The gender self-assessment project of the Ministry of Interior of Uruguay, carried out by RESDAL in collaboration with DCAF, was presented

On March 19th, in the city of Montevideo, the International Conference "Equality and Women's Leadership in the National Police" took place as part of the project carried out by RESDAL in collaboration with the Geneva Centre for the Governance of the Security Sector (DCAF) and the Ministry of Interior of Uruguay.

The speakers at the conference were: Rosario Rodríguez, M.A. in Political Science from RESDAL; Cristina Finch and Nathalie Gendre from the Gender and Security Division of DCAF; Dr. María José Oviedo, General Director of the Secretariat of the Ministry of Interior of Uruguay, Commissioner General Angelina Ferreira, Head of the National Directorate of Gender Policies; and Cecilia Erhardt, M.A., Technical Coordinator of the National Directorate of Gender Policies.

In her speech, Dr. María José Oviedo pointed out that the Ministry of Interior needs to strive to be a viable employment option for women, where they can develop and achieve economic independence. "As a workplace where we spend many hours of our day, it is essential for us to provide the conditions, security, and opportunities for further growth," emphasized the official.

On her part, Commissioner General Angelina Ferreira spoke about the challenges faced by the National Directorate of Gender Policies in terms of training, knowledge generation, updating of specific guidelines and protocols, as well as intra and interinstitutional coordination.

Ferreira reported that "we are working with the support of DCAF alongside RESDAL on a gender self-assessment," the results of which will not only allow the Ministry of the Interior to understand the situation of women but will also provide "the opportunity to create policies to improve the situation of women in the institution."

During the event, it was also reported about the creation of an inter-ministerial committee that works actively to carry out gender self-evaluation. This committee is composed of the National Police Directorate, the National Rehabilitation Institute, the National Police Health Directorate, the National Police Assistance and Social Security Directorate, the National Guard Directorate, the National Firefighters Directorate, and the Human Resources Management and Development Area.

The local gender self-assessment project at the Ministry of Interior of Uruguay has its precedent in the work carried out by RESDAL in collaboration with DCAF and the research team from Cornell University, which resulted in the National Police of Uruguay – MOWIP Report 2020-2021

Source: Ministry of the Interior of Uruguay

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