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Women leaders suffered unspeakable atrocities during the conflict in the Central African Republic in which militias killed thousands and displaced many more. These women remain devoted to forging peace in their country and are doing so with help and support from International IDEA.

As part of their research to produce a handbook to address the issue of legislation that discriminates against women, the IPU and UN Women recently held virtual consultations with parliamentarians from around the world.

Most of the world’s nations are not doing enough to protect women and girls from the economic and social fallout being caused by the COVID-19 crisis, according to new data released today by UNDP and UN Women from the COVID-19 Global Gender Response Tracker.

Twenty-five years after world leaders adopted a road map for gender equality, known as the Beijing Declaration, many admitted Thursday that progress remains slow. A top UN official has said that men are still not willing to relinquish power.

The question has never been whether women can lead as capably as men. Women have always led, and women will always lead, especially when the times are hard, and their communities are in need.

The question that we need to ask is, why is women’s leadership invisible? Why is their potential and their power stifled?

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to hold the world hostage, global leaders will gather at the largest annual inter-governmental meeting for the first time ever in a virtual session.

Looking back on the Fourth World Conference on Women in the Chinese capital, UN Women Executive Director, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, said in a statement that “we have seen the strength and impact of collective activism grow and have been reminded of the importance of multilateralism and partnership to find common solutions to shared problems.”

In an address to a virtual town hall with young women from civil society organizations, the Secretary-General said that the global pandemic has already reversed decades of limited and fragile progress on gender equality and women’s rights.

“Without a concerned response, we risk losing a generation or more of gains”, he cautioned.

Around the world, women play critical roles as first responders and leaders when humanitarian crisis occurs. They change and save lives in the hardest to reach places. Yet, their work is consistently under-funded and often unrecognized. As COVID-19 continues to ravage communities, the need to support women and women’s organizations in humanitarian action has become urgent. Through participatory videos, women in Bangladesh, Colombia, Jordan and Uganda share their perspectives.