The 55th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) has opened in New York with a call on member states not to postpone action for the promotion of gender equality and women empowerment until better conditions prevailed.
Ms Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, made the call while addressing representatives of governments, non-governmental organisations and officials of the UN system on the conference theme, "Access and participation of women and girls in education, training and science including the promotion of women's equal access to full employment and decent work."
Ghana's delegation is led by Mrs Juliana Azumah-Mensah, Minister of Women and Children's Affairs. Other members include Mr Leslie Christian, Head of Ghana’s Permanent Mission to the UN, Mrs Marian Tackie, Director in-charge of Gender and Health at the Ministry of Health and Mr G.K Kumor, Director at the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs.
Ms Bachelet observed that even though the global economic crisis was still unresolved and unemployment rates remained well above pre-crisis levels, nations should seize new opportunities and guard against postponing actions for the promotion of gender equality and women's empowerment until better or more stable conditions prevailed.
She said the lack of equality between women and men and discrimination against women impeded progress in development, peace and security.
Ms Bachelet said while discrimination and inequality were the problems, women were part of the solution and their potential and creativity should be tapped for a better future.
She said development analysts had increasingly presented evidence that gender equality was central to economic and social development, peace and democracy.
”Around the world we see more men and men's groups advocating to protect women's right and we see more women take their place alongside men, in using new technologies”, she said.
Ms Bachelet said the women were partnering with men to either market their products globally or to support movements for democratic transformation as could be noticed in recent weeks.
She commended member states for having made real progress in increasing women's political representation at national and local levels in achieving parity in education between girls and boys and in reducing maternal deaths.
Ms Bachelet said: "Many of you have worked with your colleagues from government and parliament to secure passage of new or strengthened laws to penalize domestic violence to eliminate discrimination in the labour market, to guarantee women's property inheritance rights.
She said, “The vision on which UN Women is grounded is a world where women and men have equal rights and opportunities and the principles and gender equality and women's empowerment are firmly integrated in development, woman rights and peace and security agendas."
The CSW is a functional commission of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women and is the principal global policy making body on women’s issues.