Serbia to become one of world’s most gender-balanced governments

Serbia’s proposed new-look government is among the world’s most gender balanced, with women named to half of ministerial posts.The lineup, announced Sunday, propels the Balkan country to the brink of the global top 10 for gender equality — an issue that has typically been higher on the agenda of western European countries. Still, critics say that even with the appointments, President Aleksandar Vucic will call all the shots and women remain under-represented in local politics.

Serbia was already something of an outlier. Vucic selected openly gay Ana Brnabic as the country’s first female prime minister in 2017, while the posts of parliament speaker and central bank governor are also held by women. Almost two-fifths of the legislature’s 250 seats are held by women, nearing a representation target set before the June general election.

After a resounding victory in that vote, Vucic called for a “revolutionary” change as he announced Brnabic’s re-appointment.“Thus we’d represent our country in the best possible way and show, not in words but with action, how gender equality works in practice,” he said. Brnabic raised the proportion of women in the government up from a fifth. Some of the new arrivals include women leading ministries for economy, justice, energy and mining, environmental protection, labour, culture and human rights. Parliament is expected to approve the cabinet in the coming week.