1. How can we start the process of obtaining the certification?
You can start the process through the certification’s website or the evaluating entity. You can get in touch through these entities, by email, or by phones that appear on the website, and we will clarify any questions.
Once you confirm that you have completed the internal administrative process, we will provide you with a code to access your intranet folder.
2. What must we do, as a municipality, to complete the process of obtaining the certification?
In the intranet, you will find the Self-diagnosis form, which you must complete. Later, once it is evaluated, you will find the Commitment Plan form, which should be completed considering the evaluation report, Self-diagnosis, and the level of improvement you want to achieve.
3. How long does it approximately take to obtain the certification?
Although maximum timeframes are set wide enough to complete the different phases, the time may vary from one municipality to another depending on their reality. Likewise, an average of six months is foreseen from the start, and then the certification is obtained without any incident.
4. Can the municipality choose the evaluating entity?
Yes, the Distinctive Platform will provide a list of all the evaluating entities approved by the system. The municipality will be able to choose which entity it wants to perform all the monitoring and evaluation to obtain the certification.
5. How to obtain the certification?
The Commitment Plan is assessed based on the classification of the actions chosen in A, B, or C, or if the recommendations, warnings, and strengths indicated in the Self-diagnosis report have been considered. Thus, a score will be obtained that will determine the grade of the certification, depending on whether it is between 70-80% for the starter level, between 81-90% for the advanced level, and between 91-100% for the leader level.
6. Does the Certification consider the different circumstance of each municipality?
On the one hand, the municipalities have been classified into three sections according to their population scope. A specific section of the Self-diagnosis form corresponds to each of the models. In this way, the certification considers the different capacities of each municipality according to the population scope, since it understands that, the greater its population supply, the more resources the municipality will have.
On the other hand, the Commitment Plan foresees the possibility that the municipality chooses the actions to be carried out during the next two years based on its reality and level of ambition. It establishes three degrees of achievement of the certification according to the set of chosen actions: STARTER, ADVANCED, LEADER.
7. How are they calculated, and what score is given to recommendations, warnings, and strengths?
In the Self-Diagnosis Form, each criterion will receive an evaluation based on the score obtained. This score will determine a series of recommendations, warnings, and strengths. They are extracted from the Self-Diagnosis Form, but the incorporation of warnings, recommendations, and the existence of strengths represent an increase or decrease in the Commitment Plan score.
8. What are the deadlines for each phase?
The municipality has three months to present the self-diagnosis form and the requested documentation as a source of verification that assesses the requirements. After, you have four months to submit the Commitment Plan form.
There are also established deadlines for the evaluations that the municipality will receive. The evaluating entity has a period of two months to deliver the evaluation of the Self-diagnosis, and two months to deliver the evaluation of the Commitment Plan. Both deadlines may be interrupted if the certifying entity requests additional documentation from the municipality. If the municipality does not pass the approval of the Self-diagnosis or the Commitment Plan, it has three months to incorporate the necessary improvements to re-submit to the evaluation process.
9. Does the municipality have to comply with the requirements at the time of the evaluation of the self-diagnosis form?
It depends. Recall that, on the one hand, we have the operational requirements, which must be complied with at the time of the evaluation of the Self-diagnosis form. Regarding the regulatory requirements, they will only be considered as requirements if the legal order of the territory so establishes it. The municipality may delay its compliance until the evaluation of the Commitment Plan. The obtaining of the certification will remain pending until the municipality complies, given each case, with the normative requirements. In the event that the municipality does not have the regulatory obligation to dispose of the political instruments fixed in the form, they will not be considered as requirements. The municipality must provide and prove the norm where the regulation is non-binding.
10. Can any criteria, block, or area be recommendations, warnings, and strengths?
No. As for the recommendations, all the criteria can be; only blocks 2, 3, and 4 of area 2 and all areas. As for the strengths, yes, all the criteria can be; only blocks 2, 3, and 4 of area 2 and all areas. Finally, only indicators can be warnings.
11. Who values and awards the certification, and what recognition does this have?
The Entity that certifies and grants the certification is the Forgender Seal Association, prior to the evaluation of evaluating entities and approved by the system.
As for Catalonia and Spain, the Distinctive already has the recognition of the Generalitat of Catalonia and the Institut Català de les Dones. Also, in the Balearic Islands, it has the recognition of the Institut Balear de la Dona and the Consell de Mallorca, and other autonomous communities have already shown their interest.
On the other hand, at the international level, the Distinctive clearly has an international vocation, since it is based on international treaties, the 2030 Agenda, the Paris Agreements, and the New Urban Agenda for which we have already received the interest of some cities to implement it in the Latin American area.
12. Will the Municipalities that obtain the Distinctive for gender equality have some type of accompaniment?
Yes, the Forgender Seal Association has established an accompaniment to resolve any doubts about the commitments assumed by the municipality. During the two years of execution, the municipality will have several consulting hours.
13. What relationships will the municipalities that obtain the distinctive have?
The Forgender Seal Association will work to create relationships between each municipality with the certification to be able to share experiences and learnings.