On Monday 20 November, the European External Action Service (EEAS) is hosting a gathering of WomEn DIplomats Network (“WEDIN EU”) in Brussels, a network of EU Member States and EEAS women diplomats. This is the second gathering of its kind, following the launch of WEDIN EU last year.

Women diplomats from EU Member States and the EEAS, including leaders of networks of Member States’ Ministries for Foreign Affairs, will exchange best practices to facilitate women diplomats’ careers and discuss the important role of women in diplomacy, and more broadly the promotion of gender equality in the world.

The event will take place at the Fondation Universitaire and will be opened by Helena König, Deputy Secretary General of the EEAS and Chair of the Women in the EEAS (WEEAS) network.

During the event, WEDIN EU will present its first report on the progress made over the past year. This will allow an opportunity for the networks to evaluate the activities of the network so far and make proposals for the way forward. The national and EEAS networks will also share positive experiences and success stories of their own networks and discuss a working programme for WEDIN EU 2024.

This year the event is also undertaking a novel approach which will include two inspiring workshops on ‘Inclusive Communication to eliminate Gender Bias at Work’, and ‘Gender Responsive Leadership’.

Via this network, EU Member States and the EEAS further commit to advance the EU’s values of diversity and equality, and to support gender equality through their work in the rest of the world.

Background

The “Women in the EEAS” (WEEAS) network was created by former EEAS Secretary General Helga Schmid, back in 2013, under the authority of the then High Representative Catherine Ashton. It aimed at providing a platform for the exchange of information, experiences and ideas among women professionals in the EEAS.

In 2021, WEEAS started linking up with networks of women diplomats in EU Member States. In January 2022, the network agreed to reinforce networks of European women diplomats to facilitate careers of women diplomats for more gender parity in diplomacy and promote gender equality and non-discrimination in diplomacy in the world.