Luxembourg's Chairship in 2024: A year of promoting gender and democracy

Luxembourg’s Chairship of the Council of Member States of International IDEA in 2024 culminated in the 33rd annual meeting of the Council and a series of side events organized on 5-6 December 2024 at the Institute’s headquarters in Stockholm and online. Luxembourg led the governance agenda of the Institute with the support of Vice Chairs Norway and Uruguay.

Building on Luxembourg's long-standing commitment to gender equality and the human rights of all, the country chose gender and democracy as the theme for the Chairship. Throughout the year, Luxembourg seized opportunities to champion the inclusion and participation of women and marginalized individuals in democratic processes. These efforts also integrated vital perspectives on the links between gender as well as the Institute’s new workstreams on Climate Change and Democracy and Digitalization and Democracy, recognizing the interconnected nature of these themes.

The main activity of Luxembourg’s Chairship was the organization of Democracy Exchanges for the Institute’s Member States. This initiative facilitated dialogues among the Institute’s diverse membership on lessons learned, good practices and further areas for collective efforts with regards to promoting gender equality within democratic institutions and practices. Three online meetings were organized around the topics of accelerating progress on SDG 5.5, intersection of gender and digitalization, and strengthening gender-responsive climate action. The series culminated with a briefing on Gender and Inclusion during the Council Day on 6 December 2024. During the session, H.E. Henri Schumacher, Ambassador of Luxembourg to Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway, presented the factsheet summarizing key takeaways from these exchanges.

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The Chairship provided a key opportunity for Luxembourg to intensify its engagement with the Institute across programs and regions. The year began with an event titled “Unpacking Democracy: Intersectionality of Gender and Violence Against Political Actors,” featuring remarks from H.E. Anne Goedert, Luxembourg’s Ambassador-at-large for Human Rights. Luxembourg’s missions ranging from the embassies in Seoul to Addis Ababa made critical contributions to the Institute’s activities such as the Global GDC Forum and the Africa and West Asia International Democracy Day Roundtable. Leveraging this diplomatic network, Luxembourg also co-hosted events with the Institute in New York and Geneva where attention was drawn to women’s political participation and human rights in post-coup Myanmar.

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As a contributor to the Institute’s core funds, Luxembourg also renewed its commitment to the Institute’s research work. The message shared by H.E. Xavier Bettel, Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs of Luxembourg following the launch the Global State of Democracy 2024 Report was a testament to that support. The Secretary-General of International IDEA Dr Kevin Casas-Zamora had the pleasure of meeting with Minister Bettel in the margins of the 79th session of the UNGA. Minister Bettel also delivered opening remarks at an SDG16 focused side event “Peace, Justice, and Inclusive Institutions for a Sustainable Future for All” hosted by the Permanent Mission of Luxembourg to the United Nations. Besides Luxembourg’s support to International IDEA’s knowledge production, Luxembourg is also a key enabler of the Institute’s capacity development efforts in Central America.

Luxembourg's Chairship year concluded with an event recognizing the UN’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence. The Embassy of Canada to Sweden, the Embassy of Luxembourg to Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Norway, International IDEA, and UN Women Sweden jointly hosted an event on Cyber Violence against Women on 5 December 2024. The event featured a screening of the Canadian documentary "Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age" followed by a panel discussion with notable speakers including Annie Lööf, Former Leader of the Centre Party of Sweden, Ulrika Grandin, Executive Director of UN Women Sweden, and Rumbidzai Kandawasvika-Nhundu, Principal Adviser for Democracy and Inclusion at International IDEA.

International IDEA is grateful for Luxembourg’s exemplary leadership and looks forward to continuing the close partnership beyond 2024. Luxembourg’s Chairship set a high standard for promoting gender and democracy, demonstrating the power of collaborative and multilateral efforts in addressing global challenges.