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Ireland organises key side events at the Commission on the Status of Women

Emergencies, Gender, Governance, News/feature, Global, 2015
Committee on the Status of Women

Ireland is co-hosting three side events on women’s participation during this year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)

reland is co-hosting three side events on women’s participation in decision-making and in peace-building during this year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York.

CSW is the principal global policy-making body on gender equality and women’s empowerment and is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action. This year’s session marks the 20th Anniversary of the Beijing Conference

The events reflect Ireland’s long-standing prioritisation of gender equality and women’s empowerment in our foreign policy and our Irish Aid programme. Ireland works to ensure that women and men everywhere have equal access to and control of resources and benefits, equal participation in political decision-making and equality under the law.

The events reflect Ireland’s long-standing prioritisation of gender equality and women’s empowerment in our foreign policy and our Irish Aid programme.

The first side event takes place on Monday, March 9th, and is co-hosted with the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and Karama - a regional non-governmental organization based in Cairo dedicated to promoting women’s rights. Minister of State for New Communities, Culture & Equality, Aodhán Ó Ríordáin will provide the Opening Remarks at the event. Participants will explore practical suggestions on how to promote women’s active participation in peace negotiations and peace-building, particularly at the regional level.  

The second side event is co-hosted with the Inter-Parliamentary Union, and takes place on Tuesday, March 10th. The event is focused on empowering the next generation of women to increase their participation at all levels of decision-making. Participants will discuss the links between formal and informal political life, and explore how informal political movements can prepare the next generation of young men and women to advance gender equality and women’s well-being.

The third side event is co-hosted with the Irish Consortium on Gender-Based Violence (ICGBV), and take place on Thursday 12th March. This side event is focused on women’s participation in peace-building, and aims to learn from experiences of development agencies, defence forces and civil society organisations in promoting the Women, Peace and Security agenda. The panellists will share practical insights from the experiences of the ICGBV and from implementation of Ireland’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security.