Thank you, June [Zeitlin, Executive Director of WEDO].

Excellencies, colleagues, fellow women,

I am very pleased to be with you today. Let me thank GERWUN and WEDO for organizing this event, and for your steadfast commitment to the goal of 50/50 in the United Nations.

Over the quarter of a century that we have observed International Women's Day at the UN, much has happened for us to celebrate. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women has been ratified by 166 countries. Milestones such as the world conferences in Mexico City, Vienna, Cairo and Beijing have served as engines of progress for women around the world. At the same time, the notion that women should confine themselves to what used to be traditionally seen as "women's issues" is happily disappearing. The voices of women are now being heard loud and clear across the whole range of issues before the United Nations.

But although women's voices have become increasingly powerful and eloquent, we are still not hearing as many of them as we should. There are still far too few women in leadership positions around the world.

In most countries, women remain severely under-represented at the highest levels of national and international decision-making. In national parliaments, the average proportion of women legislators is 14 per cent. At the Millennium Summit here last September -- the biggest gathering of leaders the world has seen -- only four of the UN's 189 Member States were represented by women.

Come to that, only 11 of our Member States have a woman as Permanent Representative to the United Nations. In the Security Council, women PRs are even harder to find. After Madeleine Albright's departure, there was none until Patricia Durrant of Jamaica took up her seat last year.

I fervently hope that the Council will not revert to its all-male status when Jamaica's mandate expires at the end of this year -- especially as the Council's first resolution on women and peace and security a few months ago called for greater participation by women in decision-making processes worldwide. Let us hope that Council members will lead by example in meeting that crucial objective.

In the UN Secretariat, we are doing a bit better than most Member States. A quarter of a century ago, when we first celebrated International Women's Day at the UN, the percentage of women among staff on geographical appointments was less than 17 per cent. Today, it is almost 40 per cent. Back then, the percentage of women in D-1 positions and higher was less than 4 per cent. Today, it is almost 33 per cent.

Today, in the UN family, we have more women in top positions than ever before. As you know, women are at the helm of a number of agencies and programmes. And since last November, we have two women Executive Secretaries heading our regional commissions.

But there are still areas of our work where women are noticeably absent. We don't have enough women Special Representatives, Special Envoys or Heads of Missions in our field operations. This is not unconnected to the fact that in the traditional foreign policy circles of our Member States, there are not enough women, and States are often unwilling to spare the few that they have for international missions.

Clearly, we must make more determined efforts to increase the numbers of women in our peacekeeping operations. Following the recommendations of the Brahimi Report, the Secretary-General will soon form a senior appointments group consisting of representatives from key departments and entities, whose tasks will include advising him on the selection of women for senior mission posts.

Another big challenge in the Secretariat as a whole -- as in every large institution I know -- is that of employing and retaining enough women in middle management. At the top, we can hope to make the right political appointments, and at the bottom, we can recruit -- but in middle management, we still tend to get stuck. It is not helped by the fact that many capable women still find they encounter a glass ceiling somewhere halfway up the professional ladder.

So how do we get unstuck? How do we break the mould that has tended to favour the progress of more men than women? I believe the answer is twofold: we must build on the institutional reform under way at the UN, and we must reform the way managers think about women in the UN.

One of the Secretary-General's top priorities when he took office was human resources reform. As you know, much careful thought and staff participation have gone into the reform process, and a comprehensive plan was presented to the General Assembly last fall.

I know that many women are concerned about the implications of reform, and some even fear it will have a negative impact on women. I would venture that the opposite is in fact the case.

There are plenty of qualified women in the Secretariat who have demonstrated leadership and management skills. Our human resources reform will benefit them by placing greater emphasis on competencies and relevant experience than on merely counting years of employment. It will thus provide a springboard for women in the junior and mid-level professional categories to attain higher levels of responsibility. It will open up new opportunities for movement across functions and for training within the UN system -- enabling women to broaden their experience and to acquire new competencies. And the use of pre-established and transparent criteria will help ensure a level playing field for female candidates in the selection process.

At the initiative of the Secretary-General, human resources action plans have been devised at the department level that set targets for the selection of women, based on current and projected vacancies. Senior managers will be held accountable for achieving these targets. This means they will have to look at the big picture instead of thinking post by post. They will need to be more proactive -- by planning ahead; by working with OHRM to identify potential women candidates; by taking advantage of upcoming retirements; by ensuring adequate training; by encouraging mentoring and the development of managerial and other skills and competencies.

In other words, our work for gender balance should not be confined to a set of statistics and numbers to be pulled out of a file on International Women's Day, or on any other occasion when it is time to report on the status of women. It is about instilling attitudes and awareness every day, in all dimensions of our work. Departments should act on their own initiative in looking for qualified women candidates. Departments will be required to work closely with the Secretary-General's Special Adviser of Gender Issues, with OHRM and with the Departmental Focal Points to identify sources for women candidates in all occupational fields.

Managers must be sensitive to the need for more women -- and also to the needs of women. There are many aspects I would ask managers to consider. If a paper comes across your desk proposing a panel or a task force consisting only of men, send it back. If a woman is silent in a meeting, ask her for her views. If the best candidate for a promotion hesitates to accept it because she is concerned about how to combine long hours and child care, discuss with her the options for a mutually acceptable solution.

Clearly, we must find ways to move the work/family agenda forward. Wherever possible, we must explore tools such as alternative work schedules, family leave programmes and measures to facilitate spouse employment. And we must work with Member States to eliminate impediments to employment of spouses.

Friends,
Parity remains our goal and we will not rest until we get there. I think there are three good reasons why we must work very hard to achieve it.

First, women possess half the brain power of the universe. Any institution that fails to make use of half its potential intellectual or creative assets is short-changing itself.

Second, there are no issues we deal with in the UN that are not women's issues. People may see right away the connection between women and, say, health or population issues. But when it comes to dealing with conflict and peace-building, the link is just as strong. Women are not only just as much affected as men by today's forms of armed conflict; they are more affected. But not only are they often the first victims of conflict; they can also be the most powerful forces for peace, for reconciliation in their own societies. As the Security Council said in its resolution, they must be fully engaged in all stages of peace processes worldwide.

But perhaps the most important reason to strive for gender parity is that the UN must live up to -- and be seen to live up to -- the principles that we proclaim for the rest of the world. If women occupy visible positions of authority in the United Nations, it surely sends a powerful message to the nations we represent.

Indeed, nothing fills me with greater pleasure than walking into a meeting and realizing that my delegation is composed entirely of women, especially when the other side of the table is all-male. This has happened quite a few times. And believe me, it happens very often during the Secretary-General's meetings that there are more women on his side of the table than on the other. These are small observations, but they show that we do try at least to practise what we preach.

By the same token, you yourselves are living proof that talented women can be found in every corner of the earth. In every country I have visited, I have been impressed by women: in Government and parliament, in civil society, in science and academia, in business. And every time, I find myself wishing that Member States would put more of these women forward for service at the United Nations as Permanent Representatives, or with the UN as officials in the Secretariat.

So I hope that the goal of 50-50 in the UN will be embraced and acted on by all Member States. I hope that the UN and its membership can encourage and stimulate each other to greater efforts. I hope that together, we can achieve a virtuous cycle for the advancement of women in their own nations, and in the United Nations.