Strasbourg, 9 March 2022
Members of the European Parliament gathered at the plenary session this week to discuss and vote on several important files, including the report on the EU Gender Action Plan III. Member of the European Parliament and AFET Vice-Chair Željana Zovko negotiated on behalf of the EPP an opinion within the Foreign Affairs Committee that formed the basis for the plenary report. She welcomed the main lines of the report’s final text that sets out clear and comprehensive objectives to achieve better gender equality.
„Increasing the participation and representation of women in all sectors is crucial for sustainable progress and economic growth. The European Union and our Member States must continue their efforts to achieve gender equality everywhere, especially in the labour market. We need strong and confident women at the table as decision makers. This is crucial to overcome current challenges and allow equal and meaningful participation of all women and men“- Zovko stressed, adding that it is important to tackle the problem of structural inequalities and diminish pay discrimination.
As an active advocate for women’s rights, Zovko is highly involved in this topic in her work in the European Parliament. In the last parliamentary term, Zovko was EPP rapporteur for the DEVE opinion for the Report on Women, Gender Equality and Climate Justice, and in October 2020 she worked on behalf of the EPP on the AFET opinion for the report on gender equality in EU foreign and security policy. Besides that, she regularly hosts meetings with young women political leaders and events to raise awareness of the importance of women’s role in our society. Last week, she organised a roundtable in Split last week on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
“This issue needs to be highlighted every day, not only on the 8th of March. We need to encourage young girls and women to raise their voices and take a more decisive role because this world is very insecure and their participation is vital” – Zovko concluded.