The “Madrid Declaration” calls for gender parity “in all areas of foreign policy”

Eduardo González The 5th Ministerial Conference on Feminist Foreign Policy, held this week at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters in Plaza del Marqués de Salamanca, concluded with the adoption of a “Madrid Political Declaration” calling for “gender parity in all areas of foreign policy,” including “the equitable representation of women in the foreign service, international decision-making bodies, and multilateral forums.” Madrid hosted the 5th Ministerial Conference on Feminist Foreign Policy on June 2nd and 3rd. This conference followed previous editions held in Germany in 2022, the Netherlands in 2023, Mexico in 2024, and France in 2025. It brought together ministers and representatives from around 60 countries worldwide, as well as representatives from 150 civil society organizations, feminist movements, and high-ranking UN officials. At the closing ceremony on Wednesday, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stated that the declaration is “one of the most ambitious results achieved to date in this area.” In the declaration, the 28 Foreign Ministries gathered at the meeting committed to “accelerating efforts to achieve gender parity in all areas of foreign policy, including by promoting the equitable representation of women in the foreign service, international decision-making bodies, and multilateral forums.” The “Madrid Declaration” also includes a commitment to “significantly increase, protect, and prioritize investments aimed at eradicating the feminization of poverty and expanding women’s access to economic resources.” It also urges ensuring universal, comprehensive, and affordable access to sexual and reproductive health services, including in contexts of armed conflict, and creating violence-free environments for all women and girls, including funding action plans to eliminate all forms of violence against women in both the public and private spheres. At the closing of the event, in addition to Minister Albares, the Colombian Foreign Minister, Yolanda Villavicencio Mapy, also spoke; The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Andorra, Imma Tor; the Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States, Noemí Espinoza; and the Minister of Equality of Spain, Ana Redondo, were present. In his speech, the Minister announced that Morocco would take over from Spain in organizing the next Feminist Foreign Policy Conference. Bilateral meetings During the Conference, Minister Albares met with the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, to whom he conveyed Spain's commitment to humanitarian action based on humanitarian principles and international humanitarian law, as well as the protection of the civilian population. Subsequently, the Minister met with Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, with whom he signed a Partnership Framework for 2026-2031 aimed at promoting substantive gender equality and the comprehensive empowerment of women. Separately, Albares met with Rosa Villavicencio and Imma Tor Faus to discuss preparatory work for the Ibero-American Summit in Madrid, to be held next November. The Foreign Minister also met with the Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States, Noemí Espinoza, who has confirmed her participation in the Ibero-American Summit. The objective of this meeting was to promote closer ties between the Ibero-American Community and the Caribbean, “one of the priorities of the Spanish Pro Tempore Secretariat, as stated in the Seville Declaration,” the press release added.

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