Working Method

Co-operation between the Nordic governments in the area of gender equality and LGBTI is led by the Nordic ministers responsible for gender equality and equal rights of LGBTI people. These ministers make up the Nordic Council of Ministers for Gender Equality and LGBTI. The ministers meet at least once a year to discuss relevant matters and take joint decisions within those areas in which Nordic co-operation is able to generate greater benefit than what the individual countries would be able to attain on their own. This is referred to as Nordic benefit.

For the purpose of promoting Nordic co-operation among organisations, businesses and civil society, the Nordic Council of Ministers for Gender Equality and LGBTI allocates funds each year to the Nordic Gender Equality Fund and the Nordic LGBTI Fund which can be used for the financing of projects that promote Nordic co-operation and Nordic benefit within the areas of gender equality and equal rights for LGBTI people.

The Committee of Senior Officials is comprised of representatives from all of the Nordic countries, as well as Greenland, the Faroe Islands and Åland. As a general rule, it meets three times per year. The committee leads the practical work and prepares meetings between the ministers and implements their decisions. Each country can appoint two members with specific knowledge on gender equality and equal rights for LGBTI people.

NIKK is a co-operation body under the Nordic Council of Ministers for gender equality and LGBTI. NIKK gathers and communicates knowledge about policy and practice, facts and research in the area of gender equality and equal rights for LGBTI people with a Nordic perspective.

The Nordic vision for an outward-looking Nordic Region strives to strengthen the Nordic voice within the international community. Nordic co-operation works to strengthen international obligations that promote gender equality and equal rights for LGBTI people in the Nordic Region and across the world. 

Each year, the Nordic Council of Ministers for Gender Equality and LGBTI participates at the assembly of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in order to highlight Nordic solutions to gender-equality challenges and make the voice of the Nordic Region heard in an international gender equality policy context.

Similarly, the Nordic governments can also draw on Nordic co-operation within the area of gender equality and LGBTI in order to align and coordinate common positions under the auspices of the Council of Europe and the EU with a view to strengthening the common Nordic voice and promoting good Nordic solutions and outcomes. 

Finally, since 2017, the Nordic Council of Ministers for Gender Equality and LGBTI has been co-operating with Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania within the area of gender equality in order to create a network, exchange experiences and pursue the common development of Nordic-Baltic solutions.

Nordic co-operation in the area of gender equality and LGBTI must be seen in the context of the Nordic Council of Ministers’ other governing documents, including its Vision 2030, and the work must be undertaken in accordance with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ policy for the integration of sustainable development, gender equality and a child and young person perspective.

https://www.norden.org/da/information/sammen-om-baeredygtig-udvikling-ligestilling-og-boern-og-unge

Each year, the Nordic Council of Ministers reports to the Nordic Council on its work in relation to gender equality and the integration of equality perspectives across all areas of Nordic co-operation.
 
In addition, the work to achieve gender equality and equal rights for LGBTI people also takes an intersectional perspective with special focus placed on indigenous populations, inhabitants from an ethnic minority background and inhabitants with disabilities. 

Co-operation must be based on relevant knowledge and facts, and it must include the exchange of experiences and discussion of how to create trans-Nordic platforms, the dissemination of positive examples, awareness-raising initiatives, the influencing of attitudes, research into the area at a trans-Nordic level and the development of information on national legislation.  

The work must also involve the other sectors of the Nordic Council of Ministers to a relevant extent.

The co-operation programme applies for the 2025–2030 period, which in turn is divided into two, three-year work plans for 2025–2027 and 2028–2030 respectively.  

A mid-term evaluation may be carried out after the first work plan period.

In addition, on-going evaluations may also be carried out at the discretion of the General Secretary and the Council of Ministers.