Gender Mainstreaming in Türkiye within The Framework of The “European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life”
Gender Mainstreaming in Türkiye within The Framework of The “European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life”

Author(s): Zeynep Banu Dalaman
Subject(s): Politics / Political Sciences, Social Sciences, Psychology, Essay|Book Review |Scientific Life, General Reference Works, Geography, Regional studies, Library and Information Science, Sociology
Published by: Transnational Press London
Keywords: Local Life; European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life; Municipalities; Türkiye; Gender mainstreaming; Local Equality Action Plan
Summary/Abstract: Although there is no article in the national legislation in Türkiye that restricts women’s political rights, it is seen that the participation of women in decision-making mechanisms in the public sphere, both at the national and local level, is quite limited. According to the 2022 data from the World Economic Forum (WEF), Türkiye ranks 124th among 146 countries in the Gender Equality Ranking and 112th in the political empowerment ranking. “The European Charter for Equality of Women and Men in Local Life” was prepared in 2006 by the European Council of Municipalities and Regions (CEMR). This document is among the activities carried out under governance, democracy, and citizenship. It encourages local and regional governments to make a public commitment to achieving gender equality and implement the principles in the Charter. This specification, supported by the Union of Municipalities of Türkiye, has been signed by 31 municipalities in Turkey. Later, when the Istanbul Convention was withdrawn, the activities were slowed down, and the applications of the municipalities that signed and wanted to sign later were suspended. With a project carried out by the Association for Supporting Women Candidates, 17 new municipalities have signed terms, and then training has been given to promote gender equality. The organized capacity-building activities were evaluated under three main headings: relevance, effectiveness and sustainability. The most important commitment of the 17 signatories in terms of ensuring sustainability is to prepare the Local Action Equality Plan within two years. This study evaluates the steps taken by the pilot municipalities involved in the project to prepare the Local Equality Action Plan due to the capacity-building training that lasted for one year. A survey study and interviews with municipalities were carried out as a method. The participation of municipalities from different regions in the research revealed the importance of regional differences in promoting gender mainstreaming.

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