(Bloomberg) -- Women will make up almost half of Estonia’s new government, according to the likely new prime minister, continuing a push for greater female representation across the Nordic and Baltic regions.
Six of 14 ministries will be headed by women, said Kaja Kallas, who was nominated this month by President Kersti Kaljulaid to lead a new administration after the previous one collapsed. Keit Pentus-Rosimannus, a former foreign and environment minister, will become finance minister. Eva-Maria Liimets, Estonia’s ambassador to the Czech Republic, will be foreign minister.
“I tried to achieve a balance based on different criteria,” Kallas was cited as saying on Sunday by the BNS news service. “Gender balance is important to me, as there are many very capable women among our ranks. Also balance in terms of experience is important.”
Kallas’s Reform Party is teaming up with the Centre Party, which led the previous government in the euro-area and NATO member state before falling amid a corruption scandal. Both political parties, which control 59 of parliament’s 101 seats, backed the coalition agreement and the cabinet lineup on Sunday. The deal still requires approval from parliament.
Estonia would follow Lithuania in splitting government posts almost equally between women and men.
(Updates with coalition agreement in fourth paragraph.)