On discharge in respect of the implementation of the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2023, Section III – Commission, executive agencies and the ninth, tenth and eleventh European Development Funds

5.Reiterates that sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are fundamental human rights, and their realisation is a fundamental aspect of human dignity and a prerequisite for achieving gender equality; calls for a strong European effort to protect our fundamental values such as equal rights to bodily autonomy and access to sexual and reproductive health and rights including safe and legal abortion; stresses the need to reinforce budgetary allocations that support universal respect for and access to SRHR, including access to free, safe and legal abortion and other essential reproductive health services;

6.Welcomes the development and implementation of the gender budgeting methodology; reiterates the need to further develop and improve its application; calls for the enhanced collection, reporting and evaluation of comparable gender-disaggregated data in the context of all relevant EU policies; urges the Commission to treat this as a priority;

7.Is concerned about the growing financial risks due to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its impact on women; recognizes the vulnerable position of women in context of war and in conflict zones and to prioritise policies that protect children, women and families especially in providing aid in conflict situations and access to healthcare services including emergency contraception, testing for sexually transmitted infections, post-exposure prophylaxis treatment and access to safe and legal abortion care; condemns conflict-related gender-based violence, including sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war; calls for protecting and supporting women and including the prevention of trafficking and sexual exploitation especially in providing aid in conflict situations and access to healthcare services including access to safe and legal abortion;

8.Recalls that labour market participation is significantly lower among women and men with disabilities compared to those without; calls for appropriate measures to address this issue;

9.Supports the United Nations’ Spotlight Initiative’s goal of ending violence against women and girls and addressing the needs of vulnerable groups, such as victims of harmful practices like female genital mutilation or child marriage and emphasizes the need for these measures to include the LBTIQA+ women; urges the Commission to stop funding movements in and outside the Union that contribute to the oppression of women in all forms, including campaigning against fundamental rights, including women’s rights and SRHR; urges the Commission and Member States to strengthen awareness-raising campaigns against gender-based violence and discrimination, explicitly including educational efforts to combat LGBTIQA+phobia and to promote sexual and reproductive rights; calls for comprehensive and age appropriate sexuality and relationships education programs that promote gender equality, consent, and respect for diversity in all Member States;

10.Calls for the EU budget to better provide for women who, at present, have limited opportunities for exchanges with others and competence development, for example, through mentoring programmes or professional networks from all sectors of the European economy;

11.Recalls that in line with Article 11.2 TEU, EU institutions must maintain an open, transparent and structured dialogue with civil society organisations and representative associations and stresses in particular in this regard that success to structural funding is a prerequisite to ensure public participation and without which it would not be possible for citizens to have their voice channelled at the EU level through their representative associations, sustain a regular dialogue with EU institutions contributing to democratic participation in policy making, an open and wide-ranging dialogue, ensuring that the diversity of views and concerns are taken into account with equal access for public interest as compared to commercial interest, exercise a monitoring role on the implementation of EU policies and legislation, including the use of EU funds or act as checks and balances to the rule of law; recalls the commitment of the Commission in its political guidelines to step up its engagement with civil society organisations that have expertise and an important role to play in defending specific societal issues and upholding human rights, which entails that while the Commission should not mandate NGOs to pursue certain activities or support specific positions or policies, it remains fundamental that civil society organisations, through EU funding can engage in an “open, transparent and structured dialogue with EU institutions” as enshrined in article 11 TEU through activities such as advocacy activities, demonstrations, or judicial actions and these should remain eligible in the relevant funding programs and have sufficient dedicated funding available;

12.Stresses the need to ensure that all EU funds reach their intended recipients, and to ensure that no EU funding is allocated or linked to any cause or form of terrorism, which would have catastrophic consequences for women and girls;

13.Calls for a stable financing framework to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of the Daphne Programme to support the protection of women and children against violence; commends the efficiency of the Daphne programme such as the impressive outputs and impacts, compared to the modest resources allocated; stresses the importance of dedicating a specific budget line for the Daphne Initiative to increase visibility, transparency, and accountability in fund distribution, particularly through measures aimed at combating all forms and levels of gender-based violence against women and girls and domestic violence and to properly support victims; recognises that Daphne’s aim is to protect children, young people and women from all kinds of violence and trafficking, and to attain a high level of health protection, well-being and social cohesion; to that end, urges the EU to consider the programme a priority within the EU budget;

14.Requests the creation of a specific program within the Daphne funding framework to address violence against LGBTIQA+ women, including the provision of safe shelters, access to support services tailored to their needs, and the protection of their sexual and reproductive health rights.