How the Western Balkans, Türkiye and EIGE are advancing gender equality together

As EIGE Director Carlien Scheele noted at the 16th Regional Coordination Meeting in December 2025, which marked the launch of this new phase: "It's great to see so many familiar faces as well as new ones as we take the next steps in our shared journey towards a region with stronger and evidence-based gender equality."

The meeting brought together national gender equality machineries and statistical offices from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Türkiye to agree on shared priorities and set the course for work in 2026 and the years ahead.

Strengthening capacity through data, tools and cooperation

The project focuses on practical support in several key areas:

• Tracking progress on gender equality by supporting the calculation and maintenance of EIGE's Gender Equality Index and other national indices to monitor progress over time.
• Improving gender statistics particularly on reliable data collection on women and men in decision-making positions for EIGE's Gender Statistics Database.
• Measuring Violence Against Women (VAW) by aligning regional data collection with Directive (EU) 2024/1385 on combating violence against women and domestic violence.
• Improving Gender Mainstreaming by providing technical support and tools to integrate gender perspectives into all government policies and institutions.
• Encouraging regional cooperation through shared learning and exchanging best practices via the Regional Coordination Platform.

What this cooperation means

Partners in the region highlighted the value of EIGE's support for evidence-based policymaking and EU accession efforts.

"Having reliable data is key to making informed decisions for all our citizens", said Etleva Sheshi, Director of Gender Equality at the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in Albania.

She added that EIGE's tools are particularly useful for monitoring progress and aligning national work with EU standards:

"I appreciate that this cooperation is resuming, as it will provide indispensable support to Albanian authorities in the production of our national Gender Equality Index and the further advancement of gender mainstreaming across all policy areas. Gender statistics are key instruments for identifying gaps in equality, tracking policy progress, and developing new initiatives that respond to the specific needs of women and men in Albanian society."

This initiative is funded by the European Union under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III) and managed by the Directorate-General for Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood (DG ENEST).

*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence