The Gender Statistics Database (GSD) of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) contains data on the numbers of women and men in key decision-making positions across a number of different life domains. Data may cover international, European, national, regional and local levels and currently include 38 European countries. The GSD aims to provide reliable statistics that can be used to monitor the current situation and trends over time.
The domains covered include politics, public administration, judiciary, business and finance, social partners and NGOs, environment, media, science and research, sports, and transport. The decision-making positions covered are specific to each area.
A decision-making position is a position from which it is possible to take or influence a decision:
- within a domain: at organisational level. This restricts coverage to organisations having a major influence in the domain at the territorial level of interest, which is usually national but can also be international, European, regional or local;
- within an organisation: at hierarchical level. This restricts coverage to positions within the hierarchy that have a major input to decision-making within the organisation.
WMID Methodological report
The judiciary domain includes statistics on women and men amongst judges and presidents of highest national and European courts. Data on national courts cover the highest decision-making positions within the national judiciaries including, where applicable, the supreme court, supreme administrative courts, the constitutional courts and the public prosecutor in each country.
Organisations covered:
- Supreme courts: the highest juridical body in the domain of civil and penal jurisdiction. In some cases, the supreme court also takes responsibility for administrative and/or constitutional jurisdiction.
- Administrative courts: the jurisdiction empowered to adjudicate, in the last instance, disputes arising from the actions of public administrations at national level. In cases where the supreme court takes responsibility for administrative jurisdiction, it is covered only in that section only.
- Constitutional courts: a legal body responsible for ensuring the compatibility of legislation with the provisions and principles of the constitution in each country, in particular to protect constitutionally established rights and freedoms. In cases where the supreme court takes responsibility for constitutional jurisdiction, it is covered only in that section only. In countries where the constitution does not recognise the concept of supreme law then a constitutional court does not exist.
- Public prosecutor: or prosecutor general is the most senior government official(s) responsible for the prosecution of criminal actions on behalf of the state.
Positions covered:
- Supreme courts: president and members (judges). The count for members includes the president
- Administrative courts: president
- Constitutional courts: president
- Public prosecutor: public prosecutor or equivalent position(s). In some countries, the figure of public prosecutor is shared amongst a group of general prosecutors in which case all are included in the count.
Mapping tables: