Women in The Gambia face high levels of female genital mutilation (FGM), period poverty (an inability to afford menstrual hygiene products), and domestic violence. In an interview with UN News, Ndeye Rose Sarr, the head of the UN reproductive and sexual health agency (UNFPA) in the country, underlines the challenges they face, and the efforts […]
On the International Day of Women Judges, three trailblazing women judges are sharing their stories and experiences on the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where though they are in the minority – just four of the 15 justices are women – they see change on the horizon and say that “not for a minute” did […]
The UN General Assembly was awash in a sea of blue on Wednesday 8th March 2023 as some 1,800 people gathered to mark International Women’s Day, which this year focused on the need for inclusive and transformative technology and digital education. Many attendees wore suits, scarves or other items of clothing in shades that spanned […]
The Fifth UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) joined the world in marking International Women’s Day, celebrating the achievements of women and girls everywhere. Strong calls for empowerment rang out in the massive convention center, with young women scientists and innovators, like the Afghan Girl’s Robotics Team, urging: “Never give up!” At noon on […]
Tackling current complex challenges requires fresh thinking and bolder political leadership to address abuses and find solutions, the UN rights chief said on Tuesday, presenting his annual global report to the Human Rights Council. The current human rights landscape is compounded by conflict, discrimination, poverty, shrinking civic spaces, and the emergence of new human rights […]
New goals and effective plans on women’s involvement in peacebuilding are needed before it is too late, the head of the UN agency leading global efforts to achieve gender equality warned the Security Council on Tuesday. Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, was speaking during a Council meeting to reaffirm the importance of Resolution 1325 on women, peace […]
A United Nations conference under way in Doha, Qatar, has turned its attention to one of the most nettlesome global challenges: closing the staggeringly wide digital divide between the world’s rich and poor nations. Fresh attention to this issue comes as a new UN report finds that two-thirds of the population of the least developed […]
In a new blow for equality in the 21st century workplace, UN labour experts said on Monday 6th March 2023 that women’s access to jobs, their employment conditions and a persistent pay gap, have barely improved worldwide in nearly two decades. The jobs gap for women is a “stubborn and damaging reality of the global labour market” but […]
Closing the major gender gap in innovation and technology is the focus of the 67th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which opened at UN Headquarters in New York on Monday 6th March 2023. Over the next two weeks, participants from across the world – including representatives from governments, the UN, […]
Ayesha Amin is a tech and gender activist and social entrepreneur from Pakistan. She is the founder of the youth- and women-led organization Baithak—Challenging Taboos, a Generation Equality Commitment Maker working to expand access to information on sexual and reproductive health and rights. Having experienced first-hand the discriminatory structure of the tech world, Ayesha highlights […]
