IANWGE compendium on integrating gender considerations in the response to COVID-19: Key messages and actions from UN entities

The UN system must work together to ensure that the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of all women and girls are comprehensively addressed, and that women’s voices are fully represented in that work. Accordingly, the United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE), chaired by the Executive Director of UN Women and composed of gender specialists from 60 UN offices and departments, funds and programmes, and specialized agencies, has responded to the call of the Secretary-General for coordinated action during this crisis.

This compendium captures the key messages and efforts of UN system entities as they address the varied gender dimensions of the pandemic. It presents 32 individual action-oriented entity briefs supplemented by a coordinated set of common messages aligned with the five pillars of the UN framework for the immediate socioeconomic response to COVID-19, which details the United Nations’ planned urgent socioeconomic support to countries in the face of COVID-19 through five streams of work. Women’s leadership and participation is a critical cross-cutting issue, which must be systematically addressed at all stages of COVID-19 recovery and response efforts.

The compendium aims to support all actors, including the UN system, governments, and civil society partners, to systematically integrate gender considerations into the COVID-19 crisis response.