Europe

Structural disadvantages and the waste of female talent have been diagnosed for all states in the European Community by several studies of the European Commission. Women are still faced with a so called glass ceiling which hinders them to get into high positions. This phenomenon is often also described as a "leaky pipeline" as with every step in the scientific career the proportion of women decreases dramatically. Even though women nowadays constitute half of the students or sometimes even more, they do not have a strong voice in decision making processes and curriculum development. This applies for countries with significantly different historical backgrounds or in cases with comparably high numbers of highly qualified women. Additionally, while the proportion of researchers of the total labour force has been increasing, the gender gap regarding work conditions and salaries is widening. Female scientists often work in much more precarious working conditions than men. The proportion of temporary employments in scientific organisations has a clear effect on the proportion of women working in these organisations: the more temporary jobs in the institutions, the higher the proportion of women.

The European Union plays a major role in leading the promotion of gender equality, women's human rights and the empowerment of women in development policies of the international donor community.Since the adoption of the Monterrey Consensus (2002) and the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness (2005), the EC and Member States have reflected their commitment to gender equality in a number of crucial documents--such as the 2005 EU Consensus on Development and the 2007 EC Communication on Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment in Development Cooperation-that commit EU donors to ensure the effective implementation of strategies and practices that genuinely contribute to the achievement of gender equality and women's rights worldwide.

Careers in information and communications technology (ICT) are often thought to be restricted to men. Such a common stereotype is far from the truth. Although the proportion of women graduating in engineering or computer science is still very low, young girls can expect a successful and rewarding career in the ICT sector. This topic is at the core of a conference organised today, ahead of International Women's day (8 March), in Brussels, where the European Commission will encourage young girls in Europe to "Move out of the shadow and seize the opportunITy".

"It is unacceptable that Europe lacks qualified ICT staff. If this shortage of computer scientists and engineers is not addressed, it will eventually slow down the European economic growth and Europe runs the risks of falling behind its Asian competitors", said Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media. "We need to overcome common stereotypes which describe ICT careers as boring and too technical for women, and instead encourage women to succeed in this exciting, innovative and multi-facetted sector".

Across the EU economy, women continue to earn an average of 15% less than men, according to the European Commission.