Twenty-five years after the fourth World Conference on Women, and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which constitute the most complete framework for attaining women’s independence and gender equality, the Forum will assess the progress that has been accomplished. A programme of concrete measurements to achieve gender equality by 2030 will also be drawn up, as part of the ‘Generation Equality: Realizing women’s rights for an equal future’ campaign.

The Forum will take the form of an international public discussion in which all players concerned (civil society, public authorities, local authorities, private sector, media, etc.) will take part. The aim is to result in concrete partnerships and responsibility-awareness creation in favour of fast action on vital questions at a greater scale to attain gender equality. The emphasis will be on intergenerational and multiparty partnerships.

In this context, the Forum wanted to give this world event a real cultural dimension by devoting a specific initiative to cultural and creative industries and sectors related to young people: adopting a commitment charter aiming to combat sexist representations in the film, audiovisual, music, young people’s literature, toy, video game and advertising sectors.

The Institut français has adhered to this approach, fully mobilised around these strong gender equality stakes in society, and brought and distributed the charter to these French and foreign partners.

In its support mission to the cooperation and cultural network internationally, the Institut français supports idea debate projects, initiated by the network of Instituts français and Alliances françaises, in line with foreign partnerships, thus participating in promoting feminist diplomacy. In 2021, the Institut français supported the “Gender Equality: new Korean female voices” project of the Institut français in South Korea, and in 2020 the Institut français supported the cycle of the Farnèse Dialogues “Feminisation of diplomacies” supported by the Institut français in Italy, or the International Feminisms Festival in Beirut proposed by the Institut français in Lebanon.

The Institut français makes a commitment through proposing resources and content intended for the French cultural network, notably through the Pionnières du cinéma (Film Pioneers) selectionwhich puts the spotlight on women who write, direct and produce films through a programme of the most striking works of six female French film pioneers.

The Institut français will also shortly propose Be AWARE to the network, in partnership with AWARE. A history of Women Artists, a documentary exhibition on the history of woman artists of the 19th and 20th centuries.