The EU as global actor and its influence on the global gender regime

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2008 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Topic: European Union, grade: B+ (1.7), University of Auckland, language: English, abstract: In the last years the European Union (EU) transformed the European gender regime towards gender equality thoroughly. This dissertation deals with the question of the EU's external influence on transforming societies. Is the external influence coherent with internal claims? Trade is the EU's most important external policy area. The EU is an economic giant based on the largest single market in the world. Thus the EU has power in and through trade. The EU makes increasingly the adaptation of normative standards a condition to access its market. Does the EU integrate also standards on gender equality? And does the EU transform gender regimes globally through trade? What impacts does the EU have on gender regimes? This dissertation examines gender impacts in the Sustainability Impact Assessments that show possible impacts of trade agreements between the EU and its partners. The analysis shows that gender is secondary to economic growth and not directed towards gender equality. As a consequence the EU does not use its power through trade and the coherence of internal and external efforts is questionable.