NEWS

         

In recent months, Metropolis Women International Network has been working on developing a position paper entitled "Big cities and women: the importance of gender mainstreaming in local policies". Drawn up jointly with the antennas and partner organizations, this text seeks to reflect what kind of cities women want: safe, inclusive, just and equitable cities.

The document states that: It is only by making gender a key factor in the development and implementation of public policy that we can hope to advance gender equality and human rights across our cities.

The document ends with some proposals to answer the question: How can we promote gender mainstreaming in local public policies to achieve gender equality in our cities? Some key elements arise from this question, such as:

• Strong and concrete commitment by the major local political representatives. Full support from municipal agents in ensuring that gender equality policies are fulfilled (avoiding gaps between the political discourse and actual implementation).
• Implementing a dual strategy within the municipality/metropolitan area: on the one hand, by developing specific policies for women living in the city to protect their rights and to empower them and, on the other, by committing to the integration of the gender perspective in all municipal areas and prioritising policy projects (by establishing a gender equality committee or gender focal point with a clear mandate and resources).
• Dismantling or restructuring gender roles and gender stereotypes (related to cultural aspects) through education.

In addition, Metropolis Women works to define the five regional agendas and a global agenda to help trace the main lines of action and cooperation between our cities.
Metropolis Women International Network works on three levels: to provide content to the network itself, to ensure the implementation of gender mainstreaming in Metropolis, and also to influence internationally.