Gender equality within the United Nations: the contribution of specialized agencies to women’s rights
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: The article examines the role of the United Nations in promoting gender equality and protecting women’s rights through the activities of its specialized agencies. The UN is one of the main international bodies making comprehensive efforts to ensure equal rights and opportunities for women in various spheres of life, including politics, economy, education, health and social sphere. One of the Organization’s priorities is to overcome gender discrimination and create conditions for women to realize their full potential in the world. UN specialized agencies play an important role in implementing the gender equality program by developing strategies, initiatives, and supporting national governments and civil society. They conduct research, provide technical and financial assistance, organize trainings and conferences to raise awareness of women’s rights, and create mechanisms to combat violence, exploitation and other forms of discrimination. Specifically, UN Women supports UN Member States in setting global standards for achieving gender equality and works with government and civil society to develop the laws, policies, programs and services needed to implement these standards. The organization advocates for women’s equal participation in all aspects of life and focuses on five priority goals: increasing women’s leadership and active participation in development processes; combating violence against women; involving women in all aspects of peace and security processes; empowering women economically; and prioritizing gender equality in national planning and budgeting. In addition, UN Women coordinates and supports the UN system in improving the situation with gender equality. Despite the achievements in this area, gender equality remains one of the biggest challenges in the modern world. The article emphasizes the need to further strengthen institutional mechanisms and international cooperation to achieve real gender equality on a global scale. The mechanisms used by specialized institutions to monitor and protect women’s rights in different countries, in particular through research, preparation of reports and recommendations for member states, are considered. Attention is focused on the importance of integrating a gender perspective into all areas of politics, economics and social development. In addition, the challenges faced by the UN specialized agencies, such as gender discrimination, violence against women, and economic and social inequality, are analyzed. The role of international agreements and resolutions that support women’s rights is discussed, and it is noted that in order to achieve real changes in ensuring women’s rights, it is necessary to intensify efforts at all levels: global, regional and national. The author emphasizes the importance of cooperation between states, civil society organizations and international institutions to create an enabling environment for the realization of women’s rights.
Source: Visegrad Journal on Human Rights
Author: Alina Zamula
Institution: National University "Kyiv Aviation Institute"
Language: English
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4409036803