The main part of this final paper is referred to the gender mainstreaming concept, as a mechanism for achieving real gender equality. To understand the concept of gender mainstreaming it is necessarily to explain the position of women in society, evolving of the human rights of women, through gender neutral instruments and then through gender specific instruments. As both approaches have shown certain limitations, a need arose for a new gender equality strategy, strategy that will reorganise and improve the implementation of the equal opportunities politic, which lead us to the gender mainstreaming concept. After the explanation of the origin and meaning of the term gender mainstreaming, showing benefits of the concept, but also some possible shortcomings if we do not use maximum potential of this concept and consider inclusive usage of the concept for other equality forms, this final paper presents legislative frame, norms and mechanisms for providing gender mainstreaming on the level of the European Union, the Council of Europe and the Republic of Croatia, on the national, regional and local level. The last part of the paper is related to the implementation of the concept in fields that are most critical regarding to the appliance of gender equality principle and in which fields gender mainstreaming concept could achieve the biggest potential. Those are work and employment, education, political participation and decision making.