The focus of this report is girls’ education in Europe. It should be clarified that Europe includes more than 40 countries that are very different from each other. Western Europe and Southern Europe have different historical and cultural references from Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. Europe includes ex-Soviet countries such as Georgia, and countries with a dark colonial past such as the Netherlands, Spain and  Portugal. 

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According to the European Union Gender Equality Index for 2020, some progress towards gender equality has been made but with 67,9 out of 100 points the EU has a long way to go. The fact that the Gender Equality Index score has only increased by 4.1 points since 2010 and 0.5 points since 2017 shows that in this rate it will take more than 60 years to achieve gender equality in the EU (EU Gender Equality Index, 2020). 

 

Numbers are always indicative of progress, but they are also indicative of the work that needs to be done. Some highlights of the EU’s  Gender Equality Index include how the full-time equivalent employment rate has increased for women. However, the prospect of further increases soon is in doubt, in light of the COVID-19 crisis.

 

On that note, the pandemic has caused a major setback in the progress made since 2017. Comparing data from the pre-COVID period it is evident that the burden of family responsibilities and care that was already unequally given to women has now become even heavier. According to a survey that was conducted by Eurofound during the pandemic the unbalance between women and men has become sharper with family responsibilities preventing 24% of women from allocating the necessary time to their work. Furthermore, the European Parliament has passed the 40% threshold for each gender in July 2019 which is an increase since the last elections. On the other hand, health inequalities are increasing for women and me with disabilities, who have the most limited access to health services. In addition, far more women than men studied and worked in education, health and social work activities.