The Council of Figueres (Catalonia, Spain) has a new Local Action Plan for Gender Equality. It has the goal of strength policies that aim to reduce inequalities between man and women; empower women as social, political and economic active actors; and contribute to a gender mainstreaming strategy, through the incorporation of a gender perspective into all policies and municipal areas.
The development of the new Local Action Plan for Gender Equality has followed a qualitative and participatory methodological approach –with civil organizations, women of very diverse profiles and professionals of the local administration. That process has led to two distinct products:
• Diagnosis (Phase 1): The diagnosis of a qualitative analysis of the needs of women and gender policies developed in the municipality.
• Local Action Plan for Gender Equality (Phase 2): The Local Action Plan has been developed through the creation of the Equality Commission, composed of professionals from the local administration and other public services and organizations in the municipality, to develop the actions to be implemented in the coming years by the different areas and institutions.
The participatory approach of the new plan guarantees the coherence of the proposals and actions linked to the regional needs, and ensure their viability through the municipal technical commitment. At the same time, the Action Plan has been validated and has the support of a Political Committee that oversees its implementation.
