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UN Committee for Status of Women (CSW)

The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. A functional commission of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), it was established by Council resolution 11(II) of 21 June 1946. If you would like to know more, see our guide on the CSW.

The CSW is instrumental in promoting women’s rights, documenting the reality of women’s lives throughout the world, and shaping global standards on gender equality and the empowerment of women.

In 1996, ECOSOC in resolution 1996/6 expanded the Commission’s mandate and decided that it should take a leading role in monitoring and reviewing progress and problems in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and in mainstreaming a gender perspective in UN activities.

During the Commission’s annual two-week session, representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations and UN entities gather at UN headquarters in New York. They discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the key global policy document on gender equality, and the 23rd special session of the General Assembly held in 2000 (Beijing+5), as well as emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women. Member States agree on further actions to accelerate progress and promote women’s enjoyment of their rights in political, economic and social fields. The outcomes and recommendations of each session are forwarded to ECOSOC for follow-up.

UN Women supports all aspects of the Commission’s work. We also facilitate the participation of civil society representatives.

2016: Priority theme: Women’s empowerment and the link to sustainable development. Review theme: The elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls. A link was removed from this paragraph as it no longer led to the correct page as of December 2020.

Sisters of Frida is part of UK CSW Alliance

The CSW Alliance is the result of a UK grass-roots movement to set up a mechanism for NGOs to relate to one another and to government around the UN’s annual Commission on the Status of Women meetings. It was established in July 2012 and has grown from c.80 to c.150 individuals and organisations (by March 2014), strengthening its alliance model of working and developing more effective ways of working together and with the UK Government to ensure positive outcomes at CSW.

group of women around a horseshoe conference table

Zarin speaking at the core group meeting of UK CSW Alliance

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

With the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted on 25th September 2015, one of the most crucial current tasks is the formulation of ambitious framework of indicators and statistical data to monitor progress, inform policy and ensure accountability. With this in mind on 28th January 2016 NAWO held an event during which we explored the position of gender equality in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and plans for their implementation including the necessary indicators in order to measure success. It also provided an opportunity for further collaboration on the SDGs and development of the indicators both in the UK and the EU with special focus on Goal 5, Gender Equality, and gender sensitive elements in the other goals.

The full report from the event can be downloaded here .

An infographic of the 17 sustainable development goals

17 sustainable development goals which are: 1. No poverty, 2. Zero hunger, 3. Good health and wellbeing, 4. Quality education, 5. Gender equality, 6. Clean water and sanitation, 7. Affordable and clean energy, 8. Decent work and economic growth, 9. Industry, innovation and infrastructure, 10. Reduced inequality, 11. Sustainable cities and communities, 12. Responsible consumption and production, 13. Climate action, 14. Life below water, 15.Life on land, 16. Peace, justice and strong institutions, and 17. Partnerships for the goals.

You can follow the LIVE Stream Links & PDF’s of Abstracts – 2016 Symposium – Disability SDG’s – 2016 International Symposium Disability in the SDGs: Forming Alliances and Building Evidence for the 2030 Agenda, hosted by the International Centre for Evidence in Disability (ICED), London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, together with CBM, Sightsavers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and Handicap International links, abstracts and poster presentations.

See also the International Symposium – Disability in the SDG’s. Hosted by ICED together with CBM, Sightsavers, the International Committee of the Red Cross and Handicap International at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine!

Sisters of Frida and CSW60 news and events

From IDA (International Disability Alliance)