclusive pathways toward meaningful participation and security.

Participants agreed that the OSCE remains a unique platform to support participating States in advancing gender equality, and welcomed strategic initiatives, such as the WIN project.  

They also welcomed Finland’s commitment to continue work next year as incoming Chair on promoting gender equality, mainstreaming gender and implementing the Women peace and Security Agenda.