The European Parliament decided by 567 votes to 84, with 43 abstentions, to grant discharge to the Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) for the financial year 2019 and to approve the closure of the accounts for that year.

Noting that the Court of Auditors stated that it had obtained reasonable assurance that the Institute's annual accounts for the financial year 2019 were reliable and that the underlying transactions were legal and regular, Parliament adopted, by 560 votes to 90 with 41 abstentions, a resolution containing a series of recommendations which form an integral part of the discharge decision and which complement the general recommendations contained in the resolution on the performance, financial management and control of EU agencies.

The Institute's financial statements

The Institute's final budget for the financial year 2019 amounted to EUR 7 847 000, which represents a decrease of 1.68% compared to 2018.

Budgetary and financial management

Parliament welcomed the budget monitoring efforts during the financial year 2019 which resulted in a budget implementation rate of 98.96%, which represents a decrease of 0.42% compared to the financial year 2018. The implementation rate for payment appropriations was 82.50%, an increase of 1.35% compared to the previous year.

Members noted the decrease in the volume of carry-over of the Institute's operating expenditure to 28.01% in 2019 from 51.29% in 2016, noting that for the first time the carry-over was below the 30% threshold set by the Court. They were concerned that in the Institute's annual budget published in 2019 but subsequently amended, no part of the revenue was allocated to the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance.

Other observations

Members also made a series of observations concerning performance, staff policy, public procurement and internal controls.

In particular, they noted that:

- the Institute carried out 95.80% of the activities listed in the Single Programming Document in 2019;

- the Institute cooperates with the Fundamental Rights Agency and Eurofound; it is encouraged to expand cooperation and exchange of best practices with other EU agencies in order to improve efficiency (human resources, building management, IT services and security);

- the Gender Equality Index published in 2019, focusing specifically on the theme of work-life balance, provides new insights into monitoring the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights;

- the Institute contributed to initiatives taken by the Parliament's Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality, regarding the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on women, gender-based violence, work-life balance, the equal pay and pension gap, gender budgeting and the development of a gender-sensitive parliamentary tool;

- at the end of 2019, 96.30% of the establishment plan was implemented with 26 temporary agents appointed out of the 27 temporary agents authorised under the Union budget. Men are under-represented in senior management;

- 47 procurement procedures for operational activities and 62 administrative procurement procedures were completed in 2019. Electronic submission of tenders has been introduced;

- the institute has improved the dissemination of its research results to the general public and has increased its outreach through social media and other channels.