Gender inequality hindering progress towards Lisbon goals, claims Commission report
The first Commission report on progress towards gender mainstreaming in individual policy areas claims that while there are positive trends in some fields, including research, the continuing lack of equality in other areas is diminishing the EU's competitive potential. The report was compiled at the request of the European Council and will be presented at their next meeting at the end of March. It states that progress towards equality between women and men over the last ten years is evident in the EU, and to a certain extent in the acceding countries, but in spite of various achievements, action is still needed. '[S]uccess in promoting equality and narrowing gender gaps in policy fields, such as employment, social inclusion, education, research and external relations, differs over time and between Member States, and significant gender gaps still exist in most policy fields,' states the report. And these gender gaps are also damaging the EU's attempts to meet the Lisbon goals of becoming the world's most competitive economy by 2010, and creating more and better jobs and greater social cohesion, deduces the Commission: 'The need to fully utilise the productive potential of the European labour force is key to achieving the overall Lisbon strategy goals [...]. The promotion of women's participation in the labour market and efforts aiming at eliminating gender gaps in all spheres of life are crucial for success.' Even statistics showing the gender gap to be closing in some policy areas can be deceptive. For example, while the numbers of men and women enrolling in higher education are converging, the study areas chosen by men and women continue to follow traditional gender stereotyped patterns. In 2001, just 36 per cent of those graduating with a degree in the sciences, mathematics or informatics were female, while only 21 per cent of those graduating from an engineering, buildings or construction course were women. This imbalance is then transferred to the labour market. On a more positive note, while women remain under-represented in Europe's scientific workforce, comprising only 30 per cent of public sector researchers and 15 per cent of industrial researchers, there are signs that this situation may slowly be changing. The Commission's 'She Figures 2003', containing statistics on women and science, highlights an increase in the numbers of women working in science, and a higher growth rate among women than men in all countries except Belgium and Italy.