AP women call for GEAR at UN CSW

Asia Pacific women are lobbying governments to support the Gender Equality Architecture Reform (GEAR) of the United Nations at the ongoing 52nd session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York, USA from 25 February to 5 March 2008. These women are among the 5,000 women from various civil society groups around the world who have committed to monitor their government's participation in the two-week process and join the nearly 20 side sessions scheduled every day.

On the first day, the Asia Pacific Women's Watch organised the Asia Pacific caucus on the GEAR campaign with the drafting of an Asia Pacific statement high on the agenda. The meeting was chaired by Pawadee Tonguthai of Thailand and co-chaired by Patricia Licuanan and Luz Maria Martinez of the Philippines, and was attended by more than 50 participants.

GEAR aims to make the international body's structure, processes, and services more gender-responsive. The campaign is spearheaded by a global coordinating group, composed of the: Association for Women's Rights in Development, Centre for Women's Global Leadership, Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era International, Planned Parenthood Federation, International Women's Tribune Centre and Women's Environment and Development Organisation. The campaign was formally launched on 26 February 2008.

Meanwhile, the Asia Pacific statement was presented on 28 February , 2008, where civil society were given the space to speak out. The key messages in the statement include gender-responsive budgeting and gender mainstreaming in conflict and post-conflict reconstruction programmes.

The official proceedings of the Commission began on 26 February 2008. UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon highlighted women's issues by announcing the UN's campaign to end violence against women (VAW). He urged world leaders “to spur action through national campaigns,” and ensure that VAW is criminalised.


Marina Fe Durano of UNIFEM on Financing Gender Equality:

Isis: What would you consider the most critical aspect of the financing for development debate for women's groups participating at the CSW?

Durano: The G77 statement today which calls for ‘coherence between macroeconomic policies and gender equality of women’ is a welcome start from governments. We need a set of policies which wholistically promote gender equality. However, there is a continued need to ensure that this statement is translated into practice. We do not only have to monitor gender budgets, but have to check how the over-all national budgets are determined or affected by macroeconomic policies, especially its size. This will have a bearing on the funding for gender programmes, or the prioritisation of gender concerns.

Further, this particular session of the CSW is important since it precedes the review of the Monterrey Consensus slated for December 2008 in Doha, Qatar. Statements made by the governments here on financing for development can be brought to this review and other related financing for development processes.