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Gender Equality

Sport and education are powerful tools to promote inclusion and diversity in our society and this, of course, comprises gender equality.

FISU focuses on organising events and programmes for a large number of clients: students, student-athletes, officials and all people involved in the University Sports Movement. Therefore, it is with this sense of immense responsibility that FISU takes concrete steps towards ensuring gender equality at its sports and educational events, as well as in its governance.

Within FISU’s governance structure, the FISU Committees strive towards a balance between men and women in their composition. This change was introduced as part of an attempt to significantly increase the number of women on FISU Committees and work towards the general objective of achieving gender equality in sport governance.

FISU Global Strategy 2027 states that:

A Gender Equality Policy which presents a clear vision on how FISU will advance and achieve gender equality in university sport, both within the FISU organisation and the wider university sports movement and the impact this will have on CUSFs and NUSFs.

FISU consistently incorporates the topic of Gender Equality into all of its educational events, and ensures that the principle of Gender Equality is a key consideration in FISU programmes.

Gender Equality was a key theme at the Costa Rica 2022 FISU World Forum, which resulted in a Declaration. Below are the 3 main points:

  • FISU shall promote the role of university sport to empower women and propose solutions such as mentoring, education and media campaigns to value the role of women in sport
  • FISU shall improve its procedures and rules to include more women in leadership positions (executive committee, committees)
  • FISU shall promote existing initiatives and value the positive projects developed by its membership on the theme of Gender Equality

Last but not least, FISU attempts to make close and important cooperation with Gender Equality International Women group (IWG): FISU takes part to their conferences and vice-versa.

Key Milestones

  • Mrs. Jian Zang from the Federation of University Sports China (FUSC) was the first woman to be a part of the FISU Executive Committee
    1983
  • It was decided to assign four positions to women within FISU Education Committee: Saliha Boukadoum (ALG), Pyhala Kaisa (FIN), Elizabeth Nwankwo (NIG), Alison Odell (GBR)
    1997
  • FISU established the Women’s Committee
    2007
  • First female FISU Director as Finance Director: Uyan Bekhbat (MGL)
    2009
  • FISU signs the International Working Group on Women and Sport’s (IWG) Brighton Declaration
    2011
  • First female member in the FISU Steering Committee: Alison Odell (GBR)
    2011
  • The FISU Gender Equality Committee was established as permanent, replacing the ad hoc Women's Committee
    2012
  • FISU's first female Vice-President: Peninnah Aligawesa Kabenge (UGA)
    2019
  • The highest number (seven) of female candidates were elected to the FISU Executive Committee, including three out of four Vice-Presidents
    2023