ON ITS FIFTH ANNIVERSARY, CLOSINGAP EXPLAINS THE IMPORTANCE OF BOOSTING ECONOMIC GROWTH FROM A GENDER EQUALITY PERSPECTIVE

The ClosinGap Association, comprised of twelve large companies whose aim is to analyse the economic impact of the uneven opportunities that women must deal with, held the Fifth Economic Equality Summit. It was moderated by presenter Sonsoles Moralejo and held at CaixaBank's 'all in one' space in Madrid, as part of its fifth anniversary celebration events.

During the opening of the event, CaixaBank’s CEO, Gonzalo Gortázar, stressed the importance of diversity, recognition of talent, meritocracy, and equal opportunities as fundamental components for the progress of companies and society in general. He also called for “setting intermediate objectives” and “measuring the initiatives” implemented to promote gender equality with the aim of achieving equality before the 33 years that are estimated to be needed to close the gender gap in Spain, as stated in the ‘Third ClosinGap Index’.

This was followed by the first round table, “Women and Social Transformation“, made up of some of the members of the ClosinGap Board of Directors such as Fátima Báñez, President of the CEOE Foundation; Manuel Terroba, Executive Chairman of the BMW Group Spain and Portugal; Eduardo Petrossi, CEO of Mahou San Miguel; Manuel Martín, Partner in charge of Markets at PwC Spain; Miguel Carballeda, President of ONCE Social Group; Eugenio Martínez, Deputy CEO Kreab Worldwide; Beatriz Corredor, President of REDEIA; and Marta Machicot, Global Director of People at Telefónica.

At the round table, participants shared thoughts on the impact of the gender gap on the Spanish economy, highlighting the work carried out by ClosinGap over the last five years to quantify the economic potential of equal opportunities in Spain and identify the actions that may be taken to contribute to eliminating the gaps. Through the ClosinGap Index we have been able to track the evolution from 2020, when the gender gap in the Spanish economy was 35.9%, to 2022, when the figure had been reduced to 35.3%. Thus, it is estimated that it will take another 33 years to reach gender parity.

Along these lines, the members of the ClosinGap Association’s Board of Directors insisted on the importance of continuing to establish links that enable participation in studies promoted by recognised international organisations, as well as sharing the results obtained in their own reports to raise awareness of the long road that still lies ahead in terms of gender equality, and to find new ways to accelerate this change.

The following discussion panel presented initiatives to reduce the gender gap in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) careers, as well as to raise awareness on the importance of working together towards this goal. The discussion benefited from the participation of Amparo García, winner of the 2021 CaixaBank and Microsoft WONNOW Awards; Pau Pavón, winner of the 2023 edition of the international Global Students Entrepreneurs Awards for best university entrepreneur in Spain, and Blanca Drake, spokesperson for the Wayra innovation hub.

ClosinGap delivers the fourth edition of the ClosinGap Awards

Within the framework of the Fifth Economic Equality Summit, the association held the fourth edition of the ClosinGap Awards. The purpose of these awards is to acknowledge and highlight the work of people who, through their work, educational research, or personal conviction, have actively contributed to promoting and defending equal opportunities or the discussions around this issue.

To this end, Ana Polanco, Chair of the ClosinGap Advisory Board and Head of Market Access and Government and Public Affairs for Europe at Merck, presented the award to Marian Rojas, psychiatrist at the Spanish Institute of Psychiatric Research and distinguished for her contribution to “social transformation in equal opportunities”. In addition to her medical practice, Rojas is the author of world-renowned literary works such as “How to make good things happen” and “Encuentra a tu persona vitamina” (which would translate as “Find your vitamin person”), and she gives lectures on emotional management.

On the other hand, Hortensia Roig, president of EDEM School for Entrepreneurs and Board Member of Mercadona, received the ClosinGap Award for “Innovation in Equal Opportunities” from Gonzalo Gortázar, CaixaBank’s CEO. In addition to her extensive experience in the business world, Roig has promoted the Hortensia Roig Award for Children’s Literature, with the aim of encouraging scientific vocations among girls.

Finally, IESE professor and member of its Board of Directors, Núria Mas, received an award in the category “Generation of Economic Knowledge in Equal Opportunities” for her long career as an advisor and consultant in the field of health economics for public and private institutions. The award was presented to Mas by Fátima Báñez, president of the CEOE Foundation.

In this context, the award winners also participated in a discussion panel in which they shared their current vision of the gender gap in the Spanish economy and highlighted the importance of having female role models in different areas of society to advance towards equal opportunities. In closing the event, Marieta Jiménez, European President of Merck Healthcare and ClosinGap, stated that “ClosinGap has become a sound source of economic knowledge on gender gaps in Spain” and thanked the efforts and commitment of the people who make up the association’s Board of Directors and Advisory Council, stressing the need to continue working to advance towards gender equality: “the analysis of each annual ClosinGap Index, as well as each of our 15 reports, reveal the economic potential of women. Only by being able to integrate the talent of 50% of the population will we be able to say that we are doing our part to grow“, concluded Jiménez.