Gender equality in the functioning of the Parliamentary Assembly in 2024

Progress report | Doc. 16096 Add. 1 | 24 January 2025

Author(s):

Bureau of the Assembly

1. Since 2012, following a Bureau decision, statistics on the gender breakdown of Parliamentary Assembly positions are prepared every year and included in the Progress report on the activities of the Assembly’s Bureau and Standing Committee presented during the January part-session. They provide a picture of the situation in December of any given year. The publication of this information aims to enhance transparency and raise awareness, while motivating parliamentarians to work towards gender parity.

2. In September 2021, the Assembly adopted Resolution 2394 (2021) on gender representation in the Assembly, with the aim of introducing more balanced representation of women and men in all its structures. Its provisions were applied for the first time at the January 2023 part-session. They require delegations to include at least the same percentage of women as their national parliament, or, if this is more favourable to the representation of women, to respect the minimum “one in three” principle for the representation of women in national delegations and to include a minimum number of women as representatives.

3. In order to encourage women’s effective participation in decision-making processes and in parliamentary work at all levels, the resolution introduced another important feature which states that delegations are only authorised to propose vice-presidents of the Assembly who are men if the delegation is composed of at least 40% women. Rapporteurs in committees and ad hoc committees must now comprise at least one-third of women, and the Bureau ensures the principle is applied for institutional representation. Political groups are also invited to follow the same principle, in particular when appointing committee bureaux, members of ad hoc committees, spokespersons, group leadership and ad hoc election observation committees, and are required to do the same when appointing members to the Monitoring Committee, the Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs and the Committee for the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights.

4. Consequently, all national delegations appointed since 2023 have reflect at least the minimum “one in three” principle for gender balance set out in the text, and women’s effective participation in decision-making roles and in the parliamentary work in the Assembly has progressed towards parity. In 2024 the total number of women members of the Assembly remained stable, reaching 46% (after a jump from 40% to 45% between 2022 and 2023). However, whereas in 2023 exactly half the national delegations comprised at least 50% women as representatives or alternates, the number fell to 19 out of 45 in 2024.

5. The next stage in the implementation of Resolution 2394 (2021) includes a formal undertaking by the Assembly to require a minimum of 40% of women in all delegations as from the opening of the 2026 session. This will have a further positive effect on balancing gender representation in the Assembly, as in 2024 11 national delegations comprised less than 40% women.

6. According to data collected by the Inter-Parliamentary Union, [(1) https://data.ipu.org/women-averages.] the total share of women members of parliament in the national parliaments of Council of Europe member States edged up to 31.6% in December 2024 compared to 31.4% in November 2023. This lower figure for national parliaments tends to show that the combination of provisions laid down in Rule 6.2 a. of the Assembly’s Rules of procedure, namely that “national delegations should include members of the under-represented sex at least in the same percentage as in their national parliaments” and the adoption of Resolution 2394 (2021) which introduced amendments to Rules 6.2 a. and 6.2 b. have had a positive effect on nominations to the Assembly, since in many cases the national delegations have a higher representation rate of women than national parliaments.

7. In 2023, the Assembly’s presidency was held for the first year by Mr Theodoros Rousopoulos, following two years of mandate of Mr Tiny Kox. Since the first woman president of the Assembly, Leni Fischer (1996-1999), three out of 14 PACE presidents have been women (Anne Brasseur, Stella Kyriakides and Liliane Maury Pasquier). The percentage of women Vice-Presidents of the Assembly dropped from 47% to 41% in 2024. The number of women Bureau members increased the most significantly in 2024, from 37% in 2023 to 42%, finally equalling the percentage achieved in 2019. Figures were reversed for women as chairpersons of committees between 2023 and 2024, with 6 out of 9 committees chaired by women. In 2024, as in 2023 and 2022, the Secretary General of the Assembly remained the only woman member of the Presidential Committee, the five other members (the Assembly President and the five presidents of political groups) all being men. These figures show once again that one of the objectives of Resolution 2394 (2021), to encourage political groups to appoint women at the top echelons of the Assembly, requires further efforts.

8. In committees, the upward trend in women’s participation was noticeable, as figures rose from 47% of full members and alternates in 2023 to parity in women full members, ie. 50%, and 48% alternates, in 2024. The rise in the percentage of women full members was observed in all committees except the Committee on Political Affairs (33% full members, down from 36% in 2023). The two committees singled out in 2023 as needing better balance, improved their representation in 2024: the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights counted 39% full members and 52% alternates, and the Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons 41% full members and 46% alternates.

9. Figures for the representation of women as rapporteurs for the reports debated in plenary in 2024 evened out somewhat, as the extremes of 11% women rapporteurs in the Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights and the 88% in the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination were adjusted to 45% and 60% respectively. Women represented an average of 40% of rapporteurs for report in 2024, down slightly from 43% in 2023. The representation of women as rapporteurs for the opinions debated in plenary rose sharply from 33% in 2023 to 62% in 2024 (statistics on rapporteurs for opinion are not particularly significant because of the small and variable number of opinions prepared each year).

OVERVIEW ASSEMBLY
Position	Men	Women	Total	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
President	1	0	1	100%	100%	0%	0%
Vice-Presidents	10	7	17	53%	59%	47%	41%
Presidential Committee	6	1	7	86%	86%	14%	14%
Assembly Bureau	21	15	36	63%	58%	37%	42%

COMMITTEES	Men	Women	Total	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy
Full Members	53	26	79	64%	67%	36%	33%
Alternates	50	27	77	74%	65%	26%	35%
Chairperson	1	0	1	100%	100%	0%	0%
Vice-Chairpersons	2	1	3	67%	67%	33%	33%
Rapporteurs for report	8	4	12	57%	67%	43%	33%
Rapporteurs for opinion	2	0	2	-	100%	-	0%
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Full Members	48	31	79	63%	61%	37%	39%
Alternates	36	39	75	53%	48%	48%	52%
Chairperson	1	0	1	100%	100%	0%	0%
Vice-Chairpersons	1	2	3	50%	33%	50%	67%
Rapporteurs for report	6	5	11	89%	55%	11%	45%
Rapporteurs for opinion	2	2	4	100%	50%	0%	50%
Committee on the Election of Judges to the European Court of Human Rights
Full Members	10	10	20	60%	50%	40%	50%
Alternates	7	13	20	50%	35%	50%	65%
Chairperson	0	1	1	100%	0%	0%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	2	1	3	67%	67%	33%	33%
Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Full Members	32	47	79	43%	41%	57%	59%
Alternates	37	37	74	39%	50%	61%	50%
Chairperson	0	1	1	100%	0%	0%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	1	1	2	33%	50%	67%	50%
Rapporteurs for report	5	4	9	63%	56%	37%	44%
Rapporteurs for opinion	1	1	2	-	50%	-	50%
Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons
Full Members	47	32	79	63%	59%	37%	41%
Alternates	39	33	72	54%	54%	46%	46%
Chairperson	1	0	1	100%	100%	0%	0%
Vice-Chairpersons	1	2	3	100%	33%	0%	67%
Rapporteurs for report	4	4	8	88%	50%	12%	50%
Rapporteurs for opinion	0	1	1	0%	0%	100%	100%
Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media
Full Members	38	41	79	53%	48%	47%	52%
Alternates	36	38	74	52%	49%	48%	51%
Chairperson	0	1	1	0%	0%	100%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	2	1	3	33%	67%	67%	33%
Rapporteurs for report	6	1	7	40%	86%	60%	14%
Rapporteurs for opinion	0	1	1	-	0	-	100%
Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination
Full Members	20	59	79	28%	25%	72%	75%
Alternates	34	38	72	46%	47%	54%	53%
Chairperson	0	1	1	0%	0%	100%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	0	3	3	50%	0%	50%	100%
Rapporteurs for report	2	3	5	12%	40%	88%	60%
Rapporteurs for opinion	0	2	2	-	0%	-	100%
Committee on Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by member States (Monitoring Committee)
Members	41	41	82	57%	50%	43%	50%
Chairperson	0	1	1	100%	0%	0%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	2	0	2	100%	100%	0%	0%
Rapporteurs for report	8	3	11	57%	73%	43%	27%
Rapporteurs for opinion	0	0	0	100%	0%	0%	0%
Committee on Rules of Procedure, Immunities and Institutional Affairs
Members	14	17	31	50%	45%	50%	55%
Chairperson	0	1	1	0%	0%	100%	100%
Vice-Chairpersons	1	0	1	100%	0%	100%	0%
Rapporteurs for report	0	2	2	0%	0%	100%	100%
Rapporteurs for opinion	0	1	1	0%	0%	0%	100%

OVERVIEW COMMITTEES [(2) Figures for rapporteurs for report and for opinion relate to the reports debated by the Assembly and the Standing Committee in 2024.]
Position	Men	Women	Total	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
Full Members / Members	303	304	607	53%	50%	47%	50%
Alternates	239	225	464	53%	52%	47%	48%
Committee Chairpersons	3	6	9	67%	33%	33%	67%
Committee Vice‑Chairpersons	12	11	23	65%	52%	35%	48%
Rapporteurs for report	39	26	65	57%	60%	43%	40%
Rapporteurs for opinion	5	8	13	67%	38%	33%	62%

GENERAL RAPPORTEURS	2023		2024
	Men	Women	Men	Women
General Rapporteur on democracy [(3) The terms of reference of the General Rapporteur on democracy were approved by the Bureau on 13 October 2023. See document AS/Bur(2023)CB11.]	-	-	1	0
General Rapporteur on Russian democratic forces [(4) The terms of reference of the General Rapporteur on Russian democratic forces were ratified by the Assembly during the June 2024 part-session.]	-	-	1	0
General Rapporteur for a democratic Belarus [(5) The terms of reference of the general rapporteur for a Democratic Belarus were ratified by the Assembly during the April 2024 part-session.]	-	-	1	0
General Rapporteur on the abolition of the death penalty	1	0	0	1
General Rapporteur on political prisoners	0	1	0	1
General Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders and whistleblowers	1	0	1	0
General Rapporteur on local and regional authorities	1	0	1	0
General Rapporteur on child participation	-	-	0	1
General Rapporteur on science and technology assessment	0	1	1	0
General Rapporteur on media freedom and safety of journalists	1	0	0	1
General Rapporteur on Governance and Ethics in Sport	-	-	1	0
General Rapporteur on violence against women	0	1	0	1
General Rapporteur on combating racism and intolerance	0	1	1	0
General Rapporteur on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people	1	0	0	1
General Rapporteur on the budget and intergovernmental programme	0	1	0	1
Total	5	5	8	7
Percentage	50%	50%	53%	47%

GENDER BREAKDOWN, BUREAUX OF SUB-COMMITTEES
Committees	Men	Women	Total	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
Committee on Political Affairs and Democracy
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	2	1	3	100%	67%	0%	33%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	1	1	2	0%	50%	100%	50%
Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	2	1	3	67%	67%	33%	33%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	0	0	0	0%	0%	100%	0%
Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	2	1	3	25%	67%	75%	33%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	2	0	2	100%	100%	0%	0%
Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	1	1	5	67%	50%	33%	50%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	1	0	1	100%	100%	0%	0%
Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	1	2	3	50%	33%	50%	67%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	1	1	5	0%	50%	100%	50%
Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	1	0	1	0%	100%	100%	0%
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees	0	0	0	0%	0%	100%	0%
Committee on Honouring of Obligations and Commitments by member States (Monitoring Committee)
Sub-Committee Chairperson	-	-	-	100%	-	0%	-
Vice-Chairpersons of Sub-Committees		-	-	100%	-	0%	-

OVERVIEW – SUB-COMMITTEES
Position	Men	Women	Total	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
Sub-Committee Chairpersons	9	6	15	56%	60%	44%	40%
Sub-Committee Vice-Chairpersons	5	2	7	40%	71%	60%	29%

GENDER BREAKDOWN – NATIONAL DELEGATIONS
National Delegations (Representatives and Substitutes)	Total	Men	Women	Percentage of men	Percentage of women
Albania	8	3	5	37%	63%
Andorra	4	1	3	25%	75%
Armenia	8	5	3	63%	37%
Austria	12	6	6	50%	50%
Belgium	13	7	6	54%	46%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	10	6	4	60%	40%
Bulgaria	11	5	6	45%	55%
Croatia	9	3	6	33%	67%
Cyprus	4	3	1	75%	25%
Czechia	14	9	5	64%	36%
Denmark	10	5	5	50%	50%
Estonia	6	4	2	67%	33%
Finland	10	5	5	50%	50%
France	36	20	16	56%	44%
Georgia	10	5	5	50%	50%
Germany	36	21	15	58%	42%
Greece	13	8	5	62%	38%
Hungary	14	9	5	64%	36%
Iceland	6	2	4	33%	67%
Ireland	7	4	3	57%	43%
Italy	36	19	17	53%	47%
Latvia	6	4	2	67%	33%
Liechtenstein	4	3	1	75%	25%
Lithuania	8	5	3	63%	37%
Luxembourg	6	3	3	50%	50%
Malta	6	3	3	50%	50%
Republic of Moldova	10	5	5	50%	50%
Monaco	4	2	2	50%	50%
Montenegro	5	4	1	80%	20%
Netherlands	14	8	6	57%	43%
North Macedonia	6	3	3	50%	50%
Norway	10	4	6	40%	60%
Poland	24	17	7	71%	29%
Portugal	14	8	6	57%	43%
Romania	20	12	8	60%	40%
San Marino	4	2	2	50%	50%
Serbia	14	5	9	36%	64%
Slovak Republic	9	5	4	56%	44%
Slovenia	6	2	4	33%	67%
Spain	24	13	11	54%	46%
Sweden	12	7	5	58%	42%
Switzerland	12	7	5	58%	42%
Türkiye	36	20	16	56%	44%
Ukraine	24	13	11	54%	46%
United Kingdom	36	16	20	44%	56%
Total	591	321	270	54%	46%

GENDER BREAKDOWN – NATIONAL DELEGATIONS (REPRESENTATIVES ONLY)
National Delegations (representatives)	Total	Men	Women	Percentage of men	Percentage of women
Albania	4	1	3	25%	75%
Andorra	2	1	1	50%	50%
Armenia	4	3	1	75%	25%
Austria	6	3	3	50%	50%
Belgium	7	4	3	57%	43%
Bosnia and Herzegovina	5	2	3	40%	60%
Bulgaria	6	3	3	50%	50%
Croatia	5	3	2	60%	40%
Cyprus	2	1	1	50%	50%
Czechia	7	4	3	57%	43%
Denmark	5	3	2	60%	40%
Estonia	3	2	1	67%	33%
Finland	5	1	4	20%	80%
France	18	10	8	56%	44%
Georgia	5	3	2	60%	40%
Germany	18	12	6	67%	33%
Greece	7	4	3	57%	43%
Hungary	7	4	3	57%	43%
Iceland	3	2	1	67%	33%
Ireland	4	3	1	75%	25%
Italy	18	11	7	61%	39%
Latvia	3	2	1	67%	33%
Liechtenstein	2	1	1	50%	50%
Lithuania	4	3	1	75%	25%
Luxembourg	3	2	1	67%	33%
Malta	3	2	1	67%	33%
Republic of Moldova	5	3	2	60%	40%
Monaco	2	1	1	50%	50%
Montenegro	2	2	0	100%	0%
Netherlands	7	3	4	43%	57%
North Macedonia	3	1	2	33%	67%
Norway	5	2	3	40%	60%
Poland	12	7	5	58%	42%
Portugal	7	4	3	57%	43%
Romania	10	6	4	60%	40%
San Marino	2	1	1	50%	50%
Serbia	7	3	4	43%	57%
Slovak Republic	4	2	2	50%	50%
Slovenia	3	0	3	0%	100%
Spain	12	6	6	50%	50%
Sweden	6	2	4	33%	67%
Switzerland	6	3	3	50%	50%
Türkiye	18	10	8	56%	44%
Ukraine	12	4	8	33%	67%
United Kingdom	18	12	6	67%	33%
Total	297	162	135	55%	45%

GENDER BREAKDOWN – NATIONAL DELEGATIONS (SUBSTITUTES ONLY)
National Delegations (substitutes)	Total	Men	Women	Percentage of men	Percentage of women
Albania	4	2	2	50	50
Andorra	2	0	2	0	100
Armenia	4	2	2	50	50
Austria	6	3	3	50	50
Belgium	6	3	3	50	50
Bosnia and Herzegovina	5	4	1	80	20
Bulgaria	5	3	2	60	40
Croatia	4	1	3	25	75
Cyprus	2	2	0	100	0
Czechia	7	5	2	71	29
Denmark	5	2	3	40	60
Estonia	3	2	1	67	33
Finland	5	3	2	60	40
France	18	10	8	56	44
Georgia	5	3	2	60	40
Germany	18	9	9	50	50
Greece	6	4	2	67	33
Hungary	7	5	2	71	29
Iceland	3	0	3	0	100
Ireland	3	1	2	33	67
Italy	18	8	10	44	56
Latvia	3	2	1	67	33
Liechtenstein	2	2	0	100	0
Lithuania	4	2	2	50	50
Luxembourg	3	2	1	67	33
Malta	3	1	2	33	67
Republic of Moldova	5	2	3	40	60
Monaco	2	1	1	50	50
Montenegro	3	2	1	67	33
Netherlands	7	5	2	71	29
North Macedonia	3	1	2	33	67
Norway	5	2	3	40	60
Poland	12	9	3	75	25
Portugal	7	5	2	71	29
Romania	10	6	4	60	40
San Marino	2	1	1	50	50
Serbia	7	3	4	43	57
Slovak Republic	5	3	2	60	40
Slovenia	3	2	1	67	33
Spain	12	7	5	58	42
Sweden	6	4	2	67	33
Switzerland	6	4	2	67	33
Türkiye	18	10	8	56	44
Ukraine	12	8	4	67	33
United Kingdom	18	6	12	33	67
Total	294	162	132	55	45

OVERVIEW – NATIONAL DELEGATIONS
National Delegations	Total	Men	Women	Percentage of men		Percentage of women
				2023	2024	2023	2024
Total	591	324	267	55%	55%	45%	45%
Representatives	297	162	135	54%	55%	46%	45%
Substitutes	294	162	132	56%	55%	44%	45%