The Government of Ukraine has intensified efforts to align its national policy, legislative and institutional framework with the European Union’s (EU) Gender Equality Policy, with the support of the EU-funded EU4Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk project.

Gender equality is a core EU principle, firmly integrated into the Union’s legal policy framework. Countries seeking EU membership must align their national policies with the EU’s Gender Equality Policy to ensure that they meet the needs of women and men, girls and boys, in all their diversity.

As a candidate for EU accession, the Government of Ukraine is doing just that. Following a study visit organised for a Ukrainian government delegation to EU institutions working on gender equality, the EU4Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk provided expert support for the organisation of a dynamic Strategic Session on ‘Ukraine’s Gender Equality Policy on its Way to the European Union’ (Kyiv, 25 February 2023).  The event drew together representatives of the Office of Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, the Office of the Government Commissionaire on the Gender Equality Policy of Ukraine, central executive bodies, Members of Parliament, civil society organisations and the donor community. 

Participants in the Strategic Session defined priorities, methods and instruments related to the EU Member States’ gender equality policies, as well as identifying gaps in Ukrainian legislation, where changes are needed to align it with EU provisions. Stakeholders worked together to draft a Roadmap for “Ukraine’s movement to the EU gender equality standards” that establishes specific objectives to bring Ukraine’s gender policy in line with EU priorities. The Roadmap is structured along six areas or ‘toolsets’ recommended by the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE). These are gender awareness, gender-related capacity building, gender analysis/assessment and programming, valid data, gender-responsive budgeting, and gender-sensitive procurement.

The Reform Helpdesk supported Ukraine’s Government Commissionaire on Gender Equality Policy, in close cooperation with UN Women, the Ukrainian Women’s Fund, the Women’s Information Consultative Centre, and other stakeholders.

The EU4GenderEquality: Reform Helpdesk project, funded by the European Union and implemented by Niras, aims to ensure effective and equal results for women and men across Eastern Partnership countries – including Ukraine – by expanding the use of gender analysis in decision-making and reforms.

Learn more about EU support for gender equality

EU4GenderEquality Reform Helpdesk

EU4 Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk – factsheet

EU4Gender Equality Reform Helpdesk’s support (2021–2022) for Ukraine