OVERVIEW
Following the High-Level Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in September of each year, the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the largest event held at the UN Headquarters (UNHQ). CSW, a functional commission of ECOSOC, is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women; it is instrumental in shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women and driving progress in women’s rights.
In 2020, the global community will celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda will also reach the five year mark, making 2020 a milestone year for the global community to address gender equity. The sixty-fourth session of the CSW will take place at UNHQ in New York from March 9th to March 20th, 2020 with Member States, UN entities, and NGOs from all around the world.
2020 THEME
The theme of the 64th session is the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly. The review will include an assessment of current challenges in the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and its contribution towards the full realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action: CSW64 will appraise Beijing+25’s implementation and the current challenges that remain 25 years after its adoption in 1995. The Beijing Declaration remains the most comprehensive global policy framework and blueprint for action towards the advancement of women’s rights and the achievement of gender equality. Over 17,000 participants attended, including government delegates, NGO representatives, international civil servants and media representatives. A parallel forum for NGOs occurred in Huairou with over 30,000 people. The outcome of the conference, the Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action, was adopted unanimously by 189 countries.
Security Council Resolution 1325: Another priority for CSW64 will be the six priority gap areas that UN Women and partners laid out this year before the 20 year anniversary of SC Resolution 1325 (2000). SCR 1325 was the landmark resolution on women, peace and security; it reaffirms the important role of women in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, peace negotiations, peace-building, peacekeeping, humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction. The six priority areas are:
- Protecting female human rights defenders and civil society;
- Expanding financing for the women, peace and security agenda;
- Increasing the number of women in uniform;
- Standardizing gender-responsive conflict analysis and planning;
- Promoting gender inclusive peace processes and negotiations.
GENERATION EQUALITY MEXICO AND PARIS 2020
Following CSW64, the Generation Equality Forum will take place in Mexico City during May 7-8, 2020 and in Paris from July 7-10, 2020. The Forum will be organized by UN Women, with France and Mexico as co-chairs in partnership with Civil Society. The goal of the forum is to survey progress and set the action agenda to realize gender equality before 2030.