The North's Education Minister, Mr Martin McGuinness, has launched two equality documents aimed at boosting parity of esteem in the workings of public bodies.
The two documents - the Department of Education's Revised Equality Impact Assessment Timetable and a report on the screening of policies by the Education and Library Boards - were drawn up after consultations with a number of equality organisations.
Mr McGuinness said a "strong and effective partnership" had been forged between his Department and the Library Boards which had led to a unique co-operative approach to ensuring that their work complied fully with the equality requirements specified in the Northern Ireland Act 1998.
"Public bodies must work together to ensure that equality is paramount in everything they do.
"My Department was one of the first to have its equality scheme approved by the Equality Commission and I am personally committed to ensuring that it is fully implemented and taken forward. These reports clearly demonstrate that partnership, at so many necessary levels, enables a consistent and focused approach to this work," he added.
Speaking on behalf of the Library Boards and the Staff Commission, the Western Board's chief executive, Mr Joseph Martin, said the bodies were committed to a systematic review of all their existing and proposed policies.
"I am delighted that we have worked together with the Department as an education community to build and sustain partnership arrangements with the community and voluntary sector and the trade unions.
"We have made a good beginning at this preparatory stage and are committed to continuing this partnership approach in implementing the challenging programme we have set for ourselves," he concluded.
Meanwhile, the leader of the United Kingdom Unionist Party, Mr Robert McCartney, warned of the "imminent destruction" of the North's education system if Mr McGuinness decided to implement the recommendations of the Burns report on post-primary education.
The report recommends the abolition of the controversial 11 plus exam, which determines whether pupils will proceed to grammar or less prestigious secondary schools.
Mr McCartney insisted that the existence of Northern Ireland's grammar school system, which was perhaps the best in the United Kingdom, was now under threat from "misguided political correctness".
In other Assembly business, the chairman of the Environment Committee, the DUP's Rev William McCrea, sharply criticised the Department of the Environment for not responding to a report by the committee on safety on school transport.
Mr McCrea said if the highlighted safety issues were not tackled immediately there was the potential for a "tragedy waiting to happen".