Gender equality in times of crisis: why we need to place it front and centre
The need for truly comprehensive security based on full gender equality has never been as urgent as it is today.
Russia’s war against Ukraine is having devastating and disproportionate impacts on Ukrainian women and girls who are today at high risk of abuse, trafficking and violence. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased pre-existing gender inequalities and economic disparities. The human rights situation of women in Afghanistan is deteriorating and has worrying spill over effects in Central Asia. These are all grim reminders that women and girls often pay the heaviest price of conflicts. Without gender equality, safety and security are simply unattainable.
Today I presented the Annual Progress Report on the implementation of the 2004 OSCE Action Plan for the Promotion of Gender Equality. Advancing gender equality has long been a priority for me – not only in this role but throughout my career. So I’m proud to be able to present how our Organization has made significant progress over the last year. But I’m concerned about the immense challenges we are currently facing. These can put years of gains in gender equality at risk. Therefore we MUST redouble our collective effort to promote gender equality across the whole OSCE region.
Over the last year, our institutions and field operations have made an impact in advancing gender equality.
Let me share just a few examples.
First, we have been investing in women’s leadership, fostering opportunities to bring women’s needs, demands and visions for peace and stability to the forefront. Last December I launched the OSCE Networking Platform for Women Leaders, including Peacebuilders and Mediators. This platform is an innovative instrument to connect and empower women across the OSCE and beyond, including in Ukraine, Afghanistan and Central Asia. One of its flagship initiatives is the Peace Leadership Programme that I will launch in the fall. It will be a critical tool to train young women in mediation and peacebuilding.
Second, we continued to foster women’s economic empowerment and inclusion in decision-making. Our Project Co-ordinator in Uzbekistan provided assistance to a self-employment start-up that helps women start their own businesses from home, which provides income opportunities for female-headed families as well as women with disabilities. The Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities started a mentorship and career development initiative for women water professionals from Central Asia and Afghanistan. In Kyrgyzstan, 60 per cent of the women trained by our Programme Office in Bishkek to run for local public office were elected to their municipal councils.
Third, we invested heavily in eliminating all kinds of violence against women and girls by supporting survivors and civil society networks working on gender-based violence. For instance, thanks to the WIN Project run by the Gender Issues Programme, our Office in Dushanbe has provided support to a network of women’s resource centers that resulted in direct assistance to over 1,000 women and more than 7,500 legal and psychosocial consultations. Our Mission to Serbia helped to map unsafe public locations for women and girls in three cities.
These projects and others make a real difference in the lives of women and girls and put our societies in better stead to succeed. However, the unfortunate reality is that this progress cannot be taken for granted. The situation in Afghanistan and the war against Ukraine are having a devastating impact on the safety, security and well-being of millions of women, and girls. The challenges before us require that we step up our efforts.
More is needed to protect women and girls. We should seek to develop and implement minimum standards for working on eliminating violence against women. More is needed to amplify the voices of women peacebuilders. We should go further in advocating for gender equality and women’s leadership – not least in times of crisis. More is needed to empower women economically. We should help to build digital and entrepreneurial skills, and work to expand childcare options and social protections.
And as we work to advance gender equality in our societies, we must ensure that we serve as a model ourselves. We must continue to strive for gender equality within our Organization.
I am deeply committed to this work, as are so many across our Organization. Today I also presented our gender awards – recognizing leadership, staff commitment, the work of our gender focal points, and key projects that support gender equality. Congratulations to Val Richey, OSCE Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Oleksandr Vodyannikov, National Legal Officer from the OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Ukraine, Elmaja Bavcic, in her capacity as National Programme Officer at the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the Economic and Environmental Unit of the OSCE Programme Office in Bishkek for their project on “Supporting SME-based economic recovery”, which supports women in Kyrgystan to launch new businesses or expand existing ones.
The OSCE has a crucial role to play in fostering peace and security – and gender equality is a crucial component. We must lead by example and redouble our collective efforts to turn our common commitments to gender equality into reality and build an equitable, prosperous and secure region for all.