Ei-iE

EI is finalizing the registration of participants for the 52nd Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). The session runs from February 25 until March 7, 2008 in New York. The EI delegation will focus its attention on meetings held during the first week.

The CSW priority theme will be: " Financing for gender equality and the empowerment of women"

The Beijing Platform for Action, and outcomes of other meetings such as the Monterrey Consensus (2002), made important commitments on the allocation of resources for gender equality and empowerment of women. However the CSW has never specifically addressed this issue. This 52nd Session of the CSW will be useful to provide recommendations for the preparation for the larger International Review Conference on Financing for Development, Doha, 2008.

The key elements related to financing include links between gender equality and macro-economic policies, gender equality and public finance management, resources for gender equality through development assistance, and other funding.

Focus is given to resource allocation for two particular target groups – the national mechanism for gender equality and the women's movement, in particular on methodologies and experiences in measurement resource allocations to gender equality, accountability for identifying and addressing resource gaps, progress on gender and empowerment of women.

EI is working in collaboration with other Global Unions. A joint statement will be released together with Public Services International (PSI) and the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), as we did last year. A trade union orientation pre-meeting for EI delegates is being organized for February 24 in the afternoon. A parallel event is being coordinated in conjunction with member states, UN agencies such as ILO, UNESCO and other key Non-Governmental Organizations, to be held during the first week.

If your organisation wishes to participate and join the trade union delegation at the CSW, please contact Christina Drews ( [email protected]), Human Rights and Equality Unit at the EI head office, no later than Friday, 14th December 2007.