The United Nations invites you to join the Online Working Group on:
NATIONAL MACHINERIES FOR GENDER EQUALITY
February 8 to March 19, 1999
You are invited to participate in the Virtual Working Group that will
review progress in implementing the Beijing Platform for Action on the
topic Institutional Mechanisms/National Machineries for the Advancement of
Women. The Working Group will run for six weeks, from February 8 to March
19.
The UN Commission on the Status of Women meets in early March 1999. A key
topic for review and discussion will be the contributions and challenges
of National Machineries. Whether you work in a National Machinery, have
collaborated with them as an NGO or have interacted as an outside
supporter or observer, this Working Group is an opportunity to add your
views to the global discussion.
WomenWatch, the UN Internet Gateway on the Advancement and Empowerment of
Women, has developed this Virtual Working Group as a forum for activists,
experts, researchers, government officials and other interested
individuals to share concrete ideas and suggestions for the Commission.
The Working Group's proposals will also feed into a Special Session of the
General Assembly in June 2000: "Women 2000: Gender Equality, Development
and Peace for the 21st Century." This Special Session will assess the
results of the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995
and propose further actions and initiatives.
The Working Group will exchange experiences on the following topics:
· Case studies, best practices, and other examples describing how national
machineries can successfully promote a gender perspectives in government
policies.
· Strategies and partnerships that national machineries and NGOs have
devised together to influence government.
· Accountability and monitoring mechanisms such as gender budgeting and
gender impact studies - how useful are they?
· The role of national machineries in formulating legislation that
supports gender equality.
The discussion will focus on these and other questions and will be
organized around specific topics for the convenience of Working Group
members. Members will receive from 3-4 messages daily and one summary
weekly.
JOIN THIS WORKING GROUP! DON'T MISS THIS UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HEARD AT
THE UNITED NATIONS!
BACKGROUND
At Beijing it was agreed that in order to achieve full equality for women,
governments should set up institutional structures to promote women's
advancement and enjoyment of their human rights. These structures are
referred to as "national machineries." Sometimes they are a blue ribbon
committee of prominent women's advocates, or a Ministry or Department in
Government, or an office attached to the office of the Prime Minister or
President of the country.
Many countries have created such bodies as a result of the Beijing
Conference, others have yet to do so. In March the Commission will
discuss whether national machineries are serving their purpose and will
consider ways of strengthening their role to promote women's advancement.
The Working Group will have impact both at the Commission on the Status of
Women and the UN General Assembly's Special Session to assess follow-up to
Beijing in June 2000. WomenWatch is hosting Working Groups on all the
critical areas to contribute to the assessment of progress in implementing
the Beijing Platform for Action. (A parallel discussion is currently
underway on critical area D: Violence against women. For more information
on this list visit the WomenWatch website at http://www.un.org/womenwatch)
HOW TO JOIN THE WORKING GROUP
Anyone who has electronic mail can subscribe to the Working Group.
To join, please send an e-mail to the following address:
majordomo@sade.sdnp.undp.org
Don't enter a subject. In the body of the message, type the text:
SUBSCRIBE ww-natmach
Leave the rest of the message blank.
You will receive a Welcome Letter to the Working Group.
WEBSITES FOR THE WORKING GROUP
The WomenWatch website will provide information about the Working Group,
as well as archive messages. The website address is
http://www.un.org/womenwatch
WORKING GROUP ADMINISTRATOR AND MODERATOR
This Working Group is administered by SDNP, the UNDP Sustainable
Development Networking Programme. The Working Group is moderated by
WomenWatch.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
For further information about the Working Group, please contact:
Christina Janssen
WomenWatch
cjanssen@sdnp.undp.org
We hope you will take this unique opportunity to join the Working Group
and to participate actively.
United Nations WomenWatch Initiative
ABOUT WOMENWATCH
WomenWatch is a joint initiative of the UN Division for the Advancement of
Women (DAW), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and
the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of
Women (INSTRAW). It is the UN Internet Gateway to information on the
advancement and empowerment of women.
Forwarded by AMcAuliffe@edc.org
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