New York, Jul 2 2010 12:10PM
In a historic move, the General Assembly is set to unanimously vote today to create a single United Nations body tasked with accelerating progress in achieving gender equality and women's empowerment.
The new UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women – or UN Women – will merge four of the world body's agencies and offices: the UN Development Fund for Women (<"http://www.unifem.org/">UNIFEM), the Division for the Advancement of Women (<"http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/">DAW), the <"http://www.un.org/womenwatch/osagi/">Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues, and the UN International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (<"http://www.un-instraw.org/">UN-INSTRAW).
The "historic" action taken by the Assembly today "will do more than simply consolidate United Nations offices," Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro <"http://www.un.org/apps/dsg/offthecuff.asp?nid=221">told reporters in New York today. "It will consolidate United Nations strengths."
Despite major achievements over the years, she said, the world body has come up against serious hurdles, including inadequate funding and fragmentation.
Ms. Migiro said UN Women, to be headed by an Under-Secretary-General, "will give women and girls the strong, unified voice they deserve on the world stage," calling today a "positive and exciting moment for all the UN family."
The new body will have two main roles: to support inter-governmental bodies formulate policies, and to assist Member States implement these standards and forge partnerships with civil society.
UN Women will also hold the world accountable for its own gender equality commitments, the Deputy Secretary-General said.
<B>More to follow…</B>
Jul 2 2010 12:10PM
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