VIENNA/WARSAW, 6 March 2025 – Ahead of International Women’s Day, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights held a webinar today entitled “Towards Gender Parity and Transformative Gender Equality Policy: The Role of Parliamentary Bodies.” Bringing together some 160 participants from OSCE national parliaments, field operations, governmental structures, permanent missions and international organizations, the participants of the online event underscored the crucial role of parliamentary institutions in advancing gender equality and fostering inclusive governance.
The webinar provided a platform to explore diverse approaches to gender equality in parliaments, from formal standing committees to informal women’s caucuses. While innovative practices have emerged, disparities in effectiveness and implementation persist, highlighting the need for a renewed commitment to achieving gender parity in political decision-making.
“Gender equality is not just a principle – it is essential to building resilient democracies and fostering sustainable economic growth,” said OSCE PA Deputy Secretary General Gustavo Pallares in his opening remarks. “As parliamentarians and representatives of international organizations, we hold a unique responsibility to turn commitments into tangible actions. Through our collective efforts, we can ensure that everyone, regardless of gender, has equal opportunities to contribute to and benefit from our democratic institutions.”
“One of the key messages of today’s event is the urgent need for renewed focus on gender equality, not only in parliaments but also across all sectors of society. As we move forward, it is vital that we support existing parliamentary bodies while also exploring new, innovative ways for parliamentarians – both men and women – to work together towards this common goal,” emphasized Tea Jaliashvili, ODIHR First Deputy Director.
Kenneth Forslund, Deputy Speaker of the Swedish Riksdag, noted the importance of collaboration within parliament to promote gender-sensitive policies, underlining the value of taking a practical approach to reforms that can have a real benefit in achieving gender parity. He highlighted a number of programmes that have been implemented in the Riksdag, including child care and shortening the workday in parliament in order to enable parents to get home in a timely fashion. This makes it possible particularly for younger parliamentarians to balance their public service with family life, he said.
Croatian parliamentarian Marija Lugaric spoke about the experience of the Gender Equality Committee in her parliament, noting the importance of analyzing the impact of legislation on different genders and ensuring that parliamentary bodies have strong mandates that outline clearly defined roles. It is particularly important, she said, that gender equality committees not only advocate for new policy as advisory bodies but have the authority to participate in the legislative process.
Participants also heard presentations from Petra Ahrens from Tempere University and Tamara Pesic from the Parliament of Montenegro. Pesic spoke about the experience of Montenegro, explaining the importance of formal-informal collaboration and maintaining various channels for women parliamentarians to express their views. Even small changes can make a big difference when striving for gender parity, she stressed.
The importance of OSCE PA-ODIHR collaboration in advancing gender-sensitive policies was also stressed, with speakers noting the value of this longstanding partnership in promoting democracy and human rights. This co-operation, it was emphasized, has been instrumental in advancing efforts in election observation, strengthening parliamentary integrity, promoting disability inclusion in national parliaments, combating violence against women, and advancing gender equality.
In this regard, the latest joint publication by OSCE PA and ODIHR, “Parliamentary Bodies for Gender Equality: Overview and Recommendations,” offers valuable guidance to strengthen and enhance the work of such bodies in the years to come. This research emphasizes the importance of dedicated parliamentary bodies in promoting gender-sensitive legislation and policies.
