Business leaders, UN Member States and civil society organizations recognized gender equality as a fundamental human right, central to driving the global economy and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), at an event on the sidelines of the 60th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 60).
The 2016 Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Annual Event focused on the multiplier effect of empowering women and girls in advancing development issues and the opportunity for business to lead in promoting gender equality.
16 March 2016: Business leaders, UN Member States and civil society organizations recognized gender equality as a fundamental human right, central to driving the global economy and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), at an event on the sidelines of the 60th meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 60). The 2016 Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) Annual Event focused on the multiplier effect of empowering women and girls in advancing development issues and the opportunity for business to lead in promoting gender equality.
The event, titled ‘Business Partners for Gender Equality: Multipliers for Development,’ took place on 15-16 March 2016, in New York, US, and served to highlight companies that are implementing the Women’s Empowerment Principles to help achieve the SDGs.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told participants that the world cannot achieve the SDGs without tapping into “the energy, talent and expertise” of young women and girls. Luis Guillermo Solís Rivera, President of Costa Rica, delivering the keynote address, said Beijing+20 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development both reflect that international consensus has been reached about the importance of women’s empowerment in the global sustainability agenda. He expressed Costa Rica’s commitment to: promoting women’s participation in labor markets and equal pay with men; promoting women’s entrepreneurship, including access to markets and low-cost internet; collaborating with private companies to produce data on women’s participation in the labor market; and developing financial policies tailored to the specific needs of women. Solís is also co-chair of the UN High-level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment.
Luis Alberto Moreno, President, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), highlighted that women’s rights are the “cornerstone” of any society’s progress. He noted achievements in this regard in Latin America, including that women occupy 30% of the seats in parliament, the proportion having doubled since 2000 and making Latin America the second region in the world after the Nordic countries in that respect. Moreno announced that IDB has developed a gap analysis tool, with the UN Global Compact (UNGC) and UN Women, to assist companies in identifying gaps in gender equality and scale up implementation of the WEPs.
Lise Kingo, UNGC Executive Director, announced the UNGC Panel Pledge, a global effort to put an end to all-male panels. Through this pledge, when male employees are invited to speak on an all-male panel, they can: ask to substitute a female colleague; raise the importance of women speakers; and/or decline the speaking engagement. Kingo called on UN staff members and the UNGC local networks to pledge not to take part in or to host panels comprised only of men. She stressed that there is no shortage of qualified women.
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director, UN Women, said gender equality and sustainability must be integral to every business plan and strategy. Benno Bättig, Government of Switzerland, stressed the need to: put gender equality at the center of discussions on financing for sustainable development; remove legal barriers and promote women and girls with equal opportunities; and bridge the digital divide. Priya Agrawal, Executive Director, Merck for Mothers, invited multinational companies to pay attention to the gender policies of their subsidiary companies around over the world.
Kweilin Ellingrud, McKinsey & Company, noted that closing the gender gap globally could drive an additional US$ 12-28 trillion to gross domestic product (GDP) in 2025. In order for that to happen, she underscored the need to tackle the barriers to social equality, identifying “high impact zones” such as the time spent in unpaid work, political representation, and tackling violence against women. Arancha González, Executive Director, International Trade Centre, highlighted that only one in five women-led small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have access to trade. Gonzáles announced a Women and Trade Programme Initiative, ‘She Trades.’
The WEPs event also included the presentation of CEO Leadership Awards for implementing the WEPs, including to leaders of L’Oréal, Sodexo, and Deloitte. Federico Bernaldo de Quiros, CEO Toks Restaurantes (Mexico), who also received an award, said civil society will start demanding that companies fulfill the WEPs.
WEPs is a partnership initiative of the UNGC and UN Women, and is the largest business-led gender equality initiative in the world, with endorsements from over 1,100 CEOs in 80 countries.
CSW 60 is convening from 14-24 March 2016, at UN Headquarters in New York, US, and includes over 200 side events. CSW 60’s priority theme is ‘Women’s empowerment and its link to sustainable development.’ [Event Information] [UNGC Press Release on Panel Pledge Initiative] [UNGC Press Release on WEPs Event] [UN Secretary-General’s Remarks] [CEO Leadership Awards] [WEPs] [IISD RS Story on Women’s Empowerment Panel] [IISD RS Story on CSW 60] [IISD RS Sources]