Gender mainstreaming has been considered in the Mediterranean countries as a symbol of pride and as a priority since always. Yet, women are still under-represented in boardrooms across all industries and though there are signs of improvement, a glass ceiling continues to exist even within the Boardroom hierarchy as stated by the OECD Analytical Database on Individual Multinationals and their Affiliates (ADIMA). According to the OECD study, women make up only 16% of board members in the top 500 MNEs (by market capital), with shares as low as 12% in the technology sector. The European Institute for gender equality EIGE revealed that in 2019 (2nd quarter), women accounted for 31% of parliament members in EU countries. The number of women in business leadership is low: women accounted for just 27.8% of board members of the companies registered in EU countries.

The causes for the under-representation of women in decision-making processes and positions are multiple and complex.

The main reasons are traditional: gender roles and stereotypes, the lack of support for women and men to balance care responsibilities with work, and the prevalent political and corporate cultures.

Many studies revealed that the advancement of women in leadership and management is integral to the growth and success of companies. With the evolution of labour markets, the high educational and skill levels of women and their growing role in the economies, women today hold a wealth of talent and resources that can be tapped by companies. These latter can play a key role in advancing women in the workplace and ensuring greater gender parity at the board level.

Following these findings, the Committee “Gender Mainstreaming and women empowerment” has been created in the framework of the EBSOMED project with the aim to join the forces to promote gender diversity in the Euro-Mediterranean Region with a special focus on women in board as it’s a growing necessity for companies to thrive and grow in today’s environment.

In this sense, BUSINESSMED, in the framework of EBSOMED, is organising a webinar on 18 December 2020 in order to:

• present the commission’s mission and purpose of the study by giving insights into the gender mainstreaming process in the target countries and challenges ahead
• present the first results of the study and the factsheet elaborated following the research phase of the committee
• learn more about gender equality policies and role of women in the post-Covid-19 recovery in the Mediterranean
• take part of the debate on women’s participation in public life and Decision-Making positions
• disseminate good practices favoring gender diversity and measuring gender diversity across industries and Mediterranean countries

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Registration is available via this link.