Women’s Economic Empowerment in the Changing World of Work:
Sangeeta and Nina in New York
Sangeeta and Nina participated in UN’s 61st conference of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), which took place at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from 13 to 24 March 2017. The main theme of the session was ‘Women’s Economic Empowerment in the Changing World of Work’, and not only did Sangeeta and Nina bring home many new insights for the future of the WAWCAS program, they also returned with a great shared experience and with new and valuable contacts.
By Sangeeta Shrestha and Nina Schriver
Sangeeta and Nina attended CSW61 in New York from 13 to 17 March as representatives from the Nepalese and Danish delegation respectively. Approximately 6800 participants – including politicians, parliamentarians and different associations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working with women rights – from all over the world attended the session with the goal of discussing the challenges and achievements in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals for women and girls.
Some of the central issues discussed were the vulnerability of women and girls in the labor market, and the link between women’s economic empowerment and SRHR (sexual and reproductive health and rights).
Furthermore, equal access to technology, to land ownership, to finance/microfinance, to opportunities for higher and continuing education and to be prepared for and supported to hold positions of leadership in both public and private sectors were other themes in the discussions.
In order to get the most out of the conference we split up during the day so that we could join different workshops and presentations – many of which took place in the UN building. To sit in the Great Assembly Hall and follow the discussions was a huge experience. To listen to all the women sharing experiences about their lack of rights from all over the world was very learningful and touching.
We used Viber a lot to keep in contact throughout the days. And in the evenings, when we got together again, we took some time out for sharing our experiences with one another, and sharing our experiences at the end of each day helped us to bring up new thoughts and ideas for the future of the WAWCAS program.
Nina presented the WAWCAS program for the Danish delegation, and we found that the WAWCAS program was very much appreciated wherever we shared about it. Nina’s presentation was focused on the impact of the program and how it helps the WAWCAS women to become empowered both economically and personally, and as such, it was shown how the WAWCAS program enables the women to stand their rights – also in respect to sexual and reproductive rights.
It was a big experience for us to be part of such a diversified and colorful group with a lot of experience and passion regarding the theme of the CSW, and we brought home with us many new impressions and valuable contacts. We thoroughly enjoyed the possibility of being together at such a conference, and we are proud to have been given the opportunity to bring in our experiences and results from the WAWCAS program to the discussions.