The Gender Equality Index 2022, which monitors gender equality in the EU, shows that progress has been slow this year – only 0.6 points better than the previous year.
    The European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) released the findings of this year's index on Monday, which showed that Belgium scored higher than the European average of 68.6 points out of 100.
    The index did however reveal an overall dip in several areas for the first time since its inception, with women spending less of their time at work, limiting career and retirement opportunities, and also suffering further discrepancies in health status and access to health services.
    As a result, Helena Dalli, the European Commissioner for Equality, stated that "regional organisations and EU countries alike must be sensitive to gender equality in their budgetary and policy measures, so that "women do not lose out."
    Furthermore, the EIGE claimed that progress has been made as a result of increasing female involvement in economic and political decision-making, which is connected to the implementation of legal quotas in a few EU Member States.