Council of Europe: the Committee of Ministers has adopted recommendation to protect the rights of migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls

The Committee of Ministers, meeting in Turin, has adopted a new recommendation to protect the rights of migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls providing measures to better respond to the needs and challenges that they face.

Drawing on Council of Europe treaties including the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and the Convention on action against trafficking in human beings, the recommendation addresses issues faced by women and girls: from adequate transit and reception facilities to their health needs or establishing gender-sensitive asylum policies.

Also drawing on findings from the European Committee on the Prevention of Torture and relevant United Nations instruments, it provides member States with a checklist of measures to ensure that migrant women’s human rights are better protected.

Part of the Council of Europe Action Plan on Protecting Vulnerable Persons in the Context of Migration and Asylum in Europe (2021-2025), the recommendation furthermore provides guidance to member states regarding women’s needs in terms of social services, employment, education and participation, to ensure that public policies fully contribute to the integration and empowerment of migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls.