UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to visit Mexico

(New York) — By invitation of the Government of Mexico, through the National Women’s Institute, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka will make her first official visit to Mexico from 4 to 7 December. Accompanied by Luiza Carvalho, Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean, and Ana Güezmes, UN Women Representative in Mexico, the Executive Director will meet with Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Juan N. Silva Meza; the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Jose Antonio Mead; the President of the National Women’s Institute, Lorena Cruz Sánchez; and the Mayor of Mexico City, Miguel Ángel Mancera. The agenda also includes meetings with female indigenous leaders, feminist organizations and Mexican businesswomen.

Against the backdrop of the 20th Anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the development of the post-2015 agenda and sustainable development goals (SDGs), the Executive Director’s visit is an opportunity to renew commitments — both on a national and local level — to accelerate the gender equality movement and make the human rights of women and girls a reality through public plans, programmes and budgetary measures that produce concrete results in the lives of women  and girls.

During her visit, Ms. Mlambo-Ngcuka will participate in the inaugural session of the Second National Meeting of Women Legislators of the Commissions for Gender Equality and the Heads of Mechanisms for Women’s Progress. At this session, participants will discuss the importance of increasing investment in gender equality, and the role of women’s empowerment as the foundation for sustainable development. Read her speech.

The Executive Director will also promote UN Women’s HeforShe campaign, a solidarity movement for gender equality that aims to involve men and boys as key agents of change.

Mexico has been an important global actor on gender equality issues since 1975, when the first United Nations World Conference on Women was held.  On the national level it has amended its constitution to put women and girls at the centre of legal, institutional, programme and budgetary frameworks. Mexico is currently a member of the UN Women Executive Board, responsible for providing normative and operational guidance to the entity.

Follow the Executive Director’s visit on Twitter @ONUMujeresMX and on Facebook.com/ONUMujeres

Photos of the visit will be available on: flickr.com/unwomen