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Together for equality

Looking for information on equality and inclusion? As an independent public institution, Unia is the centre of expertise for anyone who wants to know more.

We offer training, draft policy recommendations and conduct research on discrimination and equality.

We also support anyone who reports discrimination and work together to find solutions.

What is discrimination

The law protects you against discrimination on the basis of various characteristics. These characteristics are also called "protected characteristics":

Racial char­ac­ter­is­tics

Discrimination because of your nationality, so-called race, skin colour, ancestry, national or ethnic origin.

Religious and philo­soph­i­cal convictions

Discrimination because you are a Sikh or a Muslim, for example.

Sexual orientation

Discrimination because you are gay, for example. It does not include gender-related protected characteristics.

Disability

Discrimination, for example because you use a wheelchair.

Age

Discrimination because someone is (too) old or (too) young, for example. 

State of health

Discrimination, for example, because you have been ill for some time.

Unia supports professionals

To promote diversity and inclusion, Unia focuses on working with professionals. We support them in various ways:

Employment actors

We help companies, organisations and authorities to create an inclusive working environment through the following:

More information for employers

Political decision-makers

Unia helps political decision-makers and administrations to combat discrimination and implement inclusion policies through :

More information for political decision-makers

Experts & researchers

Measurement is knowledge. That's why Unia invests in factual knowledge on discrimination and equality:

More information for specialists

Civil society

Only together can we make a difference to inclusion and diversity. That's why we support those who help people on the ground.

More information for civil society

Police and justice

The police and the judiciary play a fundamental role in the fight against discrimination. Unia supports them in this area with the following tools:

More information for the police and the justice system

Teaching staff

Unia works with teachers and educational teams to build inclusive schools. We regularly publish studies and brochures on various topics relating to equal opportunities in education:

More information for teachers
Statistics, Studies

Equality data in Belgium: study on self-iden­ti­fi­ca­tion of origin

10 June 2024

This research by Unia is important in order to better understand the factors that lead to inequality and discrimination.

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Dis­crim­i­na­tion and in­ter­sec­tion­al­i­ty

Some people are discriminated against more than others because they belong to multiple identity groups. This is known as multiple discrimination. Intersectional discrimination is one of them. 

Studies, Reports

Data on (in)equality & dis­crim­i­na­tion in Belgium: results of the project 'Improving equality data collection in Belgium' (2021)

17 June 2021

"Improving equality data collection in Belgium” (IEDCB) is a Belgian project co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship (REC) programme of the Directorate-General for Justice of the European Commission.