– As delivered –
Remarks by H.E. Mr. Volkan Bozkir, President of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly
17 March 2021
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
I thank the Republic of Turkey and in particular H.E. Zehra Zumrut SELCUK – Minister of Family, Labour and Social Services for the invitation to address this important event.
As the President of UN General Assembly, and a Turkish citizen, it is of course a pleasure for me to be with you all today, even virtually. I am sure you are aware that one of my priorities as PGA is improving the living standards and rights of women, ensuring their full and equal participation in all spheres of life and strengthening their status within society. Hence this occasion and the subject we are discussing today could not be more pertinent.
At the beginning of the 75th session of the General Assembly, we commemorated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, with a high-level meeting on accelerating the realization of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
Despite gains made since 1995, no country has fully addressed all twelve areas of concern outlined in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. More concerning, is the fact that gains made in the 25-year period are under threat from the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the past year, women have served on the frontline of the response to the coronavirus:
- representing 70% of the global healthcare workforce,
- two-thirds of the global paid care workforce,
- and the majority of paid caregivers for the elderly, in both facilities and home-based care.
Yet, the gender pay gap in the health sector stands at 28%, substantially higher than the overall gender pay gap of 16%.
Furthermore, many women have sacrificed their health for economic security. Women on the frontlines of healthcare, are in particularly close, and prolonged contact, with COVID-19 patients. Globally, infection rates among female health-care workers are up to three times higher than among their male counterparts. Today, I urge all Member States, to guarantee protection, to our women on the frontlines, including in the context of achieving vaccines for all.
Until we truly become Generation Equality, we must repeat this simple fact:
Every woman, everywhere, is entitled to the full enjoyment of her fundamental human rights.
Excellencies,
Women living in poverty face an even higher risk of COVID-19 transmission and fatalities, loss of livelihood, and increased violence. Women are overrepresented in sectors which are traditionally underpaid, insecure and lack basic social protections, such as family leave and paid sick leave. Furthermore, some women may be pushed out of the labour market permanently as unpaid care burdens increase due to school closures and the suspension of respite services.
Countering the impact of COVID-19 on women who are living on the cusp of extreme poverty requires us to address gender norms in society head on and close social protection gaps. To be sure, this is a tall order, but it is the only way that we will eliminate labour market segregation, gender pay gaps, and the distribution of unpaid care and domestic work. Interim social protection measures that would alleviate the impact of COVID-19 on women include:
- Direct income support to women, such as direct cash-transfers, expanded unemployment benefits, and expanded family and child benefits for vulnerable women and their families;
- Stimulus funding for women entrepreneurs and business owners;
- And equal access to affordable, quality childcare services to enable women to remain in the workforce.
It is essential that we safeguard women’s economic independence if we are to end gender-based violence. During the COVID-19 pandemic, public health containment measures, have had the inadvertent effect of isolating those who are most at risk. Concerns regarding healthcare and family finances, combined with an increased burden of unpaid care contributing to what has been dubbed a ‘shadow pandemic’. One-in-three women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, with the figure increasing for women living in conflict settings.
We must prioritise essential services, data collection, legislative change, and the end of impunity for perpetrators. Next, we must ensure that the 11 million girls at risk of being left behind return to the classroom as soon as possible.
We know that girls are safer when they are in school. Moreover, we need to ensure that girls are equipped with the skills required to succeed in a rapidly changing world. We need to bridge the gendered digital divide which relatively stands at 17% globally. To this end, I will convene a High-Level Thematic Debate on digital cooperation and connectivity to explore “whole-of-society” approaches to end the digital divide, with a segment dedicated to the dynamics of women and girls.
Excellencies,
Distinguished delegates,
This Decade of Action to implement the Sustainable Development Goals is our final chance to course-correct if we are to achieve the targets of SDG 5: Gender Equality.
In October, I established the Advisory Group on Gender Equality to mainstream the issue throughout the work of the General Assembly. I have amplified these conversations while meeting with the Group of Friends of Gender Parity, and when speaking to members of my gender-balanced Cabinet.
Until we truly become Generation Equality, we must repeat this simple fact:
Every woman, everywhere, is entitled to the full enjoyment of her fundamental human rights.
I thank you for your time, and your commitment to creating a more equal, just, and safer world just as the penholders of the Charter of the United Nations envisaged seventy-five years ago.
I also thank the Minister for convening the event, and I wish all the panellists the best at this event.
