This is what leadership looks like: Meet Mzuri Issa, breaking down social barriers to women’s leadership in Tanzania, using the media

Date: Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Through her work at the Tanzania Media Women’s Association in Zanzibar, Mzuri Issa is at the forefront of pushing for legal reforms and changing policies and attitudes that impede women’s access to leadership and decision-making. Her tough childhood experiences motivate her to advocate for the rights of women and girls, using the media.

This is what leadership looks like: Bernadette Gomina, a pioneering parliamentarian in Central African Republic

Date: Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Bernadette Gomina is a Member of Parliament for the administrative division of Bayanga, in the south of the Central African Republic (CAR) and one of two women elected in the first round of the 2020–2021 legislative elections in the country. She details the challenges that women leaders face and how the Forum of Women Parliamentarians has helped spark change.

This is what leadership looks like: How three women mayors in Moldova are making a difference every day

Date: Tuesday, March 9, 2021

Meet three women mayors from rural Moldova who have defied deeply entrenched gender stereotypes about women’s leadership and led their communities through the COVID-19 pandemic. From building public infrastructure to enabling citizen participation virtually, they have made their communities safer and more resilient.

Take five: “Women should lead the conversation on gender equality”

Date: Thursday, February 18, 2021

Hayat Mirshad is a 32-year-old Lebanese feminist, human rights activist and gender, communications and advocacy expert. As co-founder of the feminist collective FE-MALE in Lebanon, she advocates against discriminatory gender norms and policies and works closely with UN Women’s Men and Women for Gender Equality programme funded by the Government of Sweden. The programme works to change behaviours and social norms for gender equality in the Arab States. Mirshad is also a member of UN Women’s Gender Innovation Agora and was recognized as one of the BBC’s 100 most inspiring and influential women of 2020 for her activism on women’s rights. In this interview, she shares her journey of fighting gender inequity and explains how to rally for wide-reaching and sustainable impact.

What happened after COVID-19 hit: Uganda

Date: Monday, December 7, 2020

In response to rising cases of violence, the Uganda Police Force with support from UN Women established a dedicated a toll-free hotline for reporting and responding to cases of violence against women and girls. The hotline was crucial in providing a criminal justice response and access to services for survivors during the lockdown.

In the words of Gladys Koech: “It is not uncommon for husbands to leave their wives because the child has a disability.”

Date: Monday, November 9, 2020

Gladys Koech has been working as an occupational therapist for persons with disabilities in Kenya’s coastal region for more than 10 years. Through the Association of the Physically Disabled of Kenya (APDK), she also works with communities to strengthen their understanding of disabilities and combat widespread stigma. UN Women’s partnership with the Council of Governors in Kenya has boosted resources to helplines around the country. As COVID-19 has increased demand for psychosocial services, Koech has witnessed a growing trend of mothers of children with disabilities being abandoned by their partners. Part of UN Women’s COVID-19 response in Kenya is being carried out in conjunction with UNICEF and UNDP as part of the Joint Devolution Programme supported by the Governments of Sweden, Finland, and Italy.

Interview with Peter Eriksson, Minister for International Development Cooperation of Sweden

Date: Monday, October 19, 2020

In an interview, Swedish Minister for International Development Cooperation Peter Eriksson, explains why his Government believes UN Women’s work is such an important priority for its multilateral aid.

In Gaza, helping mothers reunite with children separated by the COVID-19 lockdown

Date: Monday, July 13, 2020

The COVID-19 lockdown in Palestine left many women with no legal backing to secure child visitation and custody rights. Former partners took advantage of the legal paralysis to prevent mothers from seeing their children or to stop sending alimony. A joint programme by UN Women, UNDP and UNICEF has trained lawyers and provided free legal aid for 371 Palestinian women.

From where I stand: “I want the views of older persons included in the planning of COVID-19 recovery programmes for my community”

Date: Monday, July 13, 2020

Monica Chiwalo is 82 and mostly dependent on her children. She raised four children on her own after the death of her husband. The COVID-19 outbreak in Tanzania has devastated the livelihoods of families that rely on the informal sector and have no safety nets. Elderly women like Chiwalo are especially vulnerable to its health and economic impacts. Their voice and experience must be included in recovery efforts.

Supporting local women-run businesses in COVID-19 response

Date: Tuesday, June 9, 2020

The Government of Sweden and UN Women Moldova provided 28,000 units of protective equipment to social assistance staff from 36 territorial departments throughout the country. The coveralls and masks were purchased from three local companies run by women. Thus, the procurements provided financial support both to factories and to employees who kept their jobs and salaries during this time of crisis provoked by COVID-19. At the same time, textile enterprises took steps to help front-line workers.

UN Women and Rohingya women on the front line of COVID-19 response

Date: Wednesday, June 3, 2020

The world in lockdown has created a ‘profound shock to our societies and economies, and women are at the heart of care and response efforts underway[1]. Primarily as caregivers, women are not just sustaining families, but also serving as front-line responders, mainly in the health and service sector.

From where I stand: “Due to COVID-19 people were not going to the police”

Date: Tuesday, June 2, 2020

Simret Tesfaye is nurse at the Association for Women's Sanctuary and Development, a non-profit organization in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which manages six shelters for survivors of gender-based violence. Currently, she is working at the Transitional Shelter that opened in April 2020 with support from UN Women.

Women mobilize to prevent COVID-19 in crowded Rohingya refugee camps

Date: Thursday, April 16, 2020

To prevent an added humanitarian crisis in the already-vulnerable Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, 24 Rohingya volunteers are working with UN Women to mobilize their communities and raise awareness on COVID-19.

From where I stand: “I didn’t let myself become a victim; I used my pain to rise.”

Date: Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Kaushilla Nepali advocates for the legal rights of Dalit women in Nepal, in particular enabling their access to justice, and regarding critical issues such as citizenship, domestic violence, and sexual violence. Committed to ending the entrenched discrimination against Dalit community on the basis of caste, Nepali started her journey with her own empowerment.

Seed grants and training boost prospects for Georgian refugee women

Date: Monday, December 23, 2019

The six-day “How to Start a Business” course taught women in Georgia how to generate start-up ideas and validate them, as well as how to build the right team and create a product. They also developed strategic and innovative thinking, and learned about planning and product distribution, financial documentation, business modeling and investment proposals.

The men who are standing tall against early marriages in the Gaza Strip

Date: Monday, November 18, 2019

After taking part in UN Women’s Regional Men and Women for Gender Equality Programme, men and boys have become change makers to promote gender equality and challenge the tradition of early marriage.

In Colombia, peace is a journey

Date: Friday, October 18, 2019

The conflict in Colombia has left deep scars, and lasting peace is more of a journey than a destination. The one thing that remains constant in this journey is the power and perseverance of women forging peace against all odds, defending human rights every day. Through projects funded by the Government of Sweden and Norway, UN Women has accompanied Colombian women in this journey.

From where I stand: “We must start by uniting the people because together we’re stronger”

Date: Friday, October 11, 2019

Natalia Slavinskaia, 42, is a community mobilizer from Komysh-Zorya, a small village in the conflict-affected Zaporizhzhia region, south-east Ukraine.

Growing women’s entrepreneurship in Bangladesh

Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019

The “Inclusive and Equitable Local Development Programme (IELD)”, a joint initiative of UNCDF, UNDP and UN Women, facilitates women’s access to the labour market and entrepreneurial ventures by fostering local public and private investments in women-led enterprises and small businesses that benefit women as well as their communities.

From where I stand: “Now I have bigger dreams”

Date: Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Sufia Khatun from Pirganj, Rongpur, found herself without any source of income after her husband passed away. Through a joint UN programme, she was able to learn tailoring and get access to finance to invest in her own business. Today she employs 20 women in her community.