Gender equality between aspirations and realities

In 2010 the U.N. General Assembly established the new United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, better known as "UN Women." It is a kind of super-agency that integrated four previously existing U.N. entities: the Division for the Advancement of Women, the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women, the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, and the United Nations Development Fund for Women.

UN Women's mission is "to support inter-governmental bodies…in their formulation of policies, global standards and norms; to help Member States to implement these standards [and] to hold the UN system accountable for its own commitments on gender equality."

This original institutional structure is to be placed in the general context of the follow-up to the Fourth World Conference on Women, the full implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and the outcome of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly. In accordance with the most recent resolution on this topic, many challenges and obstacles remain on the complex and difficult path to changing discriminatory attitudes and gender stereotypes, which perpetuate discrimination against women.

One example from the United Nations itself is quite perplexing. The urgent goal of 50/50 gender balance in the United Nations system, especially at senior and policy-making levels, with full respect for the principle of equitable geographical distribution, remains unmet. The representation of women in the United Nations family is almost static, with negligible improvement in some parts of the system.

The 186 States Parties are far from fully complying with their obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.

Beyond the Convention but in its spirit, they have an obligation to exercise due diligence to prevent violence against women and girls, provide protection to the victims and investigate, prosecute and punish the perpetrators of violence against women and girls.

All states are requested to continue to support the ongoing campaign "UNITE to End Violence Against Women." Governments are strongly encouraged to continue to support the role and contribution of civil society, in particular non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and women's organizations, in this sensitive field.

At the same time, governments and the United Nations family are expected to enhance accountability for the implementation of commitments to gender equality and the empowerment of women at the international, regional and national levels. For example, by improved monitoring and reporting on progress in relation to policies, strategies, resource allocations and programmes and by achieving gender balance.

Government, worker and employer delegates at the 100th annual Conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO) have adopted the Convention on Domestic Workers (2011). This legal instrument is a historic set of international standards aimed at improving the working conditions of tens of millions of domestic workers worldwide. Juan Somavia, ILO Director-General, stated: "History is being made," in Geneva.

The preamble of the Convention refers to the significant contribution of domestic workers to the global economy, which includes increasing paid job opportunities for women and men workers with family responsibilities; greater scope for caring for ageing populations; children and persons with a disability; and substantial income transfers within and between countries.

The same preamble also recalls that domestic work continues to be undervalued and invisible and is mainly carried out by women and girls. Many are migrants or members of disadvantaged communities who are particularly vulnerable to discrimination in respect of conditions of employment and of work, and to other abuses of human rights.

The ILO Convention contains 27 articles, which set out that domestic workers around the world who care for families and households must have the same basic labour rights as those available to other workers. For example, reasonable hours of work; weekly rest of at least 24 consecutive hours; a limit on in-kind payment; clear information on terms and conditions of employment; as well as respect for fundamental principles and rights at work, including freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining.