New York, 6 March 2015
Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the President of the General Assembly
The United Nations Secretary-General, the Presidents of Croatia, Liberia, the Prime Minister of Turkey, the Deputy Prime Minister of Montenegro, the Speaker of Uganda Parliament, and the Secretary-General of the Francophonie, are among participating dignitaries.
On 6 March 2015 at the United Nations in New York, the President of the General Assembly (PGA), H.E. Sam Kahamba Kutesa, hosted the High-Level Thematic Debate on Advancing Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and Girls for a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda. Welcoming the dignitaries that participated in the event, including President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic of Croatia, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Igor Luksic of Montenegro, Rt Hon Michaëlle Jean, Secretary-General of La Francophonie and former Governor General of Canada, and the Speaker of Parliament of Uganda, Rt. Honorable Rebecca Kadaga – President Kutesa stated that “this is the first time that the Office of the President of the General Assembly has hosted the global observance of International Women’s Day”. The PGA added that he is proud the event is jointly hosted with UN Women, under the leadership of Ms. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, its Executive Director.
Recalling the story of Nabanja, a married woman from the Kashongi village in Uganda whose husband sold land without her knowledge, leaving her and her children with no home or means for survival after his death, President Kutesa stated that such examples emphasize the need to put legislation into place which empowers women and guarantees their land-ownership and inheritance rights. He underlined the critical importance for women of access to lines of credit, particularly with regard to their engagement in entrepreneurship and non-land-based enterprises. The PGA told participants that “there is no shortage of evidence that when we support the fundamental freedoms of women and girls, they are able to realize their full potential to engage in, contribute to and benefit from sustainable development.” He concluded that in doing so, “we will all reap the benefits in our homes, throughout our communities, and across our nations.”
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said this year was an opportunity to end the wrongs affecting women. Mr. Ban said that while progress has been achieved in many areas following the Beijing Platform for Action remains an ambitious but realistic agenda for empowering girls and women, we must do far more to accelerate progress everywhere. The Secretary-General reminded participants that “gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls are essential to our sustainable future.” He added that “this is the first generation that can eradicate poverty – and we are the last generation that can avert the worst consequences of climate change.” Mr. Ban told the audience that he is “the proud son of a mother who is 95 years old today, this year, and who is still going strong. She gave birth even without the assistance of a midwife – a woman who was not allowed to vote when she came of age. She has seen many changes in her long life.” He noted that now that he is a grandfather himself, his “daughters, and their daughters, have been spared the hardships” his mother faced. But for Mr. Ban, “the struggle goes on for millions of women and girls around the world.” The United Nations Secretary-General further stated that “We have an agenda we can find the resources we can monitor progress we can hold ourselves accountable for results”, urging all to “work together to secure a sustainable future, where women and girls, men and boys are equally empowered and enjoy shared prosperity.”
The President of Liberia, H.E. Mrs. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf stated that “some of us have broken the glass ceiling” but regretted that “yet, the current pace of change has been much too slow so that at the current pace it will take 81 years to achieve gender equality.” Urging participants to go beyond rhetoric, she added that “it is not enough to make nice speeches, hold international meetings, issue communiqués and declarations. It is time for equality.” President Johnson-Sirleaf hoped that “the African Union would not return to male domination.”
The President of Croatia, H.E. Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, stated that “we should ask ourselves what we, as politicians, as diplomats, as representatives of civil societies, as men and women, can do to finish the unfinished business”. She concurred with the view that “through education and media, we can combat intolerance and prejudice, including sexism, and promote equality, diversity, understanding and acceptance”. The President of Croatia urged all to “work for the day when gender equality becomes a way of life for all”.
H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Prime Minister of Turkey and father of three daughters emphasized that to aspire to build a better future, it was essential to support the empowerment women and girls. He indicated that in his country, important obstacles had constrained living standards for women and girls. The Prime Minister explained that Turkey had taken steps to improve their lives, including supporting the Government’s strong belief in equal access to education. He underscored the need for women to ensure successful sustainable development.
Mrs. Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women (UN-Women), called on delegates to do what was necessary to repeal discriminatory laws and ensure access to credit, reproductive health and rights, as well as end impunity for perpetrators of gender-based violence. She urged the private sector to become game changers thanks to economic empowerment, decent work and equal pay.
Ms. Sivananthi Thanenthiran, Executive Director, Asian-Pacific Resource and Research Centre for Women, noted that despite progress in the Asia-Pacific region, substantive gender equality was still a distant dream for most women and girls. She explained why the international community should not leave behind the poorest women, the least educated and those living in rural or remote areas. She denounced as a “travesty” the fact that that many girls were barred from education, urging leaders to stand up for women and girls, not only in their own countries but across the globe.
Nohelia a 13-year-old girl from Ecuador and penultimate speaker at the opening segment, delivered a statement that was a reality check for the audience. She explained how in her region, poverty, sexual violence, and other factors were the daily burden of many girls in her country, which made them particularly vulnerable.
The last speaker during the opening segment was Ms. Michaëlle Jean, Secretary-General of La Francophonie and former Governor General and Commander-in-Chief of Canada. In her key note address, she spoke about how rape, violence, abuse, slavery and discrimination, forced marriages, and death in childbirth negatively impact so many women. She stressed that “Peace, democracy and development were inseparable,” and “excluding women means they are condemned to fail”. Some normative advances had been made, but they meant little without implementation. She urged decision makers to urgently move forward.
Following the opening segment, two interactive panel discussions were held. The first panel discussion chaired by the President of Liberia focused on “Women’s economic and political empowerment, including access to and control over economic and productive resources, and active participation in governance and decision-making”. It is during this interactive session that the Right Honorable Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga, Speaker of Parliament of Uganda, underlined the need for women’s full participation in all sectors of life. The Speaker explained that the time had come to find effective approached that would reduce the heavy burden of women’s work and help them with easier access to funds and credit. Other participants in the first panel included Helen Clark, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Jane Stewart, Special Representative and Director, International Labour Organization Liaison Office to the United Nations, Dr. Naila Kabeer, Professor of Gender and Development, Gender Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science, Ms. Aizhamal Bakashova, PA Shazet (a rural women”s civil society representative, Kyrgyzstan and Dr. Patrick Ho, Deputy Chairman and Secretary-General, China Energy Fund Committee.
In the afternoon, the second interactive panel discussion chaired by the President of Croatia focused on “Access to quality education and skills development as tools for empowerment of women and girls”. Participants included Irina Bokova, Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive-Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Yoko Hayashi, Chair of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Geeta Rao Gupta, Deputy Executive Director for Programmes, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and Mariana Mancilla, Balance Promoción para Desarrollo y Juventud A.C. (youth development organization, Mexico).
Summing up the proceedings at the end of the high-level Thematic Debate, the President of the General Assembly thanked the Heads of State and Government and the panelists for their valuable contributions. Concluding the event, he highlighted the key messages that came out of the discussions, namely the critical importance of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in attaining sustainable development the need to integrate the gender perspective as a crosscutting issue in all dimensions of the new development agenda the value of education, including lifelong learning opportunities and vocational training for women the expansion of decent work opportunities for women to improve their livelihoods and contribution to sustainable development measures to enhance women’s access to and control over economic resources, as well as their full participation in governance and decision-making. President Kutesa also underlined that “the tenuous situation of women, girls and children in conflict areas is of deep concern, as is the notable absence of women in leadership roles in conflict prevention, management and resolution efforts.” The PGA stressed “the need to protect sexual and reproductive healthcare rights was further highlighted as a fundamental right that must be upheld”.
H.E. Mr. Kutesa promised to transmit in due course a President’s Summary containing the key messages and proposals made for advancing gender equality and empowerment of women to Member States and stakeholders in due course.
