Diversity
The EU takes action globally to prevent and denounce all forms of discrimination inter alia on the grounds of sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation, while promoting their access to equal opportunities in all spheres of life. It is important that discriminatory laws, policies and practices are fought worldwide, as they further expose persons in vulnerable situations to unemployment, social exclusion and poverty.
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Diversity within and beyond EU borders
We combat discrimination and promote diversity, both within the EU’s borders and beyond, through a combination of public diplomacy and awareness-raising activities, political and human rights dialogues, capacity building and financial assistance. The EU supports the universal adherence to all the core human right instruments, including the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with disabilities that it is a party to, alongside its Member States.
In all spheres of life, equality is advanced through a policy framework, notably the EU Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy (2020-2024) and the European Commission’s first ever LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025 complemented by the Guidelines on rights of LGBTI persons for our external action. Further, the Gender Action Plan III is also a good example of how our gender policies have become more LGBTI inclusive.
The rights of LGBTIQ persons is also part of the EEAS public diplomacy efforts. We engage through political dialogue, awareness-raising activities and supporting LGBTIQ rights defenders in their work. We fund civil society in their endeavours to systematically strengthen the protection of LGBTIQ persons and address impunity, homophobia and stigma experienced by LGBTIQ persons.
