Germany’s center-left government published guidelines on Wednesday aimed at shaping all of its diplomatic and development activities, including the creation of a new position for a “feminist foreign policy ambassador,” Reuters reported.

Annalena Burbok at a meeting of the German governmentPhoto: dpa picture alliance / Alamy / Alamy / Profimedia

Germany will campaign for women’s issues to be given more attention worldwide and for women to be more involved in peace processes. The plan, presented by the government of Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also provides for the allocation of 12 billion euros from development funds to projects to combat gender inequality.

“We will work hard to make our diplomatic service more feminine and to increase the percentage of women in senior positions,” said Annalena Berbock, the first woman in German history to hold the portfolio of foreign minister.

She held a press conference on Wednesday to personally introduce the 88-page manual.

“We will also allocate our financial resources more systematically in the service of a feminist foreign policy,” added the minister of the German Green Party.

What will a more “feminine” face of German politics look like?

The plan presented by Baerbock calls for at least 8% of German development funds to go to projects with “gender equality” as their main goal, while 85% should have it as a secondary goal.

This part of the guide was written together with the Ministry of Development in Berlin.

Gender will also be factored more into foreign policy spending, and Germany will lobby for more women to participate in peace processes. The guidelines, published on Wednesday, say this increases the chances of achieving lasting peace.

Some critics of the plan have already said the government should avoid moralism in foreign policy matters after Sweden managed to anger several of its allies after it took a similar stance in 2014.

“We must not make the mistake of mixing a foreign policy based on values ​​with a policy based on moralism,” said Bijan Jir-Sara, secretary general of the Free Democratic Party, a coalition partner of Burbock’s Greens and Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats.