The roadmap contains eight long-term objectives that should guide European policy to achieve gender equality. The document builds on the Commission’s 2020-2025 strategy and paves the way for the future strategy, which should be in place by 2026.

The first objective is to eliminate gender-related violence, including domestic violence and femicide. By 2025, one in three women in the EU will have experienced physical or sexual violence, according to Lahbib. Gender-related violence is a “poison,” she says, with a societal cost estimated at 290 billion euros per year.

The plan also emphasizes inequalities in healthcare. “Women still die more often from heart attacks than men,” says Lahbib. “Not because their bodies are weaker, but because research prioritizes men.”

Another objective is equality in terms of pay. Women are still not paid the same as men for the same work, said the Belgian. By 2025, they earn on average 12 percent less than their male colleagues. That’s slightly better than last year, but still not “fair,” according to the European Commissioner.

She also mentioned the presence of women in politics. In 2025, only 28 out of 200 heads of state worldwide are women. At this rate, it will take another hundred years for there to be balance in politics, she said.