APPROVED
by the Order of the Ukrainian Institute for Plant Variety
Examination dated August 14, 2026, № 267-ОД
GENDER EQUALITY POLICY
of the Ukrainian Institute for Plant Variety Examination and its branches
1. General provisions
The Gender Equality Policy of the Ukrainian Institute for Plant Variety Examination and its branches (hereinafter – the Policy) is developed and implemented in order to ensure equal rights and opportunities for women and men, prevent discrimination based on sex, and create favorable conditions for the professional and personal development of employees of the Ukrainian Institute for Plant Variety Examination (hereinafter – UIPVE) and its branches.
The Policy is developed taking into account the provisions of:
- the Constitution of Ukraine, adopted on June 28, 1996, № 254к/96-ВР;
- the Law of Ukraine "On Ensuring Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men" dated September 8, 2005, № 2866-IV;
- the Law of Ukraine "On Principles of Prevention and Counteracting Discrimination in Ukraine" dated September 6, 2012, № 5207-VI;
- the State Strategy for Ensuring Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men for the period up to 2030, approved by the order of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated August 12, 2022, № 752-р;
- the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals up to 2030, in particular Goal 5 "Gender Equality" and Goal 10 "Reduced Inequalities";
- the requirements and principles of the Gender Equality Plan (GEP) of the Horizon Europe program, in particular regarding the publicity of the plan, allocation of resources for its implementation, data collection and monitoring, as well as conducting training on gender equality and unconscious gender biases.
The Policy is based on the principles of equality of rights and opportunities for women and men, non-discrimination, respect for human dignity, fairness, openness, and equal access to professional development.
Gender equality implies an equal legal status for women and men and equal opportunities for its realization, enabling persons of both sexes to participate equally in the professional, scientific, managerial, and other spheres of activity of the UIPVE and its branches.
The Policy is a system of principles, approaches, and measures aimed at ensuring equal rights and opportunities for employees of the UIPVE and its branches in the sphere of labor, professional development, scientific activity, participation in management and decision-making, as well as creating conditions for combining professional activity and personal life.
The Policy applies to all employees of the UIPVE and its branches regardless of sex, age, marital status, and other characteristics, and is applied in all structural divisions of the UIPVE and its branches.
2. Purpose and main principles of the Policy
The purpose of the Policy is to form an institutional environment within the UIPVE and its branches that ensures gender equality, equal opportunities for professional development, and participation in scientific and managerial activities, as well as prevents any manifestations of discrimination, violence, and harassment.
The implementation of the Policy is based on the following principles:
- equality of rights and opportunities for women and men;
- prevention of direct and indirect discrimination based on sex;
- equal treatment during employment, professional development, and career advancement;
- equal opportunities for participation in scientific, international, and managerial activities;
- respect for human dignity and personal life;
- prevention of gender-based violence, sexual harassment, and other forms of inappropriate behavior;
- transparency and monitoring of the state of ensuring gender equality.
3. Main directions for ensuring gender equality
The Policy of the UIPVE and its branches provides for the implementation of the following main directions:
1) Ensuring a balance between professional activity and personal life.
Creation, within the limits of legislation and the organizational capabilities of the UIPVE and its branches, of conditions that facilitate the combining of professional duties with family responsibilities and the personal life of employees.
2) Ensuring gender balance in management and decision-making.
Ensuring equal opportunities for women and men regarding participation in the work of managerial, advisory, scientific, and other collegial bodies of the Institute, as well as in managerial decision-making processes.
3) Ensuring gender equality during employment and professional development.
Compliance with the principles of equality and non-discrimination during the selection and hiring of employees, determination of working conditions, professional training, advanced training, certification, incentivization, and career advancement.
4) Ensuring equal opportunities in scientific and international activities.
Ensuring equal access for women and men to participate in scientific research, projects, grant programs, conferences, international cooperation, internships, professional training, and other forms of scientific and professional development.
5) Consideration of the gender dimension in research activities.
Consideration, where it is scientifically justified and relevant to the subject of research, of the gender dimension during the planning, conducting, analysis, and presentation of the results of scientific research and the implementation of scientific and international projects.
6) Prevention of gender-based violence, discrimination, and sexual harassment.
Forming a culture of zero tolerance within the UIPVE and its branches towards any manifestations of discrimination, gender-based violence, sexual harassment, stalking, and other forms of behavior that violate the dignity of employees.
4. Implementation of the Policy
For the implementation of the Policy at the UIPVE:
- an Action Plan for the implementation of the Policy is developed, which defines specific measures, timeframes, and indicators for their execution, as well as responsible structural divisions and/or employees;
- the collection and analysis of data regarding the personnel composition of the UIPVE and its branches with a breakdown by gender is ensured, in particular regarding representation in managerial and scientific positions;
- monitoring of the implementation of defined measures, compliance with established timeframes for their execution, and achievement of indicators envisaged by the Action Plan is conducted;
- informational and training events for employees on issues of gender equality, non-discrimination, and the prevention of unconscious gender bias are conducted;
- informing employees about the principles and provisions of this Policy is ensured;
- based on the monitoring results, directions for further improvement of the activities of the UIPVE and its branches in the sphere of gender equality are determined.
5. Monitoring and review of the Policy
The effectiveness of the Policy's implementation is evaluated based on the execution of the Action Plan, analysis of the execution of measures defined therein, as well as the dynamics of indicators in the sphere of ensuring gender equality at the UIPVE and its branches.
The evaluation results are used to determine the need for improving approaches and measures for ensuring gender equality and are taken into account during further planning of the respective activities of the UIPVE and its branches.
The Policy is reviewed as necessary, in particular based on the results of the evaluation of its implementation, in case of changes in legislation, organizational conditions of the UIPVE's activities, or requirements of international programs and projects.
6. Publicity of the Policy
The Policy is approved by the order of the UIPVE, brought to the attention of employees, and published on the official website of the UIPVE.
The UIPVE confirms its commitment to the principles of gender equality, non-discrimination, ensuring equal opportunities for professional and scientific development, as well as creating a safe working environment based on respect for dignity and equal treatment of employees.