Empowerment and accountability for gender equality in humanitarian action and crisis response (Humanitarian action and disaster risk reduction annual report 2017)

Crises around the world are multiplying and becoming more complex and protracted. More than 135.7 million people around the world need humanitarian assistance today. It is in these crisis settings that we witness some of the worst gender inequalities and discriminations against women and girls.

The humanitarian system has not succeeded in adequately addressing the needs and challenges of crisis-affected women and girls and enabling their empowerment. Placing the empowerment of women and girls at the heart of its humanitarian work, UN Women addresses this gap in the humanitarian system through a catalytic approach that comprises normative and coordination work accompanied by operational work.

This report details key results UN Women achieved in collaboration with its partners in 2017 by promoting accountability for gender globally and locally, addressing the immediate needs of crisis-affected women and girls, and strengthening the resilience of the affected populations by empowering women and girls. This spans from leading the development of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee’s new policy and accountability framework on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in humanitarian action in New York, to providing direct services to people in humanitarian settings.

UN Women is thankful for the generous support of the Governments of Sweden and Japan and the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operation (ECHO), as well as all the global and local partners that enabled UN Women to make a difference.