The Local Council for Women is a body which complements the work of the City Council of Jerez de la Frontera, whose purpose is to channel direct citizen participation in the management of the municipality. It is set-up with consultative functions carried out in a collegial manner and it is requested to put forward proposals and suggestions related to the public policies that the City of Jerez de la Frontera deploys in the field of Equal Opportunities.
The Mayor is the President of the Council, represented in this position by the Councillor for Equal Opportunities. Apart from the Bureau members, the Council is composed of one member for each of the political groups represented in City Council, and by representatives of the civil society, namely those working and operating in the field of Equal Opportunities. The latter include representatives of the Fundacion Secretariado Gitano (Roma Association), of the Association of LGBTi women, and of organizations that work for the inclusion of migrants, as long as they have a women's section in their operating structure.
The Local Council for Women carries out – inter alia - the following tasks:
- Advises the Municipality by submitting annual proposals in relation to the different programs and actions that may be developed in the area of Equal Opportunities and Gender Perspective;
- Raises awareness among citizens of the city policies related to equal opportunities and promote and encourage the public participation of civil society organisations, and their cooperation with the local government in matters of Equal Opportunities;
- Stimulates and monitor participatory processes that may be opened in relation to local public policies on Equal Opportunities;
- Promotes training and self-training programmes for the enhanced participation of its members and of the members of the entities they represent;
- Develops and apply self-analysis mechanisms and evaluation of their own performance as spaces for participation;
- Encourages actions that provide alternative strategies and positive policies to eliminate discrimination based on sex and gender identity ground;
- Ensures that the gender perspective is taken into account in all Municipal Plans and Programmes.
