Echoing the need for actionable solutions, Andrea Costafreda, Director General for Development Cooperation, Government of Catalonia highlighted their commitment to concrete capacity-building to empower tomorrow’s leaders Delivering the keynote address, Maria Cristina Russo from the European Commission emphasized that gender equality is a prerequisite for excellent science and good governance. She noted that the EU’s commitment is translated into regional action through the UfM Research and Innovation Platform and sitting at the heart of the Pact for the Mediterranean. Women must increasingly shape research agendas rather than just contribute to them.

The first session, “Women in Academic Leadership,” focused on driving tangible institutional reform to overcome entrenched biases, highlighting how deeply institutional culture and leadership practices shape progress toward gender equality in higher education. Benefiting from insights from the We4Lead project (Aix-Marseille University), speakers presented gender equality as a strategic process that requires sustained capacity building and concrete mechanisms to enable a truly transformative approach. They emphasized that while strong top-down commitment is crucial, Gender Equality Plans only succeed when supported by collective bottom-up engagement, dedicated gender-sensitive budgeting, and robust data to track women’s substantive decision-making power rather than mere descriptive representation.

Translating these insights into action, the session culminated in the presentation of the newly launched UfM project, Women Leading Change. Supported by the ACCD and implemented across ten universities in Morocco, Lebanon, and Syria, the initiative aims to strengthen institutional capacity to design and sustain truly inclusive leadership models for the future.

The second session, focusing on scientific leadership, highlighted that closing the gender gap in research and innovation is no longer solely a matter of fairness, but a critical driver of regional competitiveness. Prof. Rajaâ Cherkaoui El Moursli, awarded the UNESCO-L’Oreal Prize for Women in Science, shared her personal journey and presented data illustrating that while women are heavily present in laboratories, they remain largely invisible in management. The problem is not a lack of qualified women, but a system hampered by structural and mental barriers.

Bringing together leading scientists, policymakers, and institutional leaders, the ensuing panel discussion emphasized the urgent need to move women from the implementation stage into strategic decision-making. Panelists, including representatives from SESAME, the UK FCDO, the European Commission, and PRIMA, advocated for supporting women holistically through tools such as mentoring, sponsorship, policy levers, and positive incentives such as awards. One key strategy that emerged for altering power dynamics was ensuring women are included early in strategic decision-making and scientific advisory committees.