Women's rights: local and regional authorities are pivotal to speed up progress

The next EU long-term budget must mainstream gender equality

Local and regional leaders urge the EU to recognise them as strategic partners in the new Gender Equality Strategy and to integrate gender equality in the next EU long-term budget 2028-2034 to advance women's rights across all EU regions.

 At the plenary session of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) on 14 October, local leaders adopted the opinion led by Carina Ohlsson (SE/PES), Member of Lidköping Municipal Council, endorsing the European Commission's Roadmap for Women’s Rights and the Declaration of Principles for a Gender-Equal Society, as a solid basis for the next EU Gender Equality Strategy.

While acknowledging the progress achieved so far, CoR members warned that the Roadmap still fails to recognise fully the key role of local and regional authorities (LRAs) in implementing gender equality policies on the ground. They stressed that real progress can only be achieved if LRAs are fully engaged and provided with adequate financial and human resources to act as strategic partners in shaping and delivering on the Roadmap and the new EU Gender Equality Strategy.

The CoR reaffirmed the status of gender equality as a fundamental European value and urged its systematic integration across all EU programmes under the next long-term budget 2028–2034 (Multiannual Financial Framework), including cohesion and recovery funds. Members called for gender-responsive budgeting and objectives, to ensure that regional development strategies contribute to closing gender gaps and promoting social justice, including in less developed and rural areas, where women face multiple and intersecting barriers. The debate took place on the eve of International Day of Rural Women.

Regional and local leaders called on the European Commission and Member States to adopt a definition of rape based on the absence of consent, in line with the Istanbul Convention, and advocated for access to quality healthcare for all women and for sexual and reproductive rights, including abortion, across the EU.  

Regions and cities stressed that to achieve women's full participation in the economy, politics and society, it is necessary to guarantee equal pay and a more equitable distribution of care responsibilities, support female entrepreneurship and promote inclusive education. They also emphasised that accountability mechanisms, such as gender equality observatories and regular gender audits, are essential to ensure that commitments result in real measurable progress.

Quote:

Rapporteur Carina Ohlsson (SE/PES), Member of Municipal Council, Lidköping Municipality: "Gender equality is not an abstract principle, but a daily reality shaped in our towns and regions. With this opinion, we call for women’s rights to be fully mainstreamed in EU policies and budgets, ensuring that local and regional authorities have the tools to drive lasting change on the ground."

Lina Galvez (S&D/ES), Member of the European Parliament and Chair of the FEMM committee: "The increasing backlash against feminism is, fundamentally, a movement against democracy itself. Strengthening women's rights at the regional level is crucial to safeguard our values. We must ensure local leaders have the tools to promote true gender equality across Europe also to preserve our democracy."

 Background

•  Video and photos from the debate;
• On 7 March 2025, the European Commission adopted the Roadmap for Women’s Rights. It sets out a long-term vision for achieving gender equality, based on the principles and policy objectives of the Declaration of Principles, and aims to advance women’s rights and promote gender equality across the EU.
• The 2025 EU Annual Report on the State of Regions and Cities, published by the CoR on 13 October, highlights that Women’s presence in regional and local assemblies is vital for inclusive governance and effective gender-sensitive policies and stresses that closing the gender gap could unlock up to €3.15 trillion in EU GDP by 2050.