Remarks delivered by UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous at the annual meeting of the UN General Assembly Platform of Women Leaders, during the high-level segment of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, 24 September 2024.
It is an honour to join His Excellency, Mr. Philemon Yang, President of the 79th session of the General Assembly, in welcoming you to the third UN General Assembly Platform of Women Leaders. The Platform is an expression of our shared commitment to amplify the voices of women at the highest levels of political power and to provide a forum for diverse perspectives in the multilateral arena. I can only reiterate the words of the President of the General Assembly: we are all here to listen from you and to learn from you.
Excellencies, over the coming days we will hear many esteemed speakers introduced at the General Assembly by His Excellency. However, we will hear “Her Excellency” a mere handful of times. How can it be that at the highest positions of state, at a time when we have together professed loudly and repeatedly our commitment to equality, not least in the political sphere, that only 27 Member States have Madame Presidents or Prime Ministers. In this way we do not only spurn the benefits of women’s leadership, but we also set the poorest of examples for our young women and men.
I will always reiterate that representation matters.
While we celebrate the gains of the last 30 years, be they in education, legal reforms, or closing the gender pay gap, we remain woefully off track. Without acceleration, a girl born today will be 39 years old before women hold as many seats in parliament as men; she will be 68 years old before child marriage ends; and 137 before extreme poverty for women and girls is eradicated. That acceleration is all the more urgent as we approach the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action amidst the complex challenges of economic instability, climate change, social inequity, geopolitical tensions, conflict, and a very tangible pushback on gender equality.
Excellencies, yesterday you adopted the ambitious Pact for the Future. Cutting across the pact was a commitment to women and girls, to gender equality, to advancing their rights and leadership. Delivering on that promise will be the true test of the Beijing+30 review process and our wider commemorations. This crucial anniversary demands that we reflect on progress made, and prioritize, focusing on high-impact, high-return-on-investment actions so that promises are indeed kept.
On Saturday, UN Women launched our year-long effort to that end. Based on data, evidence, and inputs from expert consultations, we are proposing six key areas to focus on for gender equality and the Sustainable Development Goals more broadly.
They are:
-national action plans to end violence against women and girls;
-securing women’s leadership through temporary special measures;
-unlocking finance to support the care economy and reduce women’s unpaid care work;
-bridging the gender digital gap;
-linking economic empowerment to climate action and transitions to green and blue economies; and
-ensuring accountability to the women, peace and security and humanitarian action agendas.
All across, ensuring that girls and young women are seen, uplifted, and heard.
The Pact for the Future and accelerating progress on the Sustainable Development Goals are ambitious and rightly so. Achieving their ambitions cannot be done piecemeal, a goal at a time. Instead, they demand action that delivers on multiple fronts at once. That is exactly what gender equality offers.
Rising to the promises made in Beijing is the best way to rise to the 2030 Agenda [for Sustainable Development] and a host of agreements to create an equal, just, prosperous world for all.
UN Women remains your steadfast partner in doing so. I look forward to our discussions and to our ongoing collaboration.
And I thank you.
Speech published on 24 September 2024.
Read here more about the 79th session of the General Assembly and the work done by UN Women.