United Nations agencies and civil society organizations call for the repeal of gender-discriminatory nationality laws

Date: Tuesday, July 17, 2018

UN Women, UNICEF, UNHCR and the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights urge Member States to uphold gender-equal nationality laws at the High-Level Political Forum More

From where I stand: “I am among the few women who aspire to a seat in the Adamawa State House of Representatives”

Date: Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Jamila Babuba from Adamawa, Nigeria, is a strong advocate for Nigeria’s pending bill that aims to provide equal rights to men and women. She has championed women’s participation in her community and hopes to serve as an elected official in the future. More

In Mexico, female soccer players take centre stage to break gender stereotypes

Date: Monday, July 16, 2018

The HeForShe Flash Tournament brought together women’s soccer teams from eight major universities in Mexico, aiming to break gender stereotypes, promote women’s participation in sport and inspire actions to end violence against women. More

For women in Gaza, having their own income is key to changing power dynamics at home

Date: Thursday, July 12, 2018

The Hayat Business Incubator (Food Incubator) initiative for women survivors of violence, supported by UN Women and funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), is piloting a comprehensive model for addressing violence against women by providing skills training and income-generating opportunities to five women who are survivors of domestic violence, while also providing them with essential services, such as psychosocial support and social workers who assist them in accessing legal aid. More

Take Five: "We are seeking nothing more than our due share of services and opportunities"

Date: Thursday, July 12, 2018

Beena Pallical is the Executive Director at the Asia Dalit Rights Forum and the current Manager of a programme seeking to strengthen Dalit Women’s Economic Rights across South Asia. The Dalit community in this region is still considered the lowest of the historical castes and suffers widespread discrimination, despite recent legislation and initiatives. Within the community, the specific problem of women’s economic empowerment has received little attention, but is now the focus of a two-year programme funded by UN Women’s Fund for Gender Equality. More

Press release: UN Women announces Marta Vieira da Silva as Goodwill Ambassador

Date: Thursday, July 12, 2018

UN Women today announced the appointment of world-renowned Brazilian soccer player Marta Vieira da Silva as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador for women and girls in sport. Ms. Vieira da Silva, popularly known by her fans as Marta, will dedicate her efforts to support UN Women’s work for gender equality and women’s empowerment across the world, inspiring women and girls to challenge stereotypes, overcome barriers and follow their dreams and ambitions, including in the area of sport. More

Speech: “Turn promises into progress”—Åsa Regnér

Date: Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Remarks by Assistant-Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, Åsa Regnér, during the session “Reviewing progress in achieving the SDGs” at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development on 9 July in New York. More

Interview with Nikolai Astrup, Norwegian Minister of International Development.

Date: Tuesday, July 10, 2018

In 2017, the Government of Norway donated a core contribution of USD 9 million to UN Women. In addition, the Government contributed USD 14.5 million in non-core support – bringing its overall 2017 contribution to approximately USD 23.5 million and making Norway UN Women’s third largest contributor. In an interview, Minister of International Development of Norway, Nikolai Astrup, explains why gender equality is a top priority in foreign and development policy. More

Saving for a rainy day

Date: Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Indigenous women of Guatemala’s Polochic valley are feeding their families, growing their businesses and saving more money than ever before, with the help of a joint UN programme that’s empowering rural women. More

Girls groomed for suicide missions fight back against the extremists of Lake Chad

Date: Monday, July 9, 2018

Halima Yakoy Adam won’t forget 22nd December in 2015, the day she was supposed to carry out a suicide bomb attack in the Lac Region town of Bol, 200 km north of N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, in Central Africa. More

Breaking stereotypes and transforming masculinity in Viet Nam

Date: Monday, July 9, 2018

The Male Advocates and Volunteerism Club in Da Nang, Viet Nam is a part of UN Women’s efforts to transform harmful masculinities and promote respectful relationships in the prevention of violence against women and girls. The intervention works with men of all ages to transform harmful masculinities and engaging them to become male advocates in their communities for the prevention of gender-based violence. More

Take five: “Leaving no one behind requires specific attention to those that have less resources and opportunities”

Date: Monday, July 9, 2018

Corina Rodríguez Enríquez is an economist and researcher at the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas and Centro Interdisciplinario para el Estudio de Políticas Públicas in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is also the Executive Committee member of the organization, Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) and contributed towards UN Women’s report “Progress of Women in Latin America and the Caribbean” in 2017. As the High-Level Political Forum meets in New York to review progress on Sustainable Development Goals, Enríquez spoke to UN Women about the SDGs under review, and what it will take to leave no one behind. More

Take Five: “To change the culture of tolerance of sexual harassment, we need unequivocal leadership”

Date: Saturday, July 7, 2018

Purna Sen is UN Women’s Director of the Policy Division, and has been recently appointed as the UN Women Executive Coordinator and Spokesperson on Addressing Sexual Harassment and Other Forms of Discrimination. In an interview, she explains her new role and what UN Women is doing to address sexual harassment within its own workplace and in the UN system. More

Blog: At this year’s HLPF, let’s not forget that gender equality is central to achieving all the goals

Date: Friday, July 6, 2018

The transformation to sustainable and resilient societies can only happen when every woman and girl is afforded the same rights and opportunities as men and boys. But, across countries, the reality is one of deeply rooted gender bias, which compromises the principle of equality and human progress through dignity and respect for our planet, which are the bedrock of sustainable development. More

Experts recommend gender-responsive planning, investment and management for sustainable development outcomes for women

Date: Friday, July 6, 2018

In the lead-up to the High-Level Political Forum for sustainable development (9 – 18 July), the main UN process for the review of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a group of experts at a meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, emphasized that planning, investments and management of infrastructure and basic services must take into account women’s use of time and space and address their disproportionate share of unpaid care and domestic work. More

Editorial spotlight: High-level Political Forum 2018

Date: Thursday, July 5, 2018

The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), the main UN process for the review of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), is meeting at the UN Headquarters in New York from 9 – 18 July. More

Syrian women come together to create a common framework for their movement

Date: Thursday, July 5, 2018

On June 25 – 26, June 2018, almost 200 Syrian women leaders met in Beirut, Lebanon, to discuss ways to safeguard and advance women’s rights in Syria, as part of a conference titled, “Toward a Framework for the Syrian Women Movement”. The conference was grounded on UN Women’s ongoing advocacy and coalition-building work with Syrian women leaders and activists. Despite their significant differences and diverse backgrounds across political, ideological and... More

Comedy for Equality: Harnessing the power of laughter for empowerment and peace

Date: Tuesday, July 3, 2018

“I believe in women having control over their own bodies, but I feel like my own body is getting a little out of control. I’m in my 30’s, and it feels like my body is a band. The older I get, different parts are pursuing solo careers,” joked Aparna Nancherla to a packed house of delegates, United Nations staff and civil society organizations at the event Comedy... More

UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women releases annual report 2017

Date: Tuesday, July 3, 2018

In its 2017 annual report, the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women highlights the life-changing results grantees working to prevent and end violence against women and girls around the world. It also aims to show the UN Trust Fund’s increased investment and efforts in building capacity and ensuring the sustainability of grantees. More

From where I stand: “Not only did we have no money to buy food with, we didn’t know how to change that”

Date: Monday, July 2, 2018

Birtukan Fekadu, 22, and her husband struggled to find a way to support themselves until Fekadu joined a women’s savings and credit cooperative. Through the cooperative, she learned about agriculture productivity, business skills, leadership and women’s rights, and received a small loan. Now she earns enough to feed her family, and no longer worries about money to send her son to school. More