UAE pushes for women power at UNSC

The United Arab Emirates, which is holding the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) this month, had convened a special meeting on the theme, “Advancing the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda Through Partnerships: Women’s Economic Inclusion and Participation as a Key to Building Peace”, and pointed out The Mackenzie Global Institute finding that global economy could be boosted by $28 trillion by 2025 if gender gaps in the workforce are diluted and women are placed in leadership roles.

UAE Minister for Climate Change and Environment Mariam Almheiri reminded the UN resolution of 22 years ago for enhancing the role of women in post-conflict and reconstruction efforts and how that resolution remains unfulfilled. “Women are critical to recovery and relief efforts, yet their inclusion remains undervalued, and their access to opportunities, resources and markets remain limited.” She said it would be self-defeating to neglect the UN Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in October 2000, and not empower women to play a leading role in meeting the challenges of climate change, humanitarian crises, and tackling pandemics. She had also emphasised the role of the private sector in bringing about the changes in gender inequality.

The importance of the issue is brought home because the world had been facing the onslaught of the pandemic in the last two years and it is faced with coups and wars in sub-Saharan Africa and now in Ukraine. Minister Almheiri emphasised: “Women must not only benefit from sustainable post-conflict recovery, they must be in the driver’s seat as planners, decision makers and implementers in all sectors of society, to ensure sustainable peace building.” It would indeed be unrealistic to believe that any major change would come about immediately on the issue of bringing in more women in deciding the major issues facing communities and countries, and in matters of war and peace. But two things have become obvious. That women and children suffer the most in the event of war. UN under-secretary- general and executive director of UN Women Sima Bahous said that majority of the 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees were women and children. She said that new gender apartheid in Afghanistan under the Taliban is affecting women’s employment, and this would impact the economy of that country. In Yemen, she said, if women were allowed equal participation, they would boost the economy by 27 per cent. She also said that the pandemic and wars have pushed back the gains made in the improving gender status in societies and countries.

It is indeed a powerful, persuasive, and passionate argument that Almheiri and Bahous have put forward, and it would be useful to pay attention to what they say. It would indeed be unrealistic to believe that there will be changes overnight. But it would be a folly to keep these issues in mind and try to pursue these goals. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will remain unfulfilled if the role and participation of women in the management of resources is not increased. There is indeed perceptible change all over the world as more women take up positions of leadership in institutions of science and finance and politics. But the success of a few extraordinary women achievers will not be sufficient to bring about the radical change that is required to save the global society from climate and economic disasters. The change will be gradual, but it can be speeded up and it will have a positive impact on the rest of society. Gender prejudices will not melt away easily, but they can be better managed as things improve and there is peace and prosperity all round.