Drawing Competition 2009

For the third year in a row, the European Commission launched an international drawing competition on gender equality on International Women's Day 8 March 2009. This competition called on children in third countries to express their vision of gender equality through a drawing. The selection of the 14 winning drawings took place on 23 June in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Mathilde of Belgium and Mr Koos Richelle, Director General for EuropeAid Cooperation Office at the European Commission. Drawing competition on gender equality 2010.

In 2009 the jury was made of 49 primary school pupils of the European School in Brussels. An exhibition of the winning drawings was inaugurated in autumn 2009 at the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. 25 000 children from all over the world submitted their drawings and expressed their views on gender equality following the competition launch on 8 March 2009.

2009 winners of the gender drawing competition

Pictures and video of the selection event of the winners on 23 June 2009 in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Mathilde of Belgium

Story from the field

International Women's day 2009 - Children's Gender Drawing Competition

On the occasion of the Women's International Day in 2009, and for the third year running, EuropeAid launched a drawing competition in order to call on the children in third countries to express their vision of women/men.

The full story

Highlights of the 2009 edition

In 2009 HRH Princess Mathilde of Belgium patronised the competition and took part in the final selection event at the European school in Brussels on the 23 June 2009.

• 22 783 drawings were received by the EU Delegations – to note that the EU Delegation in Burkina Faso received 4 813 drawings.

• 491 drawings were selected by the EU Delegations and sent to Brussels for the final selection.

• 14 overall winners representing the seven regions were selected by a jury composed of children from the European School of Brussels I, as this school gathers the 27 nationalities of the European Union.

• Children from 13 countries: Algeria, Benin, Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mexico, Somali, Togo and Ukraine, became winners of the 2009 International Drawing Competition.

• Prize-giving organised in Rabat, Morocco in November 2009.