Sodena will act as a partner in this project in our community, together with the Directorate General for Business Policy, International Projection, and Labor of the Government of Navarra, and will participate in the exchange of best practices in the field of equality and industry
Co-financed by Interreg Europe, with a duration of four years and comprising 11 partner entities from 10 European regions (Baden-Württemberg (Germany), Emilia-Romagna (Italy), Grand Est (France), Lapland (Finland), Magyarország (Hungary), Navarra (Spain), Niederösterreich (Austria), North -Vest (Romania), and Pomorskie (Poland), led by Sweden’s Värmland, which will be advised by its compatriot, the University of Karlstad), ‘DEBUTING’ (Developing Business Through Inclusiveness and Gender Awareness – New Cluster Competences) was created with the aim of promoting gender equality in industry and positioning it as a factor of competitiveness and differentiation. Sodena will have a budget of €205,000 for this project, 80% of which will be co-financed by the European Commission.
‘DEBUTING’ highlights the value of interregional collaboration in promoting learning and includes visits to partner regions to learn about their best practices in situ, participation in workshops, training, and discussion groups to improve the policies that each region must implement.
Sweden, lead partner in the project:
Värmland was the first destination on the route. This region, with a population of 283,000, presented its gender data to the partners: 89% of people in senior management positions are men and the pay gap is around €5,500 per year, a situation that has led the region to include gender equality in its smart specialization strategy.
Among other activities, the conference also focused on the wood, metal, and ICT clusters, as well as various studies and pilot projects with companies carried out by the gender department at Karlstad University.
Second stop, Finland:
Lapland is a sparsely populated region with large forest areas. In addition to timber, its economy is based on the metal and mining industries (sectors with a low female presence), and it is firmly committed to the circular economy.
At this meeting, the next steps of the project were defined, including measuring the working environment in terms of equality in companies and defining a series of workshops around six themes that will be given to all regions and their stakeholders:
Talent recruitment.
External and internal communication within companies.
Corporate culture and structure.
User-driven innovation.
Business models.
Sustainable development.
In Navarre, the project was presented to our community on March 8, coinciding with the first meeting of the group of local agents and International Women’s Day. The participating entities (Government of Navarra -Departments of Economic and Business Development and Education-, Labor Directorate, Navarra Institute for Equality, Navarra Employment Service, Department of Education -Vocational Training Directorate-, Navarra Business Confederation, Spanish Association of Management and People Development, Association of Women Entrepreneurs and Executives of Navarre, Functional Print, ENERCLUSTER, and Sodena) view this initiative positively and agree that, although the region already has a policy of equality plans in companies and numerous public and private initiatives, the data confirm that there is still much room for improvement, and they agree that it is time to move “from obligation to commitment.” To this end, the following activities will be carried out:
Analyze the results of current policies and existing initiatives.
Segment companies and try to identify in which sectors or types of companies the Autonomous Community presents the best and worst data.
Work with a sample of companies to learn about their procedures and work environment from which to draw conclusions.
Create working groups to analyze the information and propose policy improvements.
The local group considers gender equality to be a competitive and differentiating factor for companies and has set itself the ultimate goal of reducing the wage gap in industry, in order to also influence other implicit factors such as equal leave and the “glass ceiling.” To this end, it is important to promote a “change of image,” or an increase in the representation of women in companies and the productive fabric, verifying that there is an evolution in the image that is projected and incorporating gender equality as a factor in improving competitiveness.
Navarra will continue to work towards equality, attend the workshops and discussion groups organized by DEBUTING, and host European regions in the spring of 2024, offering companies opportunities for visits, studies, and training. The aim is to secure the commitment of the business community and forge links to work with companies and create a strong, coordinated ecosystem, without forgetting that “there is nothing more innovative than gender equality, because it has not yet been achieved.”
