High-level week opens with celebration of women’s empowerment

During the landmark 1995 event in the Chinese capital, countries came together and adopted the Beijing Declaration – a blueprint document for advancing women’s rights (read our explainer, here).

At the high-level celebratory event on Monday, countries, civil society organizations, and representatives from academia and the private sector discussed how to accelerate its implementation.

“For so many of us here in this room, we hold positions that when we ourselves were young, seemed unattainable, but are now almost normal for the next generation,” said Annalena Baerbock, referring to the notion that “women’s rights are human rights,” – the rallying cry from First Lady Hillary Clinton 30 years ago in Beijing.

Most ambitious commitment  

UN Secretary General António Guterres described the declaration as “the most ambitious global political commitment on women’s rights ever achieved,” adding that it has helped advance legal protection, political participation and education for women worldwide.

Executive Director of gender-equality agency UN Women Sima Bahous remarked that girls are far more likely to finish school today, than at any other time in history.

The number of women in parliament has almost doubled and nearly 100 discriminatory laws have been reversed around the world in the past five years alone.

“Every step forward proved the same truth: gender equality works,” Ms. Bahous said. “But progress has not been fast enough.”

‘No more promises’

A new report from UN Women released earlier this month found that none of the gender equality Sustainable Development Goals are on track. Furthermore, 676 million women and girls now live under the shadow of deadly conflict – the highest recorded since the 1990s.

Cecilia Suárez, UN Global Advocate for the UN Spotlight Initiative, a groundbreaking programme designed to end violence against women and girls, said it had shown “it is possible to make positive and concrete results in this fight.”

“What is required is leadership from those who have gathered here. Leadership that fosters reforms,” she added.

Speaking about the many women around the world who continue to experience injustice, human rights activist and Yazidi survivor of ISIL terrorist sex traffickers, Nadia Murad, called on the international community to fund women’s organisations on the frontlines, guarantee women’s participation in peace and security, and hold perpetrators accountable.

“The next generation of women and girls deserve to inherit no more promises but the reality of justice, equality and dignity,” said Ms. Murad.

Check out a recording below of Celia Suárez at the UNGA80 SDG Media Zone on Monday, talking about the Spotlight Initiative and her role as Global Advocate since 2020.