Past events
International Women’s Day 2017
On 8 March, the world united in celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD) under the theme “Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50:50 by 2030”. This is a day to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by women.
In commemoration of IWD, FAO, IFAD and WFP hosted the event “Step It Up Together with Rural Women to End Hunger and Poverty” at the FAO HQ in Rome, Italy. In his opening statement, Michel Mordasini, UNSCN Chair and Vice President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) explained how IFAD learned through their experience in the field that overcoming gender inequality is integral to transforming rural areas. “Better income, education, health and decision-making power for women have a direct and dramatic impact on the well-being of the whole family, as well as on the nutritional status and health of their children,” he said. As a specialized UN agency and an international financial institution focused on the needs of smallholder farmers and poor rural people, IFAD highlighted that 50% of all rural people currently receiving services from IFAD-supported projects are women. Of those 57 million women, about 12 million have benefitted from gender empowerment initiatives. “Women represent close to 70% of participants in our capacity-building programs for community management, business skills and micro-entrepreneurship, versus 40% ten years ago. Similar strong results are reported in IFAD-assisted microfinance institutions, where today women account for 54% of active borrowers and 63% of voluntary savers” explained Mr Mordasini.
UNSCN members acknowledge that unlocking the full potential of women in the work place is only possible when they are fully nourished and are fully supported by their communities. An empowered woman who has access to and control over resources can influence the extent to which resources, specifically food, are allocated in the household, benefiting the health and nutrition outcomes of the entire family. The realization of women’s rights and their full participation in society should be at the center of all strategies.
One of UNSCN’s newest members - UN Women – observed this day by hosting an event at the United Nations Secretariat in New York. Ms. Lakshmi Puri, UN Assistant-Secretary General, reported on the event, noting the need to address the fact that 60% of the world’s malnourished people are women and that food security and nutrition are central to sustainable development, and are a catalyst for the realization of human rights, including the rights of women to food. Ms. Puri also reemphasized that “Well-nourished, empowered women are central to eliminating malnutrition entirely and to achieving gender equality.”
The theme of women’s equality and economic empowerment was also discussed during the sixty-first session of the Commission on the Status of Women that took place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 13 to 24 March 2017. The side event “Women and labour: A nutritional perspective” discussed the economic impacts of women’s malnutrition and how targeted measures to improve women’s nutritional status have major gains in economic development – see here. The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. The Agreed Conclusions were approved with a strong pledge from UN Member States to commit to ensure women’s full and equal participation and leadership in the economy, as well as women’s right to work and rights at work, as a vital step to achieving sustainable development.
In the words of Michel Mordasini, “stepping it up does not mean trying a little harder. SDG 5 calls for nothing less than to End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere by 2030. If we are seriously committed [to SDG 5] then “step it up” means to employ every possible resource at our disposal for the cause. It means devoting ourselves to this issue not just on International Women’s Day, but every day.”
For more stories about how the work of UN agencies brings change to the lives of rural women worldwide, we welcome you to subscribe to the available Gender Newsletters, such as by writing to IFAD Gender (gender@ifad.org) or directly on the UN Women website at http://www.unwomen.org/en/how-we-work/un-system-coordination/women-in-the-united-nations/other-resources.
