Belgium - The national and intersectoral strategy “Women in Digital 2021-2026”

The national and intersectoral strategy “Women in Digital 2021-2026” was adapted in 2021 and is coordinated by the Ministry of the Economy Belgium (FPS Economy). All sectors - governments, education networks, the private sector, civil society, media, academic sector - need to adopt a long-term strategy in overcome to remove cultural and systemic barriers and to encourage girls and women to participate in the digital economy.

This five-year strategy establishes Belgium’s commitment to increase the representation of women in the IT sector. It includes a common and intersectoral strategy based on five strategic objectives in order to combat current prejudices and to tackle structural obstacles which prevent women from participating in the digital economy.

By adopting this strategy, every policy level and every organisation is committed to:

1. identifying, researching and monitoring parameters that specifically influence girls and women in their choice of education and careers;
2. promoting women’s position in the digital economy and basing their support on the five determined strategic objectives;
3. defining objectives (whether internal or not) in order to continuously reduce current inequality;
4. measuring the progress made regarding the determined strategic objectives and annually report about the progress made, for more transparency and accountability (DESI);
5. promoting an inclusive policy that defines objectives at all levels of the organisation (“Gender Pay Equality Policy”, communication etc.), considering the specific principles of the policy level or organisation;
6. ensuring that the commitment is made and maintained within their administration or organisation, also at the highest executive level;
7. focusing in particular on women in vulnerable groups or women that could be the target of cross-discrimination (meaning discrimination on the basis of multiple factors);
8. organising a conference at least twice every six months in order to share information and, if possible, reveal relevant statistics, respecting the competences of every policy level and represented organisation.

The current strategy offers a reference framework to the involved participants (basic minimum).

It is up to every policy level and every organisation to evaluate how they can achieve the defined strategic objectives, depending on their competences and budgets.

The strategy is aimed against the unequal presence between men and women in the digital field, focusing on five strategic objectives: 

• Ensure that more women graduate in the digital sector.
• Promote the integration of women in the world of digital work and/or in the digital sector.
• Promote the retention of women in the digital sector.
• Fight against stereotypes by constructing new images.
• Eliminate the gender gap in specific target groups.

Monitoring progress will not only be done quantitatively but also qualitatively, within the context of an intersectoral work group that unites various policy levels, the private sector, the academic sector, and the non-profit sector. The aim is to meet the requirements of the “Commitment on Women in Digital” declaration and to provide DESI with coherent indicators.

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