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Beijing: 20 years after (I)

It marks twenty years since the UN Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing, the Capital of the Republic of China in September 1995.…

It marks twenty years since the UN Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing, the Capital of the Republic of China in September 1995. The outcome of that global conference was the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Various governments are charged with the responsibility for implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action. Other stakeholders from the private sector, and non-governmental sectors at the community, national, regional and international levels are also expected to contribute to successful implementation of the Platform. The Platform acknowledges that significant progress will depend on building strategic partnerships and involving all stakeholders in the efforts towards change.
 A review of progress made on implementation of the Beijing Platform is currently going on at the fifty-ninth session of the Commission on the Status of Women CSW at United Nations Headquarters in New York. The event will run from 9 to 20 March 2015 and the representatives of UN member states, UN agencies and  non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from all regions of the world are attending this historic session.
The main focus of the session will be on the review of Beijing+20 and also include the outcomes of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly. Also include is the first five-year assessment conducted after the adoption of the Platform for Action, which highlighted further actions and initiatives. The session will also address opportunities for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of women in the post-2015 development agenda.
 As the CSW meeting is going on in New York, those of us at home celebrated the 2015 International Women’s Day with various activities. One of these was the launching of the Growing Girls and Women in Nigeria G-WIN programme by the federal government. The event held at the Banquet Hall of the State House Abuja on March 10 2015. The G-WIN is designed to implement projects that will specifically meet the needs of marginalised girls and women. G-WIN believes that it is important  ‘from very early in life to get girls thinking of real life issues such as skills acquisition, income generating activities, their health and education’. Five ministries expressed interest in implementing such initiatives. Working with the Ministries of Finance and Women Affairs and Social Welfare, five Ministries are supporting the implementation of G-WIN. They are Agriculture, Works, Health, Water Resources and Communication and Technology.
In the two years of G-WIN implementation, the Ministry of Agriculture has provided subsidised input and relevant skills to women farmers. The Ministry of Communication Technology is investing in getting information to women and girls in rural communities and also supporting Girls ICT Clubs in Nigerian Secondary School. Through the Clubs, the girls acquire computer technology skills, provided mentorship for careers in ICT. The Ministry of Health is training young girls as peer educators to increase girls’ knowledge of health issues within secondary schools. It is also supporting surgery for repair of vesico vaginal fistulae (VVF).  About 3515 women have benefited from the VVF surgery repair and rehabilitation through skills acquisition and income generation. The Ministry of Works is participating in G-WIN through one of its parastatals, the Federal Road Maintenance Agency (FERMA). The beneficiaries were provided with training in roads maintenance and road marking. Through it, they could raise income to pay school fees and support their families. They were also provided with training for participating procurement and petty contractors.
 The water resources ministry’s projects focus on establishment of water kiosks managed by women for provision of water, setting up water management committees to manage water facilities and training women to manage sanitation facilities. The event was attended by the Ministers and officials of the implementing MDAs, development and private sector partners, beneficiaries of G-WIN and civil society organisations. The testimonies of beneficiaries captured attention as they impressed the audience with the progress they recorded in empowering themselves and developing a vision for the future.
 The President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan made a surprise visit to celebrate with participants on the occasion of the International Women’s Day. He expressed commitment to investing in uplifting the status of marginalised women and girls nationwide. He received applause from the audience.
 On March 10, I attended another Women’s Day activity organised by the Australian High Commission. It was a panel discussion on the advancement of Women since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. The two panellists were a member of the House of Representatives, Hon Nkoyo Toyo, and my humble self. The participants were civil society activists, donors and government representatives. The Australian High Commissioner, His Excellency Jon Richardson welcomed participants and underscored the importance of the International Women Day and Beijing +20. He commended all those who have been working hard to ensure implementation of the Platform.  The Deputy High Commissioner, Ms. Angela Tierney, also welcomed participants and also introduced the panellists. A video message from Australia’s Ambassador for Women and Girls, Ms Natasha Stott Despoja, was played. In her message, she described Beijing Platform as an unequivocal support for Women and girls. She congratulated all stakeholders on the strides made in implementation of the Platform. She urged them to continue to build synergy for the review and implementation of the Platform worldwide and prevent a rolling back of what has already been achieved.
In her presentation, Hon. Nkoyo Toyo reviewed progress made in the implementation of the platform in Nigeria while my discussion focused on the experience of working on empowerment of women in northern Nigeria. The presentations were followed by an interactive session where all participants shared views. The UN angle of the celebration of Beijing +20 will feature next week.
(Editor’s note: The article,’ For a fistful of dollars’, published on this page on Tuesday should have been under the name of Muhammad Al-Ghazali; the mix-up is regretted.)

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