Silver Gender Equality Seal awarded to the Ministry of Transport in Colombia for its outstanding work advancing gender equality in the transport sector in Colombia

14 de abril de 2023

The Ministry of Transport is the first public entity in Colombia to obtain the UNDP Gender Equality Seal for Public Institutions, and the second globally, after the Mayor’s Office of Lima. The Gender Equality Seal for Public Entities – Equipares Público- is a methodological proposal to support and recognise the efforts made by entities to promote substantive gender equality.

The Minister of Transport celebrates the awarding of the Gender Equality Seal with the staff of the Ministry. Bogota, 30 de Marzo 2023

Thanks to the strengthening of institutional capacities and the implementation of concrete actions for closing gender inequality gaps in the search for substantive equality, the Ministry of Transport became the first public entity in Colombia and globally to obtain the Silver Seal in Gender Equality from the United Nations Development Programme – UNDP-. The Ministry is the second to receive this recognition in any of its categories.

This achievement marks an unprecedented milestone in Colombia, and is an inspiration for the inclusion of the gender perspective in other government portfolios, which are invited to participate in the Seal. The Seal roadmap supports public institutions in institutionalising sectoral gender equality committees, building the capacities of public officers, and developing internal and external policies and programs to breach gender gaps in their specific areas of performance.

UNDP’s Gender Equality Seal for Public Institutions- Equipares Público -, in strategic alliance with the national government, aims to achieve institutional, cultural, technical and political transformations required to guarantee gender equality in public administration. It strengthens, recognises and champions the efforts made by committed public institutions under international normative mandates on gender equality.

Gender equality requires structural and cultural transformations, so the commitment of the public sector is key to establish the necessary foundations and capacities to achieve it. That is why today we highlight the leadership of the Ministry of Transport in adopting concrete actions to close the gaps with the support of the UNDP Gender Equality Seal – Equipares Público.

Sara Ferrer, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

For the national government it is fundamental to promote the empowerment of women and the implementation of the gender perspective in public entities. Thus, joining the Seal implies a commitment to implement practical tools and install an inclusive architecture for equality.

We are aware that change is with and for women, and it is with them that we manage to build a Colombia that is a world power of life, by the inclusion of the gender perspective in public policies, programmes, projects and plans of the National Government and the transport sector. Therefore, for our entity it is essential to continue strengthening alliances that allow us to implement actions to close gender gaps and thus achieve substantive equality between men and women in their diversity.

Minister of Transport, Guillermo Francisco Reyes González.

The Ministry of Transport Guillermo Francisco Reyes receives the Gender Equality Seal for Public Institutions certification from Sara Ferrer, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Since the Ministry of Transport entered the Seal in 2021, it has managed to accelerate and institutionalise mechanisms to promote gender equality and strengthen the exercise of women’s rights, including: (i) the development of the Gender, Equality and Diversity Policy; (ii) the development of tools for gendermainstreaming in the transport sector; (iii) the articulation with other public institutions and women’s civil society organisations for the formulation of policies; and (iv) the implementation of a work-life balance policy, which contemplates co-responsibility in care work to achieve more equitable and favourable working environments.

The Ministry’s leadership in the Seal has facilitated that other entities such as the National Road Safety Agency, the National Institute of Roads and the National Infrastructure Agency have also started their transformation towards gender equality following the Seal roadmap. This is particularly relevant in a sector where women are underrepresented in most fields.