A delegation of Liberian women, comprising women’s rights advocates, and lawmakers, has converged with women from around the globe at the 68th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in the United States of America.
In addition to actively participating in the CSW, these women will also engage in the 4th edition of the Liberia-Diaspora Dialogue Women and Youth Forum. This year’s theme, “Rethinking strategies for accelerating the empowerment of women and girls through Institutional Strengthening and Financing for Poverty Reduction,” underscores their commitment to driving tangible change.
Furthermore, the delegation is set to conduct productive bilateral meetings with key stakeholders and foster connections with global partners to advance the interests of women and girls in Liberia and the broader region.
With a call to action, they have encouraged other women to join the dialogue as they collectively envision new pathways toward the empowerment of women and girls for the betterment of society.
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW or UNCSW) is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), one of the principal organs of the United Nations. CSW has been described as the UN organ promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women.[2]
Every year, representatives of member states gather at United Nations Headquarters in New York to evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards, and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and the advancement of women worldwide. In April 2017, ECOSOC elected 13 new members to CSW for a four-year term 2018–2022.
UN agencies actively followed their mandates to bring women into development approach programs and conferences. Women participate at the prepcoms, design strategy, hold caucus meetings, network about the various agenda items being negotiated in various committees, and work as informed lobbyists at conferences themselves.
The CSW is one of the commissions of the UN that doesn’t mean limiting participation to states only. For example, NGOs are also allowed to participate in sessions of the CSW, attending caucuses and panels and organizing their parallel events through the NGO Committee on the Status of Women, New York (NGO CSW/NY).
CSW consists of one representative from each of the 45 member states elected by ECOSOC based on equitable geographical distribution: 13 members from Africa; 11 from Asia; 9 from Latin America and the Caribbean; 8 from Western Europe and other States and 4 from Eastern Europe.
Members are elected for four-year terms. Among its activities, the CSW has drafted several conventions and declarations, including the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women in 1967 and women-focused agencies such as UNIFEM and INSTRAW.
