"We want rights, not flowers," on this sign held by a protester during International Women's Rights Day on March 8, 2017, in Toulouse, France. (Credit: AFP)
One in four countries report backlash on women’s rights in 2024, according to a report published Thursday by U.N. Women, which highlighted weakened democratic institutions, new technologies and climate change among the threats.
UN Women’s latest report “Women's Rights in Review 30 Years After Beijing,” published ahead of the UN 50th International Women’s Day on March 8 stated that "the weakening of democratic institutions has been accompanied by a setback in gender equality."
"Nearly one in four countries shows regressions in gender equality that hinder the implementation of the action program" agreed upon during the major world conference on women in Beijing in 1995.
Three-quarters of parliamentarians are still men
Female representation in parliaments has more than doubled since 1995, but three-quarters of parliamentarians are still men. The global share of women benefiting from social protection has increased by a third between 2010 and 2023, but 2 billion women and girls still have no coverage.
Employment gaps "have stagnated for decades," with about 63 percent of women aged 25 to 54 working for pay, compared to 92 percent of men.
The COVID-19 crisis, conflicts, climate change, and new technologies are new threats, the report notes.
Violence against women
According to U.N. Women's figures, cases of conflict-related sexual violence have increased by 50 percent in 10 years, and 95 percent of victims are children or young girls. In 2023, 612 million women lived within 50 km of at least one armed conflict, an increase of 54 percent since 2010.
In 12 countries in Europe and Central Asia, 53 percent of women have experienced at least one form of online gender-based violence.
"Globally, violence against women and girls remains at alarming rates. 736 million women, or one in three, have experienced physical or sexual violence from a partner, or sexual violence from another aggressor, once in their lifetime," notes the U.N.
The report sets out a roadmap with several axes for the future: equitable access to new technologies, notably artificial intelligence, investments to combat poverty, fighting violence, greater participation in public affairs, and climate justice measures.
Humanitarian convoy reaches Rmeish, Ain Ibl, Dibil despite obstacles
