Government, civil society and private sector partners convened in New York on Monday by the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to address the urgent need to put the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) back on track. The ambitious set of objectives agreed in 2015 for people and planet have been derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic […]

Family court systems worldwide are being impacted by “deeply embedded gender bias” which is leaving women and children vulnerable to violence and “immense suffering”, an independent UN human rights expert said on Friday 23 june , 2023. “The tendency of family courts to dismiss the history of domestic violence and abuse in custody cases, especially where mothers and/or children […]

Zeinabou Maata, a Muslim from Mauritania, is one of 50 women serving on the frontlines of preventing the spread of violent extremism in her country, with UN support. “Our religion is a true, honest religion that treats women with justice and fairness,” she said, leaning forward for emphasis.  She knows of what she speaks. She […]

Opening statement of UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous to the Annual Session of the Executive Board, 19 June 2023 [As delivered]  Good morning and welcome to our Annual Session of the Executive Board of 2023.   My sincere thanks to H.E. Mr. Sergiy Kyslytsya, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Ukraine for your able Presidency and […]

From 15 April 2023, when fighting broke out in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, violence has spread across multiple regions—leaving hundreds of civilians dead and over a million people displaced. Amidst the chaos and destruction, women, girls and people of all genders are facing another, often less visible threat: heightened sexual and gender-based violence.   Conflict drives […]

Statement by UN Under Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous, World Refugee Day 20 June 2023 Around the world, conflict, violence, crises and fragility have forced more than 108 million people to flee their homes; among whom are 35.3 million refugees. Common to them all are the hopes of finding safety, security and prosperity and […]

Women’s land rights are in the spotlight ahead of the World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, observed on 17 June, at events around the world, from Kenya to Viet Nam, including a high-level event at UN Headquarters in New York on Friday June 16, 2023. “Equal land rights both protect land and advance gender equality,” […]

Landmark Proceedings Suspended Over Payments for Legal Assistance For more than two weeks, Guinea’s landmark trial for the killings, rapes, and other abuses committed on September 28, 2009 at a stadium in the country’s capital, Conakry, has been suspended over a boycott by defense counsel. During the 2009 assault, security forces opened fire on a […]

A new UN report launched on Monday June 12th, 2023 revealed no improvement in the level of prejudice shown against women over the past decade, with almost nine out of 10 men and women worldwide, still holding such biases. “Half of people worldwide still believe men make better political leaders than women, and more than […]

Ensure Effective Implementation, Enforcement of Maputo Protocol This week, South Sudan finalized ratification of the African Union’s Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (the Maputo Protocol), ending years of delay. While this ratification signals a commitment to gender equality, South Sudanese authorities need to […]