Women and Gender Issues

This Guide sets out in detail the content of comprehensive anti-discrimination law. It provides legislators and advocates with the tools to develop anti-discrimination legislation consistent with international legal standards on the rights to equality and non-discrimination. It aims to assist States in meeting their core international law obligations to respect, protect, and fulfil the rights to equality and non-discrimination. This Guide also includes practical examples to assist law- and policy-makers. It also provides specific guidance on the link between anti-discrimination law on the one hand, and minority rights on the other.

This is the annual report submitted to the General Assembly by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its activities for the fifty-second session, fifty-third session, and fifty-fourth sessions.

Official records of the Report of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women: Fortieth Session (14 January-1 February 2008), Forty-first Session (30 June-18 July 2008)

The 2021 edition of the World Population Policies provides a brief overview of global fertility levels and trends since the early 1960s and explores government’s views and policies related to fertility. The analysis of views and policies draws on data gathered through 2019 and available in the World Population Policies Database (box 1), reflecting the situation before the outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The report then presents five case studies of countries from different regions and with a range of fertility levels, exploring in more detail the origin and evolution of national fertility policies. The case studies are followed by an assessment of known or potential direct and indirect impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on fertility patterns and trends. The report concludes with an exploration of policy options that governments may wish to consider in the current context.

This study investigated women’s participation in the economy and trade by distinguishing between women’s different economic roles as workers and entrepreneurs/business owners, and between different economic sectors such as agriculture, industry, and services. Specifically, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) carried out a qualitative analysis of women’s participation in the economy and in trade in selected subsectors of the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) during April-May 2022. The olive oil sector was selected from agriculture due to its major role in Palestinian society and women’s significant participation in this sector. The food products sector was selected from industry because it is traditionally a major sector in which women are highly involved. Finally, the information and communications technology (ICT) sector was selected from services due to its significant potential for future growth prospects and women’s employment in the OPT.

Es probable que cualquier cambio en las políticas comerciales u otras políticas económicas tenga repercusiones específicas de género. Específicamente, el comercio internacional afecta a hombres y mujeres en sus diferentes roles económicos de manera diferente según sus ingresos, riqueza, raza, etnia, casta, ubicación espacial, edad, etc. Esto crea múltiples patrones de desigualdad que se entrecruzan, lo que agrava el efecto. Este volumen didáctico se centrará en la dimensión de género y comercio, incluida la investigación realizada por la UNCTAD, como parte de un debate más amplio sobre los efectos distributivos de la integración comercial. Observar la estructura socioeconómica de los países a través de una lente de género es el marco general que se aplica.

Les lignes directrices concernant l’élaboration de normes tenant compte des questions de genre proposent des étapes pratiques pour établir des politiques et des pratiques efficaces, qui soutiennent la participation égale des femmes en tant que priorité stratégique. Le rapport reconnaît que la normalisation est traditionnellement un monde dominé par les hommes et cherche à offrir une base de référence aux organismes d'élaboration de normes (OEN) visant à assurer l'équité dans leurs processus de travail et une plus grande efficacité dans les normes qu'ils élaborent. Les lignes directrices encouragent les organismes d'élaboration des normes à prendre des mesures concertées et à renforcer leur engagement en faveur de l'égalité entre les sexes. Les organismes gouvernementaux sont invités à considérer les normes comme des instruments de changement, capables de soutenir les communautés marginalisées et d'accélérer la réalisation du Programme de développement durable à l'horizon 2030.

The State of World Population 2022 will take up the issue of unintended pregnancy and look at its drivers and impact. We will take a look at causes and consequences of unmet need for family planning, but also at the constellation of forces that can lead to an unintended pregnancy and at how that pregnancy can harm a woman’s or adolescent’s health, her earnings potential and more.

The war on Gaza has become one of the world’s most brutal man-made humanitarian crises. The war has directly impacted more than 2.2 million people, resulting in an unprecedented number of civilians killed, alongside overwhelming displacement. Since 7 October 2023, more than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 10,000 women, and an estimated 82,000 people have been injured. The Israeli incursion into Rafah has led to the displacement of nearly 800,000 people since May 2024, many of whom had already been displaced multiple times since October 2023. In tandem, the situation in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has also deteriorated, with more than 500 people killed and 5,000 injured since 7 October. As the death toll increases, severe humanitarian needs continue to grow at an unprecedented rate, in a context where needs were already dire before the current escalation. The war on Gaza remains, among other things, a war on women. Over the past eight months of the war, UN Women has been documenting how the lives of women and girls have deteriorated across sectors, including food security, water, shelter, health, and safety. This Gender Alert is on the work of Women-Led Organizations (WLOs).

As the war on Gaza reached its six-month mark, it continues to be a war on women. According to UN Women estimates, more than 10,000 women have been killed to date, among them an estimated 6,000 mothers who left 19,000 orphan children behind. Women who have survived have been displaced, widowed, and are facing starvation. More than one million women and girls in Gaza have almost no food, no access to safe water, latrines, washrooms, or sanitary pads, with disease growing amidst inhumane living conditions. Since the start of the war, UN Women has been documenting the experiences of women in Gaza in a series of gender alerts that look at various aspects of how the war is impacting the daily lives of women and girls, including food, water, shelter, health, and protection. This new alert is the latest in this series, and it focuses on water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services, which are integral to women’s health, dignity, safety, and privacy.

The war on Gaza has become one of the world’s most brutal man-made humanitarian crises. The war has directly impacted more than 2.2 million people, resulting in an unprecedented number of civilians killed, alongside overwhelming displacement. Since 7 October 2023, more than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, including at least 10,000 women, and an estimated 82,000 people have been injured. The Israeli incursion into Rafah has led to the displacement of nearly 800,000 people since May 2024, many of whom had already been displaced multiple times since October 2023. In tandem, the situation in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, has also deteriorated, with more than 500 people killed and 5,000 injured since 7 October. As the death toll increases, severe humanitarian needs continue to grow at an unprecedented rate, in a context where needs were already dire before the current escalation. The war on Gaza remains, among other things, a war on women. Over the past eight months of the war, UN Women has been documenting how the lives of women and girls have deteriorated across sectors, including food security, water, shelter, health, and safety. This Gender Alert is on the work of Women-Led Organizations (WLOs).

Les dernières données disponibles sur l’Objectifs de développement durable 5 (ODD 5) montrent que le monde n’est pas sur la bonne voie pour atteindre l’égalité des sexes d’ici 2030. La COVID-19 et les reactions hostiles envers la santé et les droits sexuels et reproductifs des femmes réduisent davantage les perspectives d’égalité des sexes. La violence faite aux femmes reste élevée ; les crises sanitaires, climatiques et humanitaires mondiales ont exacerbé les risques de violence, en particulier pour les femmes et les filles les plus vulnérables ; et les femmes se sentent moins en sécurité qu’avant la pandémie. La représentation des femmes aux postes de pouvoir et de prise de décision reste inférieure à la parité. Seulement 47 pour cent des données nécessaires pour suivre les progrès de l’ODD 5 sont actuellement disponibles, rendant les femmes et les filles réellement invisibles. Presque à michemin du point final de 2030 pour les ODD, le moment est venu d’agir et d’investir en faveur des femmes et des filles. Le rapport Progrès vers la réalisation des Objectifs de développement durable : gros plan sur l’égalité des sexes 2022 présente les dernières données probantes sur l’égalité des sexes dans l’ensemble des 17 objectifs, soulignant le long chemin à parcourir pour parvenir à l’égalité des sexes. Il met l’accent sur les liens entre les objectifs, la force essentielle que joue l’égalité des sexes pour faire progresser les ODD, et le rôle central des femmes et des filles pour montrer la voie à suivre.

Un año y medio después de la pandemia, el progreso hacia la ampliación de los derechos y oportunidades de la mujer sigue siendo puesto a prueba y obstaculizado. Las pérdidas económicas de las mujeres no se han recuperado, el hambre va en aumento y el cierre de escuelas amenaza con destruir los logros educativos de las niñas. La participación de la mujer en el gobierno, la investigación y la gestión de recursos sigue estando lejos de ser igual. Los grupos vulnerables de mujeres, incluidos los migrantes, las personas con discapacidades y los afectados por conflictos, quedan con demasiada frecuencia al margen y las disparidades entre países ricos y pobres impiden el acceso equitativo a las vacunas y tratamientos COVID-19 que salvan vidas. Pero una acción rápida e intervenciones específicas pueden detener el declive e impulsar la igualdad de derechos para mujeres y niñas. El progreso en el cumplimiento de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible: Panorama de género 2021 reúne la evidencia más reciente sobre la igualdad de género en los 17 Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible, haciendo un balance de los avances logrados y los desafíos pendientes.

This report is an analysis of gender and social inclusion priorities in country, regional and thematic reports prepared for the midterm review of the Sendai Framework (MTR SF). It is an additional resource to the two global reports produced for the MTR SF led and coordinated by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), which provide a global assessment of the progress made in the implementation of the Sendai Framework: The Report of the Midterm Review of the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030 and the Report of the Main Findings and Recommendations of the Midterm Review of the Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030.

The current situation in Afghanistan presents globally unprecedented challenges to delivering targeted interventions on gender equality. Since August 2021, the Taliban has undertaken an intensive and systematic dismantling of Afghanistan’s legal and institutional infrastructure, particularly targeting those who had supported the gender equality and women’s empowerment advances achieved under the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan between 2001 and 2021. Significant discrepancies exist between the national and subnational levels, yet data collection on issues relating to gender equality is increasingly difficult, especially following bans on women working for NGOs and the extension of this ban to the United Nations. The “Afghanistan gender country profile 2024”, produced with the support of the European Union, provides a snapshot of the current situation regarding gender equality in Afghanistan, noting the previous legal and institutional frameworks (from the period 1978–2021), and examining the current decrees, policies, and practices shaping the gender equality landscape under Taliban rule. The document then provides a detailed gender analysis and pertinent statistical data to provide an overview of the prevailing situation in-country across key priority thematic areas.

El informe Estado de la Población Mundial 2023 discutirá el hito de 8 mil millones alcanzado recientemente por la población humana y las narrativas que rodean el cambio demográfico. Examinaremos en particular los discursos que plantean ideas de 'demasiadas' o 'demasiado pocas' personas y el daño que esto puede causar a las mujeres y niñas cuyas opciones reproductivas están en juego.

The report is an evidence-based assessment of the economic and social situation in Afghanistan, two years after the power shift in August 2021. The report shows that the Afghan economy and people are still in crisis, with high levels of multidimensional deprivation, low growth, and urgent humanitarian needs. The report also highlights the impact of the crisis on women and girls, who face severe restrictions on their rights and freedoms. The report calls for urgent action to address the humanitarian and basic needs of the Afghan people by stimulating economic recovery, revitalising the financial sector, and investing in community development and local economic resilience, including women’s economic enterprises. The report aims to inform and influence the policy discourse and decision-making on the future of Afghanistan, and to contribute to the efforts of building an increasingly stable, prosperous, and resilient nation.

Alors que le monde apprend à vivre avec le COVID-19, à « reconstruire en mieux » et est mobilisé pour sortir de la crise actuelle, le nouveau « Plan féministe » d’ONU Femmes fournit une feuille de route visionnaire mais concrète visant à placer l’égalité des sexes, la justice sociale et la durabilité au centre de la relance. Le « Plan féministe » cartographie les politiques ambitieuses et transformatrices relatives aux moyens de subsistance, aux soins et à l'environnement qui sont nécessaires pour construire un avenir plus équitable et durable. Pour y parvenir, il appelle à des approches politiques spécifiques au contexte, à des stratégies politiques adaptées et à un financement. Le plan identifie les leviers clés qui peuvent créer un changement ainsi que les actrices et acteurs aux niveaux mondial, national et local qui doivent prendre des mesures pour avancer vers cette vision.

This report provides policymakers with recommendations on how to build the resilience of women-led businesses in the long term. This includes policy actions to improve the competitiveness of women-led businesses, address the barriers they face when participating in trade, and make the policy environment more gender-responsive.

Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) is an established, sound and robust system for reviewing maternal deaths and establishing nationwide enquiries into deaths during pregnancy labour and puerperium. MPDSR is a system that measures and tracks all maternal and perinatal deaths in real time, helps to understand the underlying factors contributing to the deaths, and stimulates and guides actions to prevent future deaths. This form of continuous surveillance links the health information system and quality improvement processes from local to national levels, permits routine identification, notification, quantification, and determination of causes of maternal and perinatal deaths, and is useful information to help respond with actions that will prevent future deaths. MPDSR also supports the delivery of quality maternal and newborn health care. This report represents the status of MPDSR in 2021, and documents the progress made since 2016.

The Programme of Action of the International conference on Population and Development (ICPD), adopted by 179 Governments in Cairo and reaffirmed by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, emphasizes equality in access to “reproductive health care, including family planning and sexual health that would allow all couples and individuals to have the basic right to decide freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children” (United Nations, 1994). This inherently implies that it is “the right of men and women to be informed and to have access to safe, effective, affordable and acceptable methods of family planning of their choice”. It was reaffirmed by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in target 3.7, “by 2030, ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health-care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programmes." Progress towards achieving this target is monitored by indicator 3.7.1, “the proportion of women of reproductive age (15-49 years) who have their need for family planning satisfied with modern methods of contraception”. The Population Division of the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs is the custodian agency for the global monitoring of this indicator. This report describes the trends in contraceptive use over the past three decades, including trends in SDG indicator 3.7.1., and provides a comprehensive understanding of the patterns of contraceptive use and needs over the life-course of women as well as of contraceptive use by type of method.

This is the official report submitted to the General Assembly by the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on its sixty-fourth (4-22 July 2016), sixty-fifth (24 October-18 November 2016) and sixty-sixth sessions (13 February-3 March 2017).

Gender inequality is generally recognized as one of the main obstacles to development in the Arab Region. This volume of the Report focuses on the history and contemporary dynamics of Arab women's economic, political, and social empowerment. It details the processes in which gender impacts on Arab development while suggesting means of overcoming some of the challenges and building more equitable societies.

The eTrade Readiness Assessment of Tuvalu focuses on examining seven key policy areas that are most relevant for e-commerce. Within each area, critical readiness gaps are identified and relevant recommendations are proposed to overcome barriers and bottlenecks to the growth of digital trade. The Tuvalu Rapid eTrade Readiness Assessment is the nineteenth such assessment conducted by UNCTAD since the launch of the Programme in 2017. There are signs that Tuvalu has started to consider some of the potential benefits that e-commerce can bring to its population and in particular in reducing some of the negative effects of its geographic location and small size. For this to happen, existing policies such as TKIII and TPF must be implemented, while higher visibility of the digital economy in the national development agenda constitutes a necessary pre-condition to tackle all the aforementioned challenges. This Rapid eTrade Readiness Assessment helps identify opportunities and barriers for Tuvalu to engage in and benefit from e-commerce and the digital economy. It also helps operationalize relevant strategies included in the Tuvalu's Trade Policy Statement and the Tuvalu Private Sector Development Plan. Both documents highlight agriculture, fisheries, tourism and labor mobility as key areas of export growth, all of which could be supported by e-commerce. They also note other important cross-cutting areas that are relevant to e-commerce, including competition policy and consumer protection, public procurement, intellectual property rights, and gender issues.

This publication focuses on seven key policy areas that are most relevant for e-commerce. Within each area, critical readiness gaps are identified and relevant recommendations are proposed to overcome barriers and bottlenecks to the growth of digital trade. There are signs that Malawi has started to consider some of the benefits that e-commerce can bring to its population and some important initiatives have been undertaken in this direction. However, the overall ecosystem needs to be structured and organized to avoid the proliferation of informal and unskilled operators, with obvious losses for government and consumers.