Foreign Minister Allamand inaugurated forum on gender equality in Chile and the EU on International Women's Day

In the framework of the commemoration of International Women's Day, the Chilean Agency for International Development Cooperation (AGCID) and the Delegation of the European Union in Chile, joined by the EUROsociAL + Program, organized the virtual seminar: "Advancing in gender equality and in greater democracy: views from Chile and the European Union", whose objective was to exchange views on experiences, challenges and opportunities related to the democratic challenges and political participation of women candidates within the framework of the Chilean constitutional process.

This seminar was inaugurated by the Minister of Foreign Relations of Chile, Andrés Allamand; the Director for Latin America and the Caribbean of the General Directorate of International Associations of the European Commission, Jolita Butkeviciene; and counted with the participation of the Minister of Women and Gender Equity of Chile, Mónica Zalaquett; the Ambassador of the European Union in Chile, León de la Torre and the Ambassador of Portugal in Chile, Antonio Rocha; who, in addition to agreeing that the constituent process that Chile is about to undergo is unique in the world, reflected on how to advance in gender equality and greater democracy.

At the same time, two experts, one European and one Chilean, Lena Wängnerud, Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden; and Mariana Canales, Lawyer from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and researcher at the Institute of Studies of the Society spoke about their views on the matter, emphasizing the importance of the presence -real and effective- of women in political processes and the spaces of representation.

This activity is part of the initiative "Chile-European Union Forum" with which it is intended to exchange experiences, both on the constituent process and on essential content, such as social cohesion, access to a welfare system or the guarantee of fundamental rights, showing the lessons learned from the European Constitutions from their diversity.