EU Statement – UN General Assembly 3rd Committee: Advancement of Women

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Madam/Mr Chair,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries, North Macedonia^*, Montenegro^*, Serbia^*, Albania^*, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina^* and Georgia, as well as, Andorra, Monaco and San Marino align themselves with this statement.

Next year, we will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Since then we have worked together to ensure that our national laws and policies meet the standards set by this roadmap and other international instruments. We have held each other accountable, civil society within our countries have held us accountable, and we are pleased to note the progress made in a number of areas.

The representation of women in leadership positions, including in political leadership, is important to ensure gender equality. Even if the number of women in political decision-making positions has increased, we still need to progress along this road. We know that gender equality fosters peace, sustainable development, climate action and much more. The likely adoption this year of recommendation N°40 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems, will give a further boost to this endeavour.  

A number of states have provided stronger protections through legislative reviews and new initiatives to eliminate all forms of sexual and gender-based violence. At EU level, the first legislation on combatting violence against women and domestic violence has been adopted this year. This is a real milestone. It follows the EU’s accession to the Istanbul Convention in 2023.

A lot remains to be done, as new forms of sexual and gender-based violence and exploitation emerge. It includes violence facilitated by technology, which first and foremost targets women and girls. Combating all forms of violence and harassment of women and girls, in all spheres of life including online, is deeply interconnected with the objective of achieving gender equality.

In some countries we are witnessing regressions for women and girls’ full enjoyment of human rights, including their right to access healthcare and education, and participation in public and political life. Notably in Afghanistan, the gender-based discrimination and violence by the Taliban against women and girls is appalling. These systematic and systemic violations of human rights of Afghan women and girls may amount to gender persecution, which is a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, to which Afghanistan is a State Party.

Women and girls’ rights have regressed over the last year in many countries affected by conflicts, but also in countries experiencing a deteriorating socioeconomic situation.

In many parts of this world, women and girls of various ethnic or religious backgrounds and women and girls with disabilities are excluded from social and economic opportunities. Despite strong commitments, progress to achieve all SDGs at global level remains insufficient. None of the indicators on SDG5 on gender equality are being met. Achieving SDG5 and the gender-responsive targets in all SDGs is critical for the successful implementation of the 2030 Agenda. We therefore welcome the renewed commitment in the Pact for the Future to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls as a crucial contribution to progress across all the Sustainable Development Goals and targets.

Women continue to do the majority of unpaid domestic and care work, thus limiting their economic opportunities and perpetuating inequality. Discrimination against women in the labour markets, exploitation with forced labour or services, and their overrepresentation in informal sectors and part-time employment, is a persistent problem that must be addressed.

The EU emphasizes that the full, equal, and meaningful participation of women should be central to policy-making on peace and security, especially in the context of shifting geopolitical dynamics, and emerging security threats. Ensuring this integration is a crucial part of advancing and fully implementing the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda, which seeks to promote the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in preventing conflict and building lasting peace.

The EU has continued to implement its Women, Peace, and Security commitments by allocating more funding to projects that support women's full, equal, and meaningful participation in conflict prevention and resolution, peacebuilding, and post-conflict reconstruction. However, with conflicts escalating and new ones emerging, intensified efforts are crucial. Women remain overwhelmingly excluded from peace processes. We are firmly committed to tackling the specific challenges faced by women and girls in conflict and post-conflict environments, particularly by enhancing access to justice, providing comprehensive health care and psychological support, as well as creating more economic opportunities. As we approach the 25th anniversary of  Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security next year, the EU encourages all actors to intensify efforts to promote women´s participation in decision-making processes, preventing conflict and building lasting peace.

As we commemorate this year the 15-Year anniversary of the establishment of the mandate of the UN Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, let us recall that women and girls are facing a significant increase in conflict-related sexual violence. This is a war crime. Fighting impunity for these heinous acts remains our common task.

Madam/Mr Chair,

The EU will continue to lead by example in respecting, protecting and fulfilling all human rights , promoting gender equality, and the rule of law and will stand up against any attempt to backtrack on women’s and girls’ rights or the principle that all human rights are universal, indivisible, interdependent and interrelated.

Last year, the European Union made further progress towards the empowerment and the full, equal and meaningful participation of all women and girls in all spheres of life. We adopted legislation on work-life balance, to promote an equal share of caring responsibilities between parents, and agreed to further enhance affordable, quality care services, which are key to women’s labour market participation. We adopted legislation on pay transparency, to support equal pay for equal work and work of equal value, and on gender balance on company boards, to ensure women’s full and equal participation in company decision making. 

Recognizing the pivotal role of education in advancing all women and girls’ rights, we continue to promote equal access to quality, affordable and inclusive education and training, especially in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. This remains our priority ahead of the Second World Summit for Social Development in Qatar.

Here, we highlight the crucial role that men and boys can play as allies, agents of change, as well as beneficiaries of gender equality. Achieving gender equality requires the active participation and commitment of both men and women, working together to dismantle systemic barriers and promote equal opportunities for all.

The President of the European Commission intends to keep gender equality as a top priority, with equality as a dedicated topic in the portfolio of one of the Commissioners. The incoming Commissioner has been invited to develop a Roadmap for Women’s Rights by March 2025, to accompany the EU’s work on a new Gender Equality Strategy.

The EU remains committed to the promotion, protection and fulfilment of all human rights and to the full and effective implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action and the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and the outcomes of their review conferences and remains committed to sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), in this context. Having that in mind, the EU reaffirms its commitment to the promotion, protection and fulfilment of the right of every individual to have full control over, and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality and sexual and reproductive health, free from discrimination, coercion and violence. The EU further stresses the need for universal access to quality and affordable comprehensive sexual and reproductive health information, education, including comprehensive sexuality education, and health-care services.   

We commit to continue our support to civil society organisations, to protect their space, both on the ground, and internationally including here at the UN, where their voice is essential.  

We are less than six months away from the sixty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women, where we hope to see renewed and strong commitments. This is an opportune time to recall how systems and structures of inequality intersect with each other, and that discrimination against women and girls is exacerbated by the gender pay gap, poverty, climate change and war. We call for continued strong cooperation at the UN to stand firm against the organised pushback against women’s and girls’ rights. We must not turn back the clock on the decades of hard-earned progress.

(Dr.) Katalin Karikó was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2023 for discoveries that enabled the development of the most effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19. What is less known is that Karikó was demoted four times before she was finally supported financially to research her ideas. Her perseverance, together with fellow scientist Drew Weissman, eventually saved millions of lives.

We owe it to future generations to create conditions where all women and girls can live up to their full potential.

Thank you.

* North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.