Debate: The EU priorities for the th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women
Date: WEDNESDAY, 12 FEBRUARY 2020
Speaker: Helena Dalli
Language: EN

At the same time, we are preparing our side events, which will be melting—pots for good practices and new ideas on how to take the Beijing Agenda forward. This is the strength of the CSW – a place to meet and discuss gender-equality which many actors in the field.  The session will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. We also celebrate the 75th anniversary of the United Nations and the 5th anniversary of the Sustainable Development Goals. Gender-equality and the empowerment of women and girls is not only a question of justice. It also makes economic sense to ensure that women and men, girls and boys, reach their full potential.  I have read with great interest the report of the UN Secretary-General on the state of play with regard to the situation of women and girls in the world. It is a good, nuanced report based on 167 national reviews and regional review meetings, which took place in various regions across the globe.  While we have seen some progress, we have not advanced as much as we wanted to. Female labour market participation was increasing, but has stagnated over the last five years. Women still carry out a disproportionate share of household work and care. Women’s and girls’ voices and participation are far from being on an equal footing to those of boys and men.  Women are 25% more likely to live in poverty. Gender stereotypes still determine the paths of women and girls. Gender-based violence is a recurrent issue. Next to this, new issues are emerging like climate-change and digital technologies. We must turn these changes into opportunities. Digitalisation can open doors for women and girls, but can also be misused to silence them. As the UN Secretary-General highlighted, gender-equality and empowerment of women and girls is crucial to an economically uncertain world with increasing polarisation, environmental threats and conflict. The unequal distribution of power, resources and opportunities perpetuates gender-inequalities. I welcome very much the input of the European Parliament, including your forthcoming resolution on this topic, and the Parliament’s presence during this CSW. Gender-equality is a priority for the European Commission, both in our internal and external relations and actions. The Commission will present a new gender-equality strategy in March, and still in 2020, launch the third action plan on gender-equality and women’s empowerment in external relations. A stronger, ambitious and holistic approach will address the issues identified globally and for the EU. Our approach will be based on gender—mainstreaming in all policy areas. The task force on equality, with members drawn from all the Commission’s services and the European External Action Service, will be fundamental for this. Next to this, targeted actions on specific gender—equality issues will continue. We will continue to tackle the gender pay—gap and introduce pay transparency measures. We will continue to develop measures to end gender-based violence. We will continue to push for gender-balanced company boards.  I am looking forward to hearing your views and discussing these ideas. Thank you again for putting the CSW on today’s agenda.  (