The Mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, has presided over the institutional event with which the City Council commemorates International Women’s Day. This 8M, the City Council has focused on the dual objective of this date: celebrating the progress made and advocating for the work that remains to achieve real equality between men and women. Throughout the day, the City Council highlighted the 25th anniversary of the approval of the first Equality Plan of the Madrid City Council and called for "accelerating for equality," as the motto of this year’s institutional campaign states.
Accompanied by the Deputy Mayor, Inma Sanz, the Delegate for Social Policies, Family, and Equality, José Fernández, and representatives of the municipal groups, the Mayor presented the Clara Campoamor Awards, with which the City Council recognizes women or entities with a continued commitment to gender equality. In its 20th edition, this distinction was awarded ex aequo to Venezuelan politician María Corina Machado and molecular biologist and researcher Sara García Alonso. This year, the honorable mention went to the ASTI Foundation, which promotes STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) vocations among young women.
Almeida thanked all those who have held the position of Equality Councilor in its various denominations since 1989 – María Antonia Suárez, Ana Botella, Lola Navarro, Beatriz Elorriaga, Celia Mayer, Marta Higueras, Pepe Aniorte, and José Fernández – for enabling "clear and consolidated policies in this City Council and a clear message for the entire city of Madrid" not only as a social justice element but as a fundamental engine of progress.
The Mayor congratulated the awardees, recalling "the obligation to give our best so that the equality proclaimed by Article 14 of the Constitution is real and effective" and the commitment of the City Council of Madrid "to the talent of women on a day like today," enabling them to access all positions and situations without any barriers "to continue improving and progressing as a society."
For the Mayor, "it is impossible for there to be girls and women in the 21st century who cannot fulfill their dreams and have a fulfilling life under the same conditions as any other person in society," highlighting that "advancing in terms of equality depends on the commitment we have with society as a whole," therefore, he said, we must "prioritize what unites us beyond our differences." To conclude, Almeida sent a message of "unity and confidence in the future" to ensure that "our awardee, Sara, no longer feels that her story is uncommon: only then will we know that we have accelerated," in reference to the institutional campaign motto.
Clara Campoamor Awards 2025
María Corina Machado leads a vigorous defense of human rights and freedom against the dictatorship from her position as a political opposition leader in Venezuela. An industrial engineer and educator by profession, she is a prominent member of the Women’s Movement for Democracy (MxD), an international network of Ibero-American women from various sectors promoting women’s empowerment and participation in decision-making spaces. Her defense of democracy earned her the Václav Havel Human Rights Award from the Council of Europe in 2024, making her the first Latin American to receive this award. That same year, she also received, along with Edmundo González, the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament.
In a video screened during the event, María Corina Machado thanked the people of Madrid for this recognition "to pay tribute to millions of Venezuelan women" and emphasized that "we will never rest until we regain freedom and democracy in Venezuela" to make it a land "where we are all free and equal under the law."
On the other hand, Sara García Alonso recalled that "equality is a challenge for society" in addition to "a conquest of the past, a task of the present, and a responsibility for the future, and we all have the duty to promote it." García Alonso highlighted the importance of such events "to showcase the talent of women" as well as a commitment to "all those girls who dream of going far" because "the best way to erase limits is with passion, effort, and determination."
Sara García Alonso, with a degree in biotechnology and a Ph.D. in molecular cancer biology with distinction cum laude, pursues her professional career as a researcher at the National Center for Oncological Research (CNIO), leading pioneering projects to discover new treatments for lung and pancreatic cancer. In 2022, she achieved the milestone of being the first Spanish woman selected as a reserve astronaut by the European Space Agency and has already participated in their training programs. As a science communicator, she participates in events that serve as a platform to promote scientific vocations and STEM careers among young people. She has received distinctions such as the Silver Medal of the Community of Madrid and is among the 100 most influential women in Spain according to Forbes.
The ASTI Foundation’s mission is to promote STEM vocations from an early age. This objective is channeled through its STEM Talent Girls program, an innovative educational project focused on developing and stimulating scientific and technological talent in girls and young women through high-impact social techniques based on collaboration and values education, with the aim of providing role models and creating a new generation of female leaders in STEM fields. To achieve this, they connect students with mentors who guide their education and create a community of young people, professionals, and companies who share concerns.
The president of the ASTI Foundation, Verónica Pascual, and the Madrid student sponsored by the foundation, María Martínez Varela, expressed their gratitude for this recognition of a project that "has been working for nine years to promote science and technology vocations from an early age," essential for boosting the economy and prosperity, "as well as empowering talent, particularly of our young women."
This importance of women in science was also conveyed at the event through a monologue by Madrid-based biologist, researcher, and science communicator Eva Cuesta. Furthermore, the teachers from the Municipal School of Music in Vicálvaro, Alba Clemente and Laura María Ayuso, performed the main theme of the movie Interstellar on cello and piano to conclude the event, which also included an intervention by the Vice President of the Women’s Council of the City of Madrid, Carmen Flores.
Twenty-five years of municipal equality policies
The event also commemorated the 25 years since the approval of the first Equal Opportunities Plan between Men and Women of the Madrid City Council, promoted by the Equality and Employment Area, the first council with competencies in equality matters in the history of the City Council, presided over by José María Álvarez del Manzano. Since then, three other strategic public policy plans focused on equality have followed, for the years 2006-2009, 2011-2015, and 2018-2020, soon to be joined by the 2025-2028 plan currently being developed by the current Government team.
During these years, internal and external initiatives have been launched that have shaped the City Council’s commitments to equality and against gender-based violence, such as the City Council’s adherence to the European Charter for Equality between Women and Men in Local Life in 2005; the Istanbul Convention of 2015; or the approval in the Cibeles Plenary of 21 measures to eradicate violence against women in 2019 with no votes against.
Additionally, significant milestones have been achieved in this time, including the creation of essential services such as all the resources that make up the Municipal Network for the Care of Victims of Gender Violence, which ensures the care, protection, and support in the recovery of women victims of violence in the context of partner and ex-partner violence, sexual violence, and trafficking and sexual exploitation and their dependent minor children. Also significant progress has been made in creating the Equality Agents Network and the 18 municipal equality spaces, where equality is promoted and gender-based violence is prevented and addressed.
Municipal budget for equality and against gender-based violence
In the year 2000, the budget of the Madrid City Council for the implementation of equality policies and against gender-based violence amounted to 1.5 million euros, with a staff of 25 dedicated to this goal. In 2025, the budget allocation has multiplied to 29 million euros, and the professional team consists of 79 people, in addition to the workers from all resources.
Furthermore, the promotion of equality has permeated all Government actions, and awareness campaigns are carried out every year to continue reminding society of the need to work together to close the gender gap and achieve a city with full equality of rights and opportunities for men and women. This common goal is reflected in the institutional campaign disseminated by the Madrid City Council this 8M in outdoor advertising spaces, media, and social networks, with the motto: "Let’s accelerate for equality, the future cannot wait." Through this, the City Council calls on men and women, young and old, to get involved in achieving this goal promptly. /
