Cyprus had the lowest percentage of women members of the parliament among the EU member states in 2024 (14.3%), significantly lower than the EU average where one third of MPs were women, and much lower than the countries with the highest scores close to 50%, according to data shared by Eurostat on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
More specifically, in 2024, women held one-third (33.4%) of the seats in national parliaments across the EU, marking a 5.6 percentage points (pp) increase compared with 2014.
Sweden (45.6%), Finland (45.5%) and Denmark (44.7%) had the highest shares of female representatives, while Cyprus (14.3%), Hungary (14.6%) and Romania (19.5%) had the lowest.
Compared with 2014, three EU countries increased the share of female representatives by 10 pp or more: Malta (+14.9 pp), Latvia (+13.0 pp) and France (+10.3 pp).
During this period, the share of women in the Cypriot House of Representatives remained unchanged, as it was 14.3% in 2014.
Regarding the participation of women in national governments (as ministers, deputy ministers or state secretaries), in 2024 women held 35.1% of national government seats, an increase of 7.4 percentage points compared with 2014 (27.7%). The share of women in government also increased in Cyprus, from 8.3% in 2014 to 16.7% in 2024 (an increase of 8.4 pp).
The share of women in government was highest in Finland (60.0%). In three other EU countries, at least half of the members of national governments were female: Belgium (55.0%), Estonia (50.0%) and France (50.0%).
In contrast, Hungary had no women in its national government at all, while the Czech Republic had 5.9% and Croatia 10.5% female government members.
In most EU countries, the share of women in national governments grew since 2014. Belgium recorded the largest increase (+32.8 pp), followed by Portugal (+25.7 pp) and Lithuania (+24.9 pp).
Also read: Cyprus appoints first Ambassador for Gender Equality in Sport
Source: CNA
