Constitutional and legal framework for gender equality in Ukraine and the EU member-states

Issue: № 4, 2025

Doi: https://doi.org/10.37634/efp.2025.4.16

This research aims at a comparative analysis of the constitutional and legal foundations of gender equality in Ukraine and other countries, as well as the study of the constitutional and legal provision influence on the indicator of Global Gender Gap Index. The research uses the method of analysis, synthesis, comparison, generalization, systematization, cluster analysis. Research results on the influence of constitutional and legal provision on the Global Gender Gap Index, there are three groups among the EU members: countries with a higher level of gender equality (Global Gender Gap Index between 0.784-0.861: Ireland, Finland, France, Germany, Spain, and Sweden); countries with a more or less high level of gender equality (Global Gender Gap Index between 0.762-0.778: Latvia, Netherlands, and Portugal), and countries with an average level of gender equality (Global Gender Gap Index between 0.688 and 0.726: Greece, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic). The first group of countries has a more advanced constitutional and legal provision for gender equality. In the second group – the principles of constitutional and legal provision for gender equality are not fully implemented. In the third group – the constitutional and legal provision needs reviewing and improvement. Ukraine is characterized by gender inequality, violence against women, low level of the legal protection of women, limitation of their access to participation in public, political and economic life. It has been established that to ensure gender equality in countries, it is not enough to establish the principle of gender equality on the basis of constitutional and legal regulation. The Constitution of Ukraine (1996) and most of the basic laws of foreign countries establish the principle of equal rights and opportunities for men and women, and subordinate normative and legal acts detail them. However, the presence of significant stereotypes and non-recognition of the problem of gender inequality in society, restrictions on the rights, freedoms and opportunities of women lead to the deformation of the mechanism for combating gender inequality and protecting women's rights in socio-political and economic life.

Keywords : Constitutional and legal framework, gender equality, Global Gender Gap Index, gender policy

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