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UN Division for the Advancement of Women
July 2004
Dear Colleagues,
Thirty years have passed since the first United Nations World Conference on Women was held in Mexico City in 1975. As you probably know, that gathering inaugurated a series of conferences that for the very first time brought women's issues to the world stage and showed the link between women's rights and the peace and well being of the entire planet. At the upcoming 49th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women from February 28 -March 11, 2005, we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the fourth world conference on women in Beijing by reexamining the Platform for Action (BPfA) and its Outcome Documents produced at the General Assembly Special Session in 2000 (also known as Beijing +5). Although implementation of the promises made by governments in these documents has been slow, some very creative partnerships have formed among governments, NGOs, the United Nations and international women's rights agencies that prove positive change is not only possible but is occurring right now.
To capitalize on these changes and to make certain that we have as comprehensive a picture as possible prior to the 10th year review of what is presently going on globally to implement the BPfA we ask that you complete a questionnaire prepared by the UN Division for the Advancement of Women. It can be found at http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/2005Review/index.html.
This questionnaire, that Member States were asked to complete by April 2004, addresses four areas:
- What are the main achievements, gaps and challenges in ten years of implementation of the PFA,
- What progress has been made in implementation of the specific Critical Areas of Concern and the areas identified in Beijing + 5,
- What is the status of institutional arrangements and mechanisms, and
- What commitments have governments made to address identified gaps and challenges?
Your governments may have consulted some of you as they completed their
questionnaires. However, your unique perspective of events is most important.
So, even if it means repeating information, please take the time to complete
your questionnaire and please send as much information as you can gather
regarding activities in your region. Do not assume that your region's
news is unimportant. Often, in areas where the agenda for the advancement
of women is clearly lagging behind, it is the NGO community that is spearheading
positive change despite discouraging political and economic
environments. From the completed questionnaires we will compile a report
and provide a global analysis of the NGO perspective on the above issues.
This report will help us chart a specific course for continued progress. It will also be submitted to the UN Division for the Advancement of Women as input from NGOs. Please be as forthright as possible in your answers. We will make certain that confidentiality will be maintained.
Please complete the questionnaire by August 15, 2004, and send it and the names and contact information for the representatives you choose to serve on the international NGO planning group to ngo_csw_ny@hotmail.comor fax the information to the group's coordinator at 1-212-692-0724.
We are very much looking forward to receiving your input which will assist with BPfA implementation strategies and will make participation for all the NGOs at the 49th Session of the CSW a productive and satisfying experience.
We are making every effort to include NGO input in the formal deliberations of the Member States at the 49th CSW and will inform you of panel discussions and other opportunities where NGO experts can give input.
Warm regards,
Bani Dugal
Chair, NGO Committee on the Status of Women
Principal Representative to the United Nations
Bahá'í International Community's United Nations Office
NGO Committee on the Status of Women, New York
PO Box 3571 Grand Central Station
New York, NY 10163 USA
212 692 0725; Fax 212 692 0724; email ngo_csw_ny@hotmail.com
P.O. Box 743
Vashon, WA
USA