European Commission unveils its Roadmap for Women’s Rights 

The European Commission adopted the Roadmap for Women’s Rights, on 7 March 2025. The Roadmap outlines a long-term vision for achieving gender equality, based on core principles and policy objectives set out in the Declaration of principles for a gender-equal society annexed to the Roadmap.

One of the eight principles put forward concerns “work-life balance and care” stating that “every woman has the right to balance her professional and private life'” This principle should be pursued  pursuing the following objectives:
“• promoting the equal sharing of care responsibilities between women and men;
• promoting working conditions that facilitate the reconciliation of private, family and
working lives;
• widespread access to flexible work arrangements for all;
• encouraging fathers to take up paternity and family leaves;
• ensuring affordable, accessible, and quality early-childhood education and care for all
children;
• affordable and accessible high-quality long-term care;
• promoting investment and formal employment in the care sector, ensuring quality care jobs.”

The Roadmap aims to uphold and advance women’s rights and to address new gender equality challenges, such as technology-facilitated bias, discrimination, and violence. The Roadmap sets an EU political framework for women’s rights that will guide  actions in the coming years. It provides a foundation for developing targeted legal and policy measures in the post-2025 Gender Equality Strategy and beyond and for inspiring gender-sensitive policies across other Commission initiatives.

The Commission invites the other European Institutions, in particular the European Parliament and the Council, to endorse the Declaration of principles for a gender-equal society in the course of 2025 and adhere to that commitment. The Commission also invites other institutions, Member States, social partners, civil society organisations and other relevant stakeholders to take an active role in realising the Roadmap’s principles and objectives, and put forward measures at the appropriate level.

Access the Roadmap for Women’s Right here

Access the annexed Declaration of Principles here.

On the same topic, the European Commission released its 2025 Report on Gender Equality also on 8th March.