The UN - Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action is the most comprehensive and forward-thinking plan ever created to achieve equal rights for ALL women and girls. The Platform, agreed by 189 governments at the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995, focuses on 12 areas of action - referred to as "critical areas of concern". These are jobs and the economy, political participation, peace, the environment, ending violence against women and others.
The year 2025 marks the thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. It is a key year for feminism to fight for women's and girls' rights, to demand gender equality and to insist on a rebalancing of power structures so that everyone has an equal chance in the world.
Why is the Beijing Platform for Action important?
Gender equality is important for everyone, everywhere. The Beijing Platform for Action sees gender equality as the foundation of all efforts to achieve more peaceful and prosperous societies and a sustainable planet.
As its name explains, the platform is about action, not talk. In each critical area, it maps out agreed steps to achieve gender equality and women's empowerment. Feminist movements, youth movements and other civil society movements have long advocated for many of these and have been influential in shaping the platform. Together with government representatives, they made up the majority of the 17,000 people who attended the Fourth World Conference on Women.
Thanks to the Beijing Platform for Action, countries have a plan and know what to do. The commitments made by each government influence domestic and foreign policy, as well as investments in laws, policies and programmes to promote gender equality.
Every five years, countries review who is - or is not - doing what and where. Everyone has a say on progress and obstacles to gender equality in their country. These reviews keep progress moving forward - and the urgency of gender equality is visible and alive.
What progress has been made on women's rights since the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action?
Think for a moment about the progress you have seen in your life or in your country in terms of gender equality. It is likely that they are in some way related to the global momentum unleashed by the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. That is the power of collective agreement and action.
For nearly three decades, the Beijing Platform has made significant progress for women and girls around the world, proving that change is possible.
Greater legal protection for women and girls: the Beijing Platform for Action has spurred a global fight against gender-based violence, with 1,583 laws adopted in 193 countries, up from only 12 in 1995. Some countries are now updating laws to keep up with new forms of technology-related violence.
Services and support for survivors: Governments have agreed to provide shelter, legal aid, counselling and health care for survivors of violence, life-saving resources that are now available in most countries. More than 100 countries have trained police to provide support to survivors of violence, an important step in seeking justice and preventing violence against women.
Women's economic empowerment: achievements since 1995 include the near-global extension of legislation prohibiting sex discrimination in employment. New services have been created to ease women's heavy burden of unpaid care, and the gender gap in education has narrowed.
Women in peacebuilding: the Beijing Platform for Action has strengthened women's role in conflict resolution, peacebuilding and justice for sexual violence in conflict areas from 19 National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security in 2010 to 112 today. However, much more needs to be done to resource and implement the plans.
Less good news: What are the problems standing in the way of gender equality?
Gender discrimination is deeply rooted in our society and even in our own thinking. The resulting differences between the sexes are further compounded by a highly unequal world.
Complicating factors in recent years include the pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic crises, conflict and climate emergencies, which intersect with a sharp push for gender equality and a polarised political debate.
More and more women are living in conflict and crisis: in 2023, there were more than 170 armed conflicts; 612 million women and girls lived within 50 kilometres of them, more than double the number in the 1990s.
Too many women and still poor: Nearly 10 % women and girls in the world remain trapped in extreme poverty with few options to get out. In a worst-case climate scenario, an additional 158.3 million women and girls could fall into poverty by 2050. Once promising improvements in reducing maternal mortality have stalled, especially in the poorest and most vulnerable countries and communities.
113 countries have never had a female head of state: progress is being made in women's political participation: the proportion of women has more than doubled globally from 11 % to 27 % today. Yet the pace of change is such that gender equality is a distant dream.
The global crisis of violence against women and girls continues with little sign of abating: some 736 million women have been subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence by a non-partner at some point in their lives. Rates of violence tend to rise during crises and new forms are emerging through digital technologies.
Moreover, women and girls still face a much greater risk of gender discrimination if they also face other forms of exclusion, such as disability, race, age, income or sexual orientation.
How do the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action relate to the Global Goals for Sustainable Development?
Whether it is poverty, education or climate action, all 17 SDGs depend on achieving gender equality. Like the Beijing Platform, the SDGs are global. They will not be achieved unless half of humanity - women and girls - participate. This means, among other things, that we will never end poverty, improve health and stop the decay of the planet without respecting and fulfilling the rights of ALL women and girls.
To go into more detail, UN Women found that 14 Sustainable Development Goals depend on the elimination of gender-based violence. This is a large-scale human rights violation that takes many lives and destroys chances to work and go to school. The economic costs run into the trillions of dollars each year, funds that could go to solving other pressing problems. Countries with high levels of violence are also at higher risk of violent conflict, making SDG 16 on peaceful societies unachievable.
Now that you know why the Beijing Platform for Action is relevant today and how its implementation turbo-charges gender equality and sustainable development, join UN Women's #ForAllWomenAndGirls campaign and find out what you can do.
un.org / gnews.cz-jav
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