Portuguese Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality

Date established:

October 2006

Mode of establishment:

Decree law

Status:

National Equality Body

Mandate/objectives:

To guarantee the implementation of public policies in the area of citizenship and the promotion and defence of gender equality.

Grounds of Discrimination covered:

Mainly sex and sexual orientation, but recently also the other grounds of Article 13 of the EC Treaty

Competences and responsibilities:

§        To support the elaboration of global and sectorial policy towards the promotion of citizenship and gender equality and to participate in its execution;

§        To elaborate proposals, to address opinions, according to the law, in the cross-cutting domains of Education for Citizenship, Equality and Non-discrimination between men and women, protection of maternity and paternity, reconciliation of both professional, personal and familiar life of women and men and to combat all forms of gender violence and support its victims;

§        To promote education for citizenship;

§        To promote raising awareness actions among the public opinion and to adopt good practices concerning gender equality, a parity participation in the economic, social, politics and familiar life and to combat discrimination, specially by supporting Non Governmental Organisations and quality awards;

§        To keep informed and sensibilized the public opinion through the media, publications and its own documentation centre and library;

§        To develop an information juridical centre, to provide advocacy services and to guarantee the access to advocacy support, specially in discrimination and gender violence cases;

§        To ensure the ways of institutional participation and from those NGO which are working in the field of citizenship and gender equality, as also to give technical skills and certify the quality of certain persons and entities involved in the promotion and defence of citizenship and gender equality;

§        To cooperate with communitary and international organisations and with similar institutions towards the participation in communitary and international strategies related with citizenship and gender equality and to promote their implementation at a national level;

Main activities:

Training courses, seminars, workshops, debates…

Publications:

A wide range of publications, from Gender Mainstreaming Guides (in health, in cooperation for development, in social inclusion, etc…), educational publications, studies, statistical reports, etc….

Promotion of Equality:

For the three year period 2007/2010 CIG’s activities are implemented in close liaison with other state and civil society bodies, in particular through the following plans:

-          III National Plan for Equality – Citizenship and Gender

-          III National Plan against Domestic Violence

-          I National Plan against Trafficking in Human Beings

(These National Plans are attached)

Management:

CIG is managed by a President, supported by a Vice-president

Nomination of senior staff and board:

Both the President and Vice-president are appointed by the Government.

Number of Staff:

Around 80 persons (counting Lisbon and Oporto’s offices)

Budget:

12.562.718,00 € (2008)

Address:

Avenida da República, Nº 32, 1º

1050-193 Lisboa

Portugal

website:

www.cig.gov.pt