Press release: SDG 5 round table: “Accelerators of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic”

Date: Friday, 8 April 2022

Governments across Europe and Central Asia gathered at the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development to discuss the progress and share best practices for achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic

Press release: SDG 5 round table: “Accelerators of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic”

7 April 2022 - Today, representatives of governments, civil society, the private sector, and the international community from across Europe and Central Asia gathered at the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development 2022 roundtable on the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Gender Equality. The peer-learning session under the theme “Accelerators of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic” aimed to discuss how governments can promote gender equality and women’s empowerment as part of the COVID-19 recovery process, considering gender-differentiated impacts of the pandemic. The event was held in a hybrid in-person and online format at the UN Palais des Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, and live-streamed on UN TV.

Progress on gender equality and women’s empowerment remains uneven across the region, with progress moving at a fast pace in some areas and stalling in others. As has been widely accepted, the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated pre-existing inequalities and widened gender gaps across various spheres. More than ever, building “forward” better requires acceleration of efforts that bring clear measurable results across all SDGs.  

The ongoing crises in the region can result in an increase in violence against women and a fragile situation for livelihoods. The forced movement of populations, refugee flows and humanitarian crisis have created a higher risk of reversing decades of progress in the fight against poverty, and an increase in inequality within and between countries. “Unequal representation means that women’s specific needs are overlooked, especially when it comes to shaping policies, budgets and actions. This is a particular risk during all crises,” said Alia El-Yassir, UN Women Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia.

The participants of the roundtable raised their deep concerns about the consequences of the war on the lives and livelihoods of Ukraine’s women and girls as well as the women affected by conflicts in Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen. With peace processes involving women being more successful and enduring, the participants of the session called for bringing the voices of women and girls at the heart of efforts for peace.

Besides, unequal labour force participation persists for women in the Europe and Central Asia region. And the pandemic has been particularly hard on self-employed women. 22 per cent of them have lost their jobs and another 50 have had to reduce their working hours.

Aside from labor market inequalities, women and girls continue to endure human rights violations that hamper equality in all areas of life. They suffer physical or sexual violence at the hands of intimate partners. And the harmful practice of early marriage remains common in some Eastern European and Central Asian countries. More than one in every ten women aged 20–24 was married before age 18 in Turkey, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Albania.

Nevertheless, there are some positive shifts in the advancement of gender equality in the region. The UNECE region has made notable progress in the development and enforcement of legal frameworks to end all forms of discrimination against women and girls. Furthermore, national institutional mechanisms for gender equality and women’s empowerment have been created as political catalysts and drivers of policy and legal change for gender equality. In the Western Balkans, the Network of Gender Institutions from seven countries established in 2016 has led to mutually supportive policies and shared exchanges to move forward.

SDG 5 round table: “Accelerators of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic”. Photo: UN Women/Antoine Tardy

2022-04-07_UNECE-Civil-Society-Forum_TARDY-web_002 — SDG 5 round table: “Accelerators of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic”. Photo: UN Women/Antoine Tardy

During the roundtable, policymakers and experts coming from Uzbekistan, Georgia, Albania, Moldova, Greece, and all the way to Portugal, the United Kingdom and many more countries presented proven “accelerator” practices towards progress in specific SDG 5 targets that are contributing to meeting the 2030 deadline, including measures and actions for COVID-19 recovery that are inclusive and gender-responsive. The discussions were held around the issues of women’s leadership in public life; ending violence against women and girls; sexual and reproductive health and rights; unpaid care and domestic work; and gender-responsive policies and practices.

“The national institutional mechanisms for gender equality and women's empowerment were established to serve as catalysts for political advancement on gender equality. They continue to be the key drivers of policies and laws to achieve gender equality goals,” underlined Samra Filipović-Hadžiabdić, Director of the Agency for Gender Equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, during her keynote speech.

Representatives of the civil society organizations also took an active part in the discussion and voiced their key messages for achieving gender equality for a sustainable future. “There has been a serious setback in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region in ensuring access to services for women living with HIV, which was insufficient even before the pandemic,” highlighted Lyubov Vorontsova, Program Director of the Eurasian Women’s Network on AIDS in Kazakhstan. “Yet, community organizations and women's networks have been at the forefront of the HIV response, linking women living with HIV to life-saving services during the pandemic.”

As the world continues to grapple with the social and economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, women and girls must be integral to the recovery process. Only through their active involvement can building a more resilient and equal world be possible. “We understand very well the crucial importance of changing perceptions and attitudes towards women’s role in society, often based on prejudice and stereotypes,” said Eirini DOUROU, Congress Spokesperson on Gender Equality, Council of Europe. “Doing so is a shared responsibility of all stakeholders, not only of legislators and the executive for adopting and enforcing “good laws” but also of the media, civil society and the private sector that all play a crucial role in transforming the society’s mental constructs about women.”

As a result of the roundtable, the summary of key messages and game-changing practices were presented at the plenary session of the Regional Forum on Sustainable Development.

The roundtable was convened by the UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia with contribution from the Issue-based Coalition on Gender Equality, ITU and UNECE. For detailed information, visit our In Focus page.

For more information, please contact: Meriza Emilbekova, Communications and Outreach Specialist, UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, at [ Click to reveal ].