Contracts have been awarded to representatives of nine local municipalities in Serbia for the third consecutive time, aimed at promoting gender equality at the grassroots level. This initiative is part of the project “Support to Priority Actions for Gender Equality in Serbia” (Gender Equality Facility – GEF), funded by the European Union.
The official handover ceremony, part of the “Key Steps towards Gender Equality in Serbia, phase 2” project, was jointly organised by the Serbian Government’s Coordination Body for Gender Equality and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) in Serbia. The event was graced by Ms. Plamena Halačeva, Deputy Ambassador of the European Union to Serbia, Ms. Gordana Predić, special advisor to the head of the Coordination Body, and Ms. Milana Rikanović, head of UN Women in Serbia.
Contracts were presented at the Serbian Government headquarters to representatives from Kruševac, Zaječar, Užice, Bačka Palanka, Despotovac, Petrovac na Mlavi, Trstenik, Aleksinac, and Knić. All these municipalities recognised the importance of incorporating a gender perspective into their action plans.
With this support, local authorities and gender equality mechanisms are expected to further advance gender equality and improve the status of women within their communities.
Deputy Ambassador of the EU in Serbia, Plamena Halačeva, stated that with this batch of contracts, a total of 39 local municipalities are now actively participating in the Gender Equality Programme.
“I see the synergies of this initiative with all programmes and activities geared towards enhancing women’s rights in Serbia. The aim is to make the entire region fairer and more gender-balanced. The EU will continue to back both national and local authorities, as well as all other advocates of gender equality,” Halačeva asserted.
This project primarily aims to bolster the position of women and support local authorities in the realm of gender equality. During its first phase in 2018-2019, 20 local gender equality mechanisms received support. The second phase in 2022 aided ten local municipalities in implementing local gender equality action plans.
The primary goal of this facet of the GEF project is to strengthen the effectiveness of local authorities in fulfilling gender equality obligations by aiding the local mechanism for gender equality in drafting and executing one or more activities from the adopted Local Gender Equality Action Plan.
Photo: europa.rs