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The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charles Flanagan TD, has announced that Ireland has been elected to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women for the first time.
He stated:

“Ireland has been elected to serve as a member of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women for the first time and our term of office will begin next year.

“Empowerment of women and girls is an important foreign policy priority for Ireland and we now have a great opportunity to promote our goals as the UN Commission on the Status of Women is the principal global inter-governmental body for the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment. We will use this opportunity to strengthen the Commission’s role and to build on our international engagement on the full realisation of the rights of women and girls. Ireland has pledged to work to strengthen the voice and functioning of the Commission and to promote the participation of civil society in its work.

“Ireland has been internationally recognised for the agenda-setting role it plays at the UN, most recently in relation to our contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals. As a member of the Human Rights Council (2012-2105) and the Executive Board of UN Women (2012-2013) Ireland worked to highlight a range of issues affecting women and girls. We are a longstanding advocate for the Women, Peace and Security Agenda at the UN while the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment is also an integral part of our programme for overseas development.”

ENDS

Note for editors:

• Ireland was elected to the UN Commission on the Status of Women on 5 April 2016 at the UN HQ in New York City.
• The UN Commission on the Status of Women is the principal global intergovernmental policy-making body dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women.
• The Commission was established in 1946. The Commission’s original mandate was modified to charge it with appraising progress achieved in the implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, adopted at the UN’s Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995, to ensure support for mainstreaming a gender perspective across the UN and to make recommendations regarding emerging issues and trends that affect women.
• The Commission meets annually in March. During this session member states, with significant input from civil society, evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment worldwide.
• The Commission on the Status of Women is a functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). The Commission is comprised of 45 member states who are elected by ECOSOC for a four-year term. Following the ECOSOC election on Tuesday, 5 April, Ireland will serve as a first-time member of the Commission on the Status of Women from 2017 to 2021.