Guidance

List of UK-New Zealand FTA gender mainstreamed provisions

Published 26 June 2025

The FTA contains gender mainstreamed provisions throughout the agreement. For the full text of the FTA and other documents to help you understand the agreement, see the UK-New Zealand FTA collection page.

1. Domestic regulation

1.1 Chapter 10, Article 10.4

If a Party adopts or maintains a measure relating to authorisation, it shall ensure that:

• those measures do not discriminate between men and women^{[footnote 1]}

2. Financial Services

2.1 Chapter 11, Article 11.11

If a Party adopts or maintains measures relating to authorisation for the supply of a service, the Party shall ensure that:

• such measures do not discriminate between men and women^{[footnote 2]}

3. Investment

3.1 Chapter 14, Article 14.19

The Parties reaffirm the importance of each Party encouraging enterprises operating within its territory or subject to its jurisdiction to voluntarily incorporate into their internal policies those internationally recognised standards, guidelines, and principles of corporate social responsibility that have been endorsed or are supported by that Party, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Developmen (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

4. Digital

4.1 Chapter 15, Article 15.2

The Parties recognise the economic growth and opportunities provided by digital trade and the importance of:

• digital inclusion, including participation of Māori, women, persons with disabilities, rural populations, low socio-economic groups as well as enterprises, individuals, and other groups that disproportionately face barriers to digital trade

4.2 Chapter 15, Article 15.20

The Parties recognise the importance of digital inclusion, that all people and businesses can participate in, contribute to, and benefit from digital trade. To this end, the Parties recognise the importance of expanding and facilitating digital trade opportunities by removing barriers to participation in digital trade, and that this may require tailored approaches, developed in consultation with Māori, enterprises, individuals, and other groups that disproportionately face such barriers.

To promote digital inclusion, the Parties shall cooperate on matters relating to digital inclusion, including participation of Māori, women, persons with disabilities, rural populations, and low socio-economic groups as well as other individuals and groups that disproportionately face barriers to digital trade. This may include:

• enhancing cultural and people-to-people links, including for Māori, through promoting business development services

• identifying and addressing barriers to accessing digital trade opportunities

• improving digital skills and access to online business tools

• sharing methods and procedures for developing datasets and conducting analysis to identify barriers and trends over time in relation to Māori, women, and other groups which face barriers to digital trade to inform the development of digital trade policies, including developing methods for monitoring their participation in digital trade

The Parties recognise the role played by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including Māori-led and women-led enterprises, in economic growth and job creation, and the need to address the barriers to participation in digital trade for those entities. To this end, the Parties shall:

• foster close cooperation on digital trade between SMEs of the Parties

• encourage their participation in platforms that help link them with international suppliers, buyers, and other potential business partners

• share best practices in improving digital skills and leveraging digital tools and technology to improve access to capital and credit, participation in government procurement opportunities, and other areas that could help SMEs adapt to digital trade

The Parties also recognise the digital divide between developed and developing countries, and the role for digital trade in promoting economic development and poverty reduction. The Parties shall endeavour to undertake and strengthen cooperation, including through existing mechanisms, to promote the participation of developing countries in digital trade. This may include sharing best practices, active engagement in international fora, and promoting developing countries’ participation in, and contribution to, the global development of rules on digital trade, which may include other World Trade Organization (WTO) members as appropriate.

The Parties shall also participate actively at the WTO and in other international fora to promote initiatives for advancing digital inclusion in digital trade.

5. Procurement

5.1 Chapter 16, Article 16.22

The Government Procurement Working Group shall meet by agreement of the Parties, and may meet virtually, to address matters related to the implementation and operation of this Chapter, such as:

• facilitation of participation by women in government procurement to the extent possible, acknowledging the objectives in Chapter 25 (Trade and Gender Equality)

6. Labour

6.1 Chapter 23, Article 23.8

The Parties support the goals of eliminating discrimination in employment and occupation, and of promoting the equality of women in relation to their engagement in trade and the workplace. Accordingly, each Party shall implement policies and measures that it considers appropriate to:

• ensure equal opportunities and an inclusive labour market

• protect workers against employment discrimination on the basis of sex or gender (including with regard to sexual harassment or gender-based violence), pregnancy, and sexual orientation

• provide job-protected leave for birth or adoption of a child

• protect against wage discrimination including working towards the elimination of gender wage gaps with the aim of achieving equal pay

To assist in the implementation of paragraph 1, the Parties shall develop cooperation activities to improve the capacity and conditions for women in trade and the workplace. These activities shall be carried out with the inclusive participation of women. Areas of cooperation may include:

• the promotion of labour practices that facilitate the integration, retention, and progression of women in the job market, and seek to build the capacity and skills of women workers

• the advancement of policies and programmes encouraging, valuing, and recognising women’s unpaid care work including parenting and other family co-responsibilities, such as access to flexible working arrangements or access to leave and affordable childcare

• the development of sex or gender-disaggregated data, the use of indicators, monitoring, and evaluation methodologies, and the analysis of sex or gender-focused statistics related to trade and the workplace including pay transparency data and labour force participation

7. Small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs)

7.1 Chapter 24, Article 24.3

The Parties acknowledge the importance of cooperating to reduce barriers to SMEs’ access to international markets and global supply chains. Accordingly, the Parties may, among other forms of cooperation:

• promote the participation in international trade of SMEs owned by under-represented groups, such as women, youth, Māori, and minority groups

8. Trade and development

8.1 Chapter 27, Article 27.1

The Parties acknowledge the importance of development in promoting inclusive economic growth, as well as the instrumental role that sustainable trade and investment can play in contributing to economic development, prosperity, and a resilient global economy. Inclusive economic growth includes a more broad-based distribution of the benefits of economic growth through the expansion of business and industry, including for SMEs and women-led businesses, the creation of jobs, and the alleviation of poverty.

1. Differential treatment that is reasonable and objective, and aims to achieve a legitimate purpose, and adoption by the Parties of temporary special measures aimed at accelerating de facto equality between men and women, shall not be considered discrimination for the purposes of this subparagraph. ↩

2. Differential treatment that is reasonable and objective, and aims to achieve a legitimate purpose, and adoption by Parties of temporary special measures aimed at accelerating de facto equality between men and women, shall not be considered discrimination for the purposes of this subparagraph ↩