Chrysoula Zacharopoulou, French Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships, attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, will be traveling to the Philippines from July 30 to August 1.
The Minister of State will meet with Philippine authorities. She will inaugurate a plastics recycling plant in Metro Manila, which constitutes concrete proof of France’s commitment to the fight against climate change and a key priority for our cooperation with the Philippines. She will also visit a health center in Manila and meet with the Philippine Secretary of of the Department of Health. Lastly, the Minister of State will take part in the high-level Business Forum between the European Union and the Philippines, to be held in Manila on July 31.
Chrysoula Zacharopoulou is a medical doctor. Born in Sparta (Greece) in 1976, she holds both French and Greek nationalities and is a graduate of Sapienza University in Rome, as well as holding a PhD on endometriosis. She arrived in France in 2007, practicing as a gynecological surgeon at Bégin Military Hospital.
As a defender of the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls, she founded the “Info-Endométriose” association alongside actor Julie Gayet. In 2016, she launched the first national awareness campaign about this little-known disease, aimed at both health professionals and the public.
She was elected to the European Parliament in 2019 and became a Vice-Chair of its Committee on Development.
Ahead of the European Union-African Union Summit in Brussels, she was selected as the European Parliament’s rapporteur for the drafting of the new EU Africa strategy, holding broad consultations in several African countries to produce tangible recommendations to build a lasting, inclusive partnership between the two continents.
As both an MEP and a doctor, she worked to ensure an inclusive international response to COVID-19. In April 2021, she was elected Co-Chair of the COVAX Facility Shareholders Council, which includes 65 countries, advocating for equitable access to vaccines and for stepping up vaccination campaigns for poor countries.
In the European Parliament, she also worked to defend the right of women and girls to make decisions governing their own bodies, to fight all forms of violence against them, and for an ambitious, feminist European foreign policy. She was appointed rapporteur for the third Action Plan on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in External Relations (GAP III).
At the request of the President of the French Republic, Emmanuel Macron, she produced a report and proposals in 2021 in order to improve diagnosis and recognition of endometriosis and fully commit to research into the disease. This work, produced in consultation with all stakeholders, formed the basis of the first national strategy to fight endometriosis, of which she spearheaded the drafting.
In May 2022, Chrysoula Zacharopoulou was appointed Minister of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships, attached to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
Chrysoula Zacharopoulou was appointed a Chevalier in the National Order of Merit in 2017.