Messages from the 66th session of the Women’s Status Committee
Following is the opening speech of the 66th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66) at UN Headquarters in New York this year. It should be reminded that the priority topic of the non-session was “Achieving Gender Equality in the Context of Empowerment of All Women and Girls in the Context of Climate Change, Environmental Disaster Risk Reduction Policies”.
“We live in a male-dominated world with a male-dominated culture”
“While action is being taken to tackle climate and environmental crises, women continue to be largely excluded from decision-making structures,” said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
Guterres has expressed deep concern over the growing threat of violence against women human rights activists and environmental activists.
“Gender discrimination means that only a small proportion of landowners’ leaders are women,” he said, adding that their needs and interests are “often ignored and pushed aside” in land use, pollution, conservation and climate policy and in decisions.
He noted that women hold only one-third of the decision-making role in the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement, while only 15% of them are environmental ministers.
Moreover, only one-third of the 192 national energy frameworks include gender considerations, which are rarely considered in climate financing.
“This shows once again that we live in a male-dominated world with a male-dominated culture,” the UN chief wrote, stressing that “the millennial patriarchy that excludes women does not allow their voices to be heard.”
“We cannot achieve any of our goals without everyone, including men, working for women’s rights, gender equality.”
UN Experience in Ensuring Women’s Advancement
The UN Secretary General is moving steadily towards gender equality in its internal system, said the UN Secretary General.
“We have achieved gender equality two years ahead of schedule at the top of the UN leadership,” said Antonio Guterres. – The share of women in the Secretariat has increased from 37 to 42%. At the current rate of progress, equality will be achieved in the second quarter of 2027. At the level of middle managers, achieving gender equality remains a priority. Our strategy works, but we are only moving towards the goals we have set. ”
According to the UN leader, women make up 32% of the civilian staff in UN peacekeeping operations. The organization’s peacekeeping activities will only benefit from the experience of bringing women into the staff, Guterres said.
He also outlined the steps he has taken to ensure progress on gender equality. “First, in order to increase the proportion of women in leading positions in the field in 2017. I initiated the global call for Special Representative Nominations. “To date, we have more than 700 qualified candidates, 40% of whom are women.”
Second, in order to improve equality at all levels of the organization, the UN leadership has established temporary special measures to achieve gender equality and improve their monitoring. These measures require managers to select a female candidate if she has the same or higher qualifications as a male candidate for a position that does not yet have gender equality.
“Third,” said Antonio Guterres, “we will hire qualified women to replace the 4,000 employees who will retire in the next nine years. Most of them are men. ”
The United Nations will play a leading role in global efforts to promote gender equality, the UN chief concluded.
It is difficult to defeat patriarchy, but we can do it”
It is difficult to defeat patriarchy, but we can do it, the Secretary General emphasized. Proponents of patriarchy continue to ignore the rights of women and girls in all spheres of life, in all parts of the planet. “We have to put an end to this,” said Antonio Guterres. “This is the only way to a peaceful, just, stable and prosperous world that we all want to build.”
He reminded that the UN works to support the participation of women and leadership in every stage of peace building and maintenance, including through its special envoys and who, in the draft, support strategies for more inclusive, peace processes.
It is enough to be guided only by “male-dominated solutions”
Inger Andersen, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), said that “it is enough to be guided only by male-dominated solutions.”
To boost environmental diversity, she said it was “possible” for women to be “at the heart of decision-making”.
The oversight role of the Women’s Status Committee
Colen Vixen Kelapil, President of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), recalled that as a subsidiary body, the Commission on the Status of Women continues to oversee and monitor the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and development goals, in particular gender equality – SDG 5.
In this regard, the work of the Commission will remain for the central ECOSOC system to guide people-based gender-sensitive rehabilitation from COVID-19, “he said, recalling that the high-level political forum to be held in July will examine the progress of SDG 5, in addition to other global goals.
The next Secretary General should be a woman
President of the UN General Assembly Abdullah Shahid noted that in the 76 years of the UN’s existence, only four women have been elected President of the Assembly, and no woman has ever been elected Secretary-General.
This must be corrected,” he said. “The United Nations cannot urge the world to apply gold standards for gender equality and women’s empowerment, but not to apply this standard at home.”
Abdullah Shahid said he would “personally” lead, calling for the next secretary general to be a woman.
“Join me in this call for clarification,” he invited the participants.
Prayer for peace
At the beginning of her speech, UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahaus called attention to “all crises and conflicts”, recalling that they “demand the highest price from women and girls” from Myanmar to Afghanistan, from the Sahel to Haiti, to Syria, to Somalia. Yemen and Ethiopia, “With a terrible war in Ukraine”, with the latest addition.
Responding to the Secretary General, he said that “the invasion of Ukraine must end, the war must end, peace must prevail.”
“Every day we see the damage done to the lives, hopes and future of Ukrainian women, girls,” she said, reiterating her solidarity with Ukrainian women and paying tribute to “their courage and resilience.”
“And I pray that they, and all who are in conflict, will soon have peace.”
