UfM Secretariat fosters gender equality during ‎the 59th Session of the Commission on the Status ‎of Women in New York

Barcelona, 16 March 2015. In the framework of the Beijing+20 Process, the UfM Deputy Secretary General for Social and Civil Affairs, Ambassador Delphine Borione, actively participated in the 59^th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, and the numerous side events, which are taking place from 9 to 20 March 2015 in New York.

Held in the United Nations’ Headquarters, the 59^th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women brings together representatives of Member States, UN entities, and ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organisations (NGOs) from all regions of the world.

Through its participation in the numerous side events, the UfM Secretariat aims at contributing and providing a Mediterranean dimension to the emergence of a universal platform for dialogue among governments, national institutions and civil society organisations working together to improve the status and place of women in the societies, thus meeting women’s aspirations for respect, dignity, equality and justice.

During the session, Ambassador Borione highlighted the role of the UfM Secretariat towards achieving full recognition of equal rights for men and women through the promotion of concrete regional programmes and projects: “Gender equality has to be at the heart of the global agenda of human rights. Recognising the equal rights between men and women and concretely eliminating all forms of gender-based discrimination constitute an essential precondition for advancing the Global Development Agenda post-2015. It constitutes a benefit not only for women but for all”.

Ambassador Borione also held bilateral meetings with Ministers of Women Rights and representatives of UN Women. Following the partnership agreement signed in September 2014 between the UfM Secretariat and UN Women, both institutions have strengthened ties to advance the agenda on gender equality in the Euro-Mediterranean region.

The UfM Secretariat is playing an active role to foster synergies, coherence and complementarity between all actors involved in order to advance the agenda on women’s empowerment in the Mediterranean. From 19-20 May, the UfM Secretariat will organise a high-level UfM Conference in Barcelona on “Fostering Women’s Participation in Economic Life”. The Conference will act as a platform for dialogue and coordination between key stakeholders in the Euro-Mediterranean region, so as to propose concrete response on the ground.