Report writing, consultation and dissemination of the findings

After completing the evaluation activities, discuss the findings of the study with different groups in the parliament and stakeholders outside of the parliament.

  • Relevant groups in parliaments include the groups that were responsible for implementing and monitoring different activities in the gender equality action plan, as well as participants of the interviews, workshops, and surveys, and other consultation activities.
  • Relevant groups external to the parliament may include gender equality experts, academics and CSOs that supported the development, implementation, or monitoring of the gender equality action plan, and/or specialise in the field of gender-sensitive parliaments.

Carry out consultations before the final report is produced and disseminated to the public. Make sure to engage diverse groups of women and men in the consultation process. Once the consultations are completed, develop a final report which answers the evaluation questions, presents sex-disaggregated data, and uses gender-sensitive language and content. The findings of this report will be used to develop recommendations for subsequent plans (see follow-up activities).

Example of a parliament conducting an evaluation their plan

The regional Basque Parliament in Spain published an evaluation report of its gender equality plan (2018–2022)[1]. The evaluation report includes a traffic light system which highlights the extent to which an action was achieved; whether it was abandoned or merged into another action; or whether a measure was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Findings from the evaluation report show that the number of women employees has increased since the plan was launched, equality has a greater presence in the parliament’s agenda through the Equality Group, and new tools have been created to promote gender equality (for example, through regular gender equality trainings for staff).

The evaluation report also highlights that COVID-19 was an obstacle to improve the gender-sensitivity of physical spaces, and that these efforts need to continue as part of the following plan for 2023–2027.

Checklist: Report writing, consultation and dissemination of the plan

  • Discuss the preliminary results of the evaluation with different groups in parliament, as well as with relevant stakeholders external to parliament.

  • Finalise the evaluation report, keeping in mind the feedback from the consultation activities.

  • Publish the results on the webpage of the parliament, with accessible versions.

  • Distribute the report to subscribers of parliamentary newsletters.

  • Ask gender equality champions to share findings with their networks.

  • Send the findings to different government ministries and departments.

  • Partner with news outlets/blogs to showcase the efforts of the parliament.

  • Organise events to present the findings of the evaluation and other initiatives to advance gender equality and women’s political participation in the country.