UN WOMEN: THE NEW UN FRAMEWORK FOR GENDER EQUALITY
13 September 2010 - 3 p.m to 5 p.m
UNESCO Headquarters

UNESCO Future Forum

The next edition of the UNESCO Future Forum devoted to "UN Women: the new UN framework for gender equality" will be held at UNESCO Headquarters on 13 September 2010 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in Room XI.

On 2 July 2010, the UN General Assembly created UN Women, the new unified entity for gender equality and the empowerment of women, to be operational by 1 January 2011. Welcoming the historic establishment of this new UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon declared that “UN Women is a recognition of a simple truth: Equality for women and girls is not only a basic human right, it is a social and economic imperative. Where women are educated and empowered, economies are more productive and strong. Where women are fully represented, societies are more peaceful and stable.”

As an effort to materialize this ambitious vision in the context of today’s global challenges, UN Women plays a key part in the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. A model for increased coherence in action, the new entity integrates and will carry on the work of four distinct UN entities dedicated to gender equality and women’s empowerment:

• Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW, established in 1946)
• International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW, established in 1976)
• United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM, established in 1976)
• Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women (OSAGI, established in 1997)

To focus on these developments and to discuss future prospects for the promotion of gender equality, which is one of UNESCO's two global priorities, a half-day session of the UNESCO Future Forum series will be held on the theme “UN Women: the New UN Framework for Gender Equality” on 13 September 2010.

The Future Forum will also have added importance as it is held just a week prior to the UN General Assembly “Millennium Development Goals Summit”, which will address , among others, progress made with regard to gender equality, quality education and peace – especially taking into account the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women - and define the parameters of the challenges in the post-2015 period.

Prior to the 13 September Forum, the Foresight Section of the Bureau of Strategic Planning and the Division for Gender Equality, together with the Hellenic National Commission for UNESCO, will also be organizing in Athens, Greece, a Future Forum on “Gender Equality: the Missing Link? – Rethinking the Internationally Agreed Development Goals beyond 2015” so as to give impetus to the reflection on the strategic role of women in development. The Athens Forum will thus also help to inform the 13 September Forum on the new UN framework for Gender Equality.

Two of the keynote speakers of the Athens Forum will also address the 13 September 2010 Future Forum discussions in Paris:

• Rachel MAYANJA, Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations; UN Secretary General's Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women
• Aminata TOURE, Chief, Gender, Human Rights and Culture Branch, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA)

The UNESCO Future Forum series is part of the Foresight Programme of UNESCO which aims at fostering the reflection on key future-oriented issues relevant to the Organization’s activities.

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For more information, please contact:
Caroline Descombris
Bureau of Strategic Planning
Tél: +33145681624