This Friday, the Minister for Equality and Feminisms, Tània Verge Mestre, spoke during a plenary session at the United Nations as part of the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW68), currently taking place at the UN headquarters in New York.

Verge appeared on behalf of the Catalan Government, and during her speech, the Minister advocated for the need to have top-level structures such as the Ministry of Equality and Feminisms to effectively enforce women’s rights. “Since the ministry was set up, the resources allocated to equality policies have tripled, placing women’s rights such as sexual and reproductive rights and the eradication of gender-based violence at the forefront of the political agenda,” explained Verge. She added that it has also “allowed for an unprecedented advancement in the feminist transformation of the country, ensuring the rights of LGBTI+ individuals, equal treatment, non-discrimination, and the implementation of anti-racist policies”. The Minister asserted that “having top-level structures like the Ministry of Equality and Feminisms is essential to have a government and policies that are unapologetically feminist and cross-cutting, and to advance towards equality”.

Minister Verge informed the other participating countries that the Government of Catalonia has fulfilled its commitment to achieve gender parity both in its composition (with 6 female ministers and 8 male ministers) and in the configuration of high-ranking positions, 52% of which are occupied by women. These figures elicited applause from the plenary. The Minister also advocated for increased funding for organisations working for women’s rights and for local authorities because “they are essential in the feminist transformation”; she said, and stressed the need for institutions to have protocols against sexual and workplace harassment such as those of the Generalitat de Catalunya.

Growing international interest in the Menstrual Equity Plan

The Minister also met with the Minister of Home Affairs and Public Governance of Flanders, Gwendolyn Rutten, who wanted to know more about the Government of Catalonia’s Menstrual Equity Plan. In particular, she expressed a great deal of interest in the distribution of free menstrual products to all menstruating women living in Catalonia and is studying the possibility of replicating this policy in Flanders. 

The Flemish minister was not the only one. Catalonia has positioned itself as a global leader in the implementation of feminist public policies and the defence of human rights, sparking interest from political representatives, activists, and media outlets alike. Especially noteworthy are the National Strategy for Sexual and Reproductive Rights and the Menstrual Equity Plan, which includes the launch of the menstrual equity initiative “My period, my rules”. The initiative has been enthusiastically received by the citizens of Catalonia. In just ten days, over 400,000 QR codes were downloaded, and 225,000 women already have their reusable menstrual products.