Source: UNFPA
Appointed in January 2011, Dr Osotimehin, a former Minister of Health of Nigeria, stressed that “education was the most important intervention to attain human development”.
Source: United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW); United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
The Commission on the Status of Women today adopted two resolutions on mainstreaming gender equality in climate change policies and strategies, and women and the girl child and HIV/AIDS, and approved one text, by roll-call vote, on Palestinian women, to be sent to the Economic and Social Council for adoption.
Source: UNESCO
The plight of millions of school-age girls living in the world’s conflict and post conflict zones will be highlighted at the Paris launch of UNESCO’s Education for All Global Monitoring Report, which will take place at the Organization’s Headquarters on 8 March, marking International Women’s Day.
Source: UN News Center
Women in rural areas have the potential to raise agricultural production to levels that would feed up to 150 million more of the world’s hungry people if they had equal access to the means of production, including land, financial services, education and technology, according to a United Nations report released today.
Source: United Nations Secretary-General
One hundred years ago, when the world first commemorated International Women's Day, gender equality and women's empowerment were largely radical ideas. On this centenary, we celebrate the significant progress that has been achieved through determined advocacy, practical action and enlightened policy making. Yet, in too many countries and societies, women remain second-class citizens.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today requested $1.4 billion in its annual appeal to assist children and women caught in crises, with the bulk of that needed for Pakistan and Haiti.
The uprisings sweeping the Arab world have been provoked by long injustice, low income, police brutality, and lack of social security.
Source:Women Deliver
The West African country of Liberia is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be pregnant - 1 in 20 women will die during pregnancy or childbirth. This high statistic is the result of a protracted civil war that has damaged the country’s health infrastructure
Source: IPS
Mount Elgon in Western Kenya is one of the most marginalised regions in the country. It is so marginalised that it is the only area where not even an inch of tarmac road has been constructed.
Source: Pambazuka
This week marks 100 years of International Women’s Day with a theme that mentions the need for a pathway to decent work for women. Despite the fact women cross-border traders make huge contributions to African economies, their path to decent work is still strewn with difficulty and danger.
Speech delivered by Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet during the International Women’s Day Celebration held at Antoinette Tubman Stadium in Monrovia, Liberia on 8 March 2011.
Source: UN Women
UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet commemorated the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day (IWD) with a visit to Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, 7–8 March 2011, where she engaged with women demonstrating leadership in rebuilding the country from the conflict that dominated its recent history.
Source: UNICEF
UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake today visited Goma in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo to advocate for greater protection of children as conflict continues to undermine their well-being.
France has called for a United Nations inquiry into violence in Côte d’Ivoire, as the military denied responsibility for Thursday’s killing of six women in Abidjan. Five African leaders are to return to the divided country in an attempt to broker peace between outgoing president Laurent Gbagbo and his rival, Alassane Ouattara.
Source: ReliefWeb
UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet today announced a new initiative to boost women's roles in conflict resolution. In an address at the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute, she described how UN Women will create an international roster of gender experts who can be rapidly deployed to work on issues such as constitutional law, electoral and party law, and legal aid, all of which are critical to post-conflict reconstruction processes.
Source: AllAfrica
Burundi will put U.N. Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security into practice with a National Action Plan (NAP) that is ready to be signed within the coming months.
Source: AlertNet
The Democratic Republic of Congo must prosecute soldiers and armed groups who have raped on an unprecedented scale and should set up a meaningful fund to compensate victims, the United Nations said on Thursday.
Source: IPS
It is short sighted to dismiss the benefits or potential of engaging the private sector in human rights matters, says Sara Lulo, director of the Avon Global Center for Women and Justice at Cornell Law School.
In their 2010 book "Half the Sky", Pulitzer Prize-winners Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn write about a disturbing but not uncommon problem in Southern Africa - male teachers who trade good grades for sex with students.
Source: IPS
Picture a mother, hunching over a field with a Medieval-style hoe in hand, spending day after day tilling the soil under a beating hot sun - only to retire home to care for her family without electricity or running water.