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Speech: Gender equality – prerequisite and catalyst for progress

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 […]

In Sudan, women’s organizations fight back against sexual violence in conflict.

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: Centring women’s and girls’ rights and priorities in humanitarian response

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 […]

Guinea, Donors Should Find Way to Resume Stadium Massacre Trial

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 […]

New UN report reveals chronic bias against women over last decade

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 […]

South Sudan Ratifies Crucial African Women’s Rights Treaty

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 […]

World off track for reaching key goal on sustainable energy by 2030

The world is not on track to meet Sustainable Development Goal 7, designed to ensure access to affordable, reliable energy for all, a new report from the UN and partners revealed on Monday June 5, 2023. Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report, from the International Energy Agency (IEA), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), […]

Menstrual Hygiene Day: Putting an end to period poverty

Fatoumatta Fatty’s commute on an old, malfunctioning wheelchair takes up to two hours during rainy season in The Gambia, but she is happy joining her co-workers at a sanitary pad production centre, where she takes pride in making products that help women overcome “period poverty” across the country. Period poverty, or the inability to afford […]

UN representative alarmed by sexual violence against women and girls in DRC

UN Special Representative, Pramila Patten, expressed her ‘deep concern’ on Thursday over increasing allegations of sexual violence against women and girls being carried out in camps for the internally displaced (IDPs) around Goma, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).  “Allegations of grave cases of sexual violence against civilians, including children, in particular affecting […]