European Union Presidency: 70% female employment by 2020

With Spain holding the EU presidency for the first half of 2010, Spanish Prime Minister José Zapatero plans to speed up the process to Gender Equality in the EU. While speaking at the ‘Women for a Better World’ Conference in Valencia, Zapatero stressed that during the Spanish EU presidency, Spain would continue to support the inclusion of the “complete affirmation of equality between men and women” within the Union’s new economic strategy. He said the aim would be to increase the level of female employment to 70% by 2020 and to reduce the salary gap by as much as possible.
Zapatero, whose speech closed the two-day event attended by some 500 women, mostly from Europe and Africa, said that throughout the Spanish EU Presidency he would continue to promote new ways to support, at European level, the struggle against gender violence. “When we encourage equality throughout the world, we are building a fairer future, and when we cut back on discrimination, we are gaining ground for the dignity of everyone,” he said.

Gender Inklusion Internationalität Sprache Englisch