Women in Digital Forum Launches to Accelerate Gender Equality in Europe’s Digital Future

This week sees the launch of the Women in Digital Forum, a major new initiative under the Connecting Women in Digital project, supported by the DIGITAL Europe Programme. The high-level, invite-only event in Brussels gathers senior stakeholders from EU institutions, Member States, academia, civil society, and the private sector to advance a shared agenda for gender equality in digital policy, skills, and innovation.

Despite growing awareness, women remain significantly underrepresented in the EU’s digital sector. Currently, they make up just 19% of ICT specialists and 33% of STEM graduates. This gap is more than a social issue, it is a structural challenge that undermines Europe’s innovation capacity, competitiveness, and resilience.

A New Platform for Collective Action

The Women in Digital Forum is being established as a strategic, expert-level platform to tackle the root causes of the gender divide across the digital pipeline. Its mission is to provide targeted policy recommendations, mobilise multi-stakeholder collaboration, and support the implementation of inclusive practices across the EU.

Aligned with the 2024 State of the Digital Decade report, the Forum contributes directly to the goal of doubling the number of ICT specialists in Europe by 2030, while raising women’s participation to at least 40%.

Launch Agenda and Objectives

The launch event features the formal inauguration of the Forum and the appointment of a high-level Governing Board, with representatives from SAP, Amadeus, Junior Achievement Europe, and Grande École Numérique. 

Speakers include EU and industry leaders such as June Lowery-Kingston, Silvia Poll Ahrens, Luciano Pollastri, Laure Le Bars, and others who will outline the strategic vision for the Forum’s future work.

The day also marks the launch of Thematic Working Groups (TWGs), which will address priority areas such as inclusive digital education, career pathways, and leadership representation.

The TWGs are expert-led spaces for structured dialogue, knowledge exchange, and the development of targeted recommendations. The first two groups, focused on ICT education and leadership empowerment, will be chaired by Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) and Vilnius Tech (VT), respectively. A broader call for experts is now open, inviting professionals from across sectors to express their interest in contributing to this work.

To learn more about the purpose, structure, and expected contributions of each working group, you can download the official Terms of Reference:

– TWG1 – Encouraging ICT Education (PDF)
– TWG2 – Leadership Empowerment (PDF)

To express your interest in joining one of the Thematic Working Groups, please complete the following registration form no later than 11 July at 18:00 (CET).