Gender equality and the EU – UN Women’ GEF project organize trainings on Gender Mainstreaming in IPA Processes

The Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) supports capacity-building in countries candidates for the EU accession. The intended results are positive and progressive reforms should provide citizens, both women and men, with better opportunities and allow for the development of standards equal to those enjoyed by citizens of the EU. Therefore, for the political and economic reforms to benefit both women and men, it is crucial to take gender into consideration in every step of IPA programme design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

Within the Gender Equality Facility project, UN Women North Macedonia partners with the Training Center in the Secretariat for European Affairs to organise a series of trainings on Gender Mainstreaming in IPA Processes. Three training cycles were conducted during November-December 2022, where 50 staff members from the government administration in ministries and agencies involved in IPA programming, completed the basic training and gained stronger understanding and practical knowledge on the international and national legal and strategic frameworks on gender equality and gender mainstreaming.

The training participants are now ready and able to identify the entry points for gender mainstreaming in IPA programming, to understand the usage of gender markers, to know when and how to use specific gender mainstreaming tools, with a focus on gender analyses, and how to formulate gender goals and indicators in their practical work on the country’s action documents.

Following the implementation of the basic level trainings, UN Women implemented a three-day Training of Trainers, making the participating IPA staff able for practical application of the gender mainstreaming tools in IPA programming processes and to apply gender mainstreaming tools, including gender analysis in action documents and logical frameworks of IPA projects.

The project -- Gender mainstreaming advisory services to North Macedonia’s administration at central level (Gender Equality Facility (GEF)) -- supports the Government of North Macedonia in bringing the EU Gender Equality acquis into the EU accession agenda.

UN Women leads the technical implementation of the GEF project. Activities of the project have been developed in collaboration with the Secretariat for European Affairs (SEA), and the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy (MLSP)/ Equal Access Opportunities Department.

To learn more about the project: https://eca.unwomen.org/en/where-we-are/north-macedonia/gender-equality-facility-advisory-services-to-the-administration-of-north-macedonia