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Mercy Global Concern - 2005
Mercy Global Concern: Briefing paper Number 2 - January 2005
Mission Statement Fourth
World Conference on Women
Platform for Action
- The Platform for Action is an agenda for women's
empowerment. It aims at accelerating the implementation of the
Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women
[1] and at removing all the obstacles to women's active participation
in all spheres of public and private life through a full and
equal share in economic, social, cultural and political decision-making.
This means that the principle of shared power and responsibility
should be established between women and men at home, in the workplace
and in the wider national and international communities. Equality
between women and men is a matter of human rights and a condition
for social justice and is also a necessary and fundamental prerequisite
for equality, development and peace. A transformed partnership
based on equality between women and men is a condition for people-centred
sustainable development. A sustained and long-term commitment
is
essential, so that women and men can work together for themselves,
for their children and for society to meet the challenges of
the twenty-first century.
- The Platform for Action reaffirms the
fundamental principle set
forth in the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, [2] adopted
by the World Conference on Human Rights, that the human rights
of women and of the girl child are an inalienable, integral and
indivisible part of universal human rights. As an agenda for action,
the Platform seeks to promote and protect the full enjoyment of
all human rights and the fundamental freedoms of all women throughout
their life cycle.
- The Platform for Action emphasizes that women
share common concerns that can be addressed only by working
together and in partnership
with men towards the common goal of gender* equality around the
world. It respects and values the full diversity of women's situations
and conditions and recognizes that some women face particular
barriers to their empowerment.
- The Platform for Action requires
immediate and concerted action
by all to create a peaceful, just and humane world based on human
rights and fundamental freedoms, including the principle of equality
for all people of all ages and from all walks of life, and to this
end, recognizes that broad- based and sustained economic growth
in the context of sustainable development is necessary to sustain
social development and social justice.
- The success of the Platform
for Action will require a strong commitment on the part of
Governments, international organizations and institutions
at all levels. It will also require adequate mobilization of
resources at the national and international levels as well as
new and additional
resources to the developing countries from all available funding
mechanisms, including multilateral, bilateral and private sources
for the advancement of women; financial resources to strengthen
the capacity of national, subregional, regional and international
institutions; a commitment to equal rights, equal responsibilities
and equal opportunities and to the equal participation of women
and men in all national, regional and international bodies and
policy- making processes; and the establishment or strengthening
of mechanisms at all levels for accountability to the world's
women.
GLOBAL FRAMEWORK
- The Fourth World Conference on Women is taking place as the
world stands poised on the threshold of a new millennium.
- The
Platform for Action upholds the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women [3] and builds
upon the Nairobi Forward- looking Strategies for the Advancement
of Women, as well as relevant resolutions adopted by the Economic
and Social Council and the General Assembly. The formulation
of the Platform for Action is aimed at establishing a basic
group of priority actions that should be carried out during
the next five years.
- The Platform for Action recognizes the
importance of the agreements reached at the World Summit for
Children, the United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development, the World Conference
on Human Rights, the International Conference on Population
and Development and the World Summit for Social Development,
which set out specific approaches and commitments to fostering
sustainable development and international cooperation and to
strengthening the role of the United Nations to that end. Similarly,
the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small
Island Developing States, the International Conference on Nutrition,
the International Conference on Primary Health Care and the
World Conference on Education for All have addressed the various
facets of development and human rights, within their specific
perspectives, paying significant attention to the role of women
and girls. In addition, the International Year for the World's
Indigenous People, [4] the International Year of the Family,
[5] the United Nations Year for Tolerance, [6] the Geneva Declaration
for Rural Women, [7] and the Declaration on the Elimination
of Violence against Women [8] have also emphasized the issues
of women's empowerment and equality.
- The objective of the Platform
for Action, which is in full conformity with the purposes and
principles of the Charter
of the United Nations and international law, is the empowerment
of all women. The full realization of all human rights and
fundamental freedoms of all women is essential for the empowerment
of women. While the significance of national and regional particularities
and various historical, cultural and religious backgrounds
must be borne in mind, it is the duty of States, regardless
of their political, economic and cultural systems, to promote
and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms. [9]
The implementation of this Platform, including through national
laws and the formulation of strategies, policies, programmes
and development priorities, is the sovereign responsibility
of each State, in conformity with all human rights and fundamental
freedoms, and the significance of and full respect for various
religious and ethical values, cultural backgrounds and philosophical
convictions of individuals and their communities should contribute
to the full enjoyment by women of their human rights in order
to achieve equality, development and peace.
- Since the World
Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United
Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development
and Peace, held at Nairobi in 1985, and the adoption of the
Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women,
the world has experienced profound political, economic, social
and cultural changes, which have had both positive and negative
effects on women. The World Conference on Human Rights recognized
that the human rights of women and the girl child are an inalienable,
integral and indivisible part of universal human rights. The
full and equal participation of women in political, civil,
economic, social and cultural life at the national, regional
and international levels, and the eradication of all forms
of discrimination on the grounds of sex are priority objectives
of the international community. The World Conference on Human
Rights reaffirmed the solemn commitment of all States to fulfil
their obligations to promote universal respect for, and observance
and protection of, all human rights and fundamental freedoms
for all in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations,
other instruments related to human rights and international
law. The universal nature of these rights and freedoms is beyond
question.
- The end of the cold war has resulted in international
changes and diminished competition between the super-Powers.
The threat
of a global armed conflict has diminished, while international
relations have improved and prospects for peace among nations
have increased. Although the threat of global conflict has
been reduced, wars of aggression, armed conflicts, colonial
or other forms of alien domination and foreign occupation,
civil wars, and terrorism continue to plague many parts of
the world. Grave violations of the human rights of women occur,
particularly in times of armed conflict, and include murder,
torture, systematic rape, forced pregnancy and forced abortion,
in particular under policies of ethnic cleansing.
- The maintenance
of peace and security at the global, regional and local levels,
together with the prevention of policies
of aggression and ethnic cleansing and the resolution of armed
conflict, is crucial for the protection of the human rights
of women and girl children, as well as for the elimination
of all forms of violence against them and of their use as a
weapon of war.
- Excessive military expenditures, including global
military expenditures and arms trade or trafficking, and investments
for arms production and acquisition have reduced the resources
available for social development. As a result of the debt burden
and other economic difficulties, many developing countries
have undertaken structural adjustment policies. Moreover, there
are structural adjustment programmes that have been poorly
designed and implemented, with resulting detrimental effects
on social development. The number of people living in poverty
has increased disproportionately in most developing countries,
particularly the heavily indebted countries, during the past
decade.
- In this context, the social dimension of development
should be emphasized. Accelerated economic growth, although necessary
for social development, does not by itself improve the quality
of life of the population. In some cases, conditions can arise
which can aggravate social inequality and marginalization.
Hence, it is indispensable to search for new alternatives that
ensure that all members of society benefit from economic growth
based on a holistic approach to all aspects of development:
growth, equality between women and men, social justice, conservation
and protection of the environment, sustainability, solidarity,
participation, peace and respect for human rights.
- A world-wide
movement towards democratization has opened up the political
process in many nations, but the popular participation
of women in key decision-making as full and equal partners
with men, particularly in politics, has not yet been achieved.
South Africa's policy of institutionalized racism - apartheid
- has been dismantled and a peaceful and democratic transfer
of power has occurred. In Central and Eastern Europe the transition
to parliamentary democracy has been rapid and has given rise
to a variety of experiences, depending on the specific circumstances
of each country. While the transition has been mostly peaceful,
in some countries this process has been hindered by armed conflict
that has resulted in grave violations of human rights.
- Widespread
economic recession, as well as political instability in some
regions, has been responsible for setting back development
goals in many countries. This has led to the expansion of unspeakable
poverty. Of the more than 1 billion people living in abject
poverty, women are an overwhelming majority. The rapid process
of change and adjustment in all sectors has also led to increased
unemployment and underemployment, with particular impact on
women. In many cases, structural adjustment programmes have
not been designed to minimize their negative effects on vulnerable
and disadvantaged groups or on women, nor have they been designed
to assure positive effects on those groups by preventing their
marginalization in economic and social activities. The Final
Act of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations
[10] underscored the increasing interdependence of national
economies, as well as the importance of trade liberalization
and access to open, dynamic markets. There has also been heavy
military spending in some regions. Despite increases in official
development assistance (ODA) by some countries, ODA has recently
declined overall.
- Absolute poverty and the feminization of poverty,
unemployment, the increasing fragility of the environment, continued
violence
against women and the widespread exclusion of half of humanity
from institutions of power and governance underscore the need
to continue the search for development, peace and security
and for ways of assuring people-centred sustainable development.
The participation and leadership of the half of humanity that
is female is essential to the success of that search. Therefore,
only a new era of international cooperation among Governments
and peoples based on a spirit of partnership, an equitable,
international social and economic environment, and a radical
transformation of the relationship between women and men to
one of full and equal partnership will enable the world to
meet the challenges of the twenty-first century.
- Recent international
economic developments have had in many cases a disproportionate
impact on women and children, the
majority of whom live in developing countries. For those States
that have carried a large burden of foreign debt, structural
adjustment programmes and measures, though beneficial in the
long term, have led to a reduction in social expenditures,
thereby adversely affecting women, particularly in Africa and
the least developed countries. This is exacerbated when responsibilities
for basic social services have shifted from Governments to
women.
- Economic recession in many developed and developing
countries, as well as ongoing restructuring in countries with
economies
in transition, have had a disproportionately negative impact
on women's employment. Women often have no choice but to take
employment that lacks long-term job security or involves dangerous
working conditions, to work in unprotected home-based production
or to be unemployed. Many women enter the labour market in
under-remunerated and undervalued jobs, seeking to improve
their household income; others decide to migrate for the same
purpose. Without any reduction in their other responsibilities,
this has increased the total burden of work for women.
- Macro
and micro-economic policies and programmes, including structural
adjustment, have not always been designed to take
account of their impact on women and girl children, especially
those living in poverty. Poverty has increased in both absolute
and relative terms, and the number of women living in poverty
has increased in most regions. There are many urban women living
in poverty; however, the plight of women living in rural and
remote areas deserves special attention given the stagnation
of development in such areas. In developing countries, even
those in which national indicators have shown improvement,
the majority of rural women continue to live in conditions
of economic underdevelopment and social marginalization.
- Women
are key contributors to the economy and to combating poverty
through both remunerated and unremunerated work at
home, in the community and in the workplace. Growing numbers
of women have achieved economic independence through gainful
employment.
- One fourth of all households world wide are headed
by women and many other households are dependent on female income
even
where men are present. Female-maintained households are very
often among the poorest because of wage discrimination, occupational
segregation patterns in the labour market and other gender-based
barriers. Family disintegration, population movements between
urban and rural areas within countries, international migration,
war and internal displacements are factors contributing to
the rise of female- headed households.
- Recognizing that the
achievement and maintenance of peace and security are a precondition
for economic and social progress,
women are increasingly establishing themselves as central actors
in a variety of capacities in the movement of humanity for
peace. Their full participation in decision-making, conflict
prevention and resolution and all other peace initiatives is
essential to the realization of lasting peace.
- Religion, spirituality
and belief play a central role in the lives of millions of women
and men, in the way they live
and
in the aspirations they have for the future. The right to freedom
of thought, conscience and religion is inalienable and must
be universally enjoyed. This right includes the freedom to
have or to adopt the religion or belief of their choice either
individually or in community with others, in public or in private,
and to manifest their religion or belief in worship, observance,
practice and teaching. In order to realize equality, development
and peace, there is a need to respect these rights and freedoms
fully. Religion, thought, conscience and belief may, and can,
contribute to fulfilling women's and men's moral, ethical and
spiritual needs and to realizing their full potential in society.
However, it is acknowledged that any form of extremism may
have a negative impact on women and can lead to violence and
discrimination.
- The Fourth World Conference on Women should
accelerate the process that formally began in 1975, which was
proclaimed International
Women's Year by the United Nations General Assembly. The Year
was a turning-point in that it put women's issues on the agenda.
The United Nations Decade for Women (1976-1985) was a world-wide
effort to examine the status and rights of women and to bring
women into decision-making at all levels. In 1979, the General
Assembly adopted the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms
of Discrimination against Women, which entered into force in
1981 and set an international standard for what was meant by
equality between women and men. In 1985, the World Conference
to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United Nations
Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace adopted the
Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women,
to be implemented by the year 2000. There has been important
progress in achieving equality between women and men. Many
Governments have enacted legislation to promote equality between
women and men and have established national machineries to
ensure the mainstreaming of gender perspectives in all spheres
of society. International agencies have focused greater attention
on women's status and roles.
- The growing strength of the non-governmental
sector, particularly women's organizations and feminist groups,
has become a driving
force for change. Non-governmental organizations have played
an important advocacy role in advancing legislation or mechanisms
to ensure the promotion of women. They have also become catalysts
for new approaches to development. Many Governments have increasingly
recognized the important role that non-governmental organizations
play and the importance of working with them for progress.
Yet, in some countries, Governments continue to restrict the
ability of non-governmental organizations to operate freely.
Women, through non-governmental organizations, have participated
in and strongly influenced community, national, regional and
global forums and international debates.
- Since 1975, knowledge
of the status of women and men, respectively, has increased and
is contributing to further actions aimed
at promoting equality between women and men. In several countries,
there have been important changes in the relationships between
women and men, especially where there have been major advances
in education for women and significant increases in their participation
in the paid labour force. The boundaries of the gender division
of labour between productive and reproductive roles are gradually
being crossed as women have started to enter formerly male-dominated
areas of work and men have started to accept greater responsibility
for domestic tasks, including child care. However, changes
in women's roles have been greater and much more rapid than
changes in men's roles. In many countries, the differences
between women's and men's achievements and activities are still
not recognized as the consequences of socially constructed
gender roles rather than immutable biological differences.
- Moreover,
10 years after the Nairobi Conference, equality between women
and men has still not been achieved. On average,
women represent a mere 10 per cent of all elected legislators
world wide and in most national and international administrative
structures, both public and private, they remain underrepresented.
The United Nations is no exception. Fifty years after its creation,
the United Nations is continuing to deny itself the benefits
of women's leadership by their underrepresentation at decision-making
levels within the Secretariat and the specialized agencies.
- Women
play a critical role in the family. The family is the basic unit
of society and as such should be strengthened. It
is entitled to receive comprehensive protection and support.
In different cultural, political and social systems, various
forms of the family exist. The rights, capabilities and responsibilities
of family members must be respected. Women make a great contribution
to the welfare of the family and to the development of society,
which is still not recognized or considered in its full importance.
The social significance of maternity, motherhood and the role
of parents in the family and in the upbringing of children
should be acknowledged. The upbringing of children requires
shared responsibility of parents, women and men and society
as a whole. Maternity, motherhood, parenting and the role of
women in procreation must not be a basis for discrimination
nor restrict the full participation of women in society. Recognition
should also be given to the important role often played by
women in many countries in caring for other members of their
family.
- While the rate of growth of world population
is on the decline, world population is at an all-time high in
absolute
numbers,
with current increments approaching 86 million persons annually.
Two other major demographic trends have had profound repercussions
on the dependency ratio within families. In many developing
countries, 45 to 50 per cent of the population is less than
15 years old, while in industrialized nations both the number
and proportion of elderly people are increasing. According
to United Nations projections, 72 per cent of the population
over 60 years of age will be living in developing countries
by the year 2025, and more than half of that population will
be women. Care of children, the sick and the elderly is a responsibility
that falls disproportionately on women, owing to lack of equality
and the unbalanced distribution of remunerated and unremunerated
work between women and men.
- Many women face particular barriers
because of various diverse factors in addition to their gender.
Often these diverse factors
isolate or marginalize such women. They are, inter alia, denied
their human rights, they lack access or are denied access to
education and vocational training, employment, housing and
economic self-sufficiency and they are excluded from decision-making
processes. Such women are often denied the opportunity to contribute
to their communities as part of the mainstream.
- The past decade
has also witnessed a growing recognition of the distinct interests
and concerns of indigenous women, whose
identity, cultural traditions and forms of social organization
enhance and strengthen the communities in which they live.
Indigenous women often face barriers both as women and as members
of indigenous communities.
- In the past 20 years, the world has
seen an explosion in the field of communications. With advances
in computer technology
and satellite and cable television, global access to information
continues to increase and expand, creating new opportunities
for the participation of women in communications and the mass
media and for the dissemination of information about women.
However, global communication networks have been used to spread
stereotyped and demeaning images of women for narrow commercial
and consumerist purposes. Until women participate equally in
both the technical and decision-making areas of communications
and the mass media, including the arts, they will continue
to be misrepresented and awareness of the reality of women's
lives will continue to be lacking. The media have a great potential
to promote the advancement of women and the equality of women
and men by portraying women and men in a non-stereotypical,
diverse and balanced manner, and by respecting the dignity
and worth of the human person.
- The continuing environmental
degradation that affects all human lives has often a more direct
impact on women. Women's
health and their livelihood are threatened by pollution and
toxic wastes, large-scale deforestation, desertification, drought
and depletion of the soil and of coastal and marine resources,
with a rising incidence of environmentally related health problems
and even death reported among women and girls. Those most affected
are rural and indigenous women, whose livelihood and daily
subsistence depends directly on sustainable ecosystems.
- Poverty and environmental degradation are closely interrelated.
While poverty results in certain kinds of environmental stress,
the major cause of the continued deterioration of the global
environment is the unsustainable patterns of consumption and
production, particularly in industrialized countries, which are
a matter of grave concern and aggravate poverty and imbalances.
- Global
trends have brought profound changes in family survival strategies
and structures. Rural to urban migration has increased
substantially in all regions. The global urban population is
projected to reach 47 per cent of the total population by the
year 2000. An estimated 125 million people are migrants, refugees
and displaced persons, half of whom live in developing countries.
These massive movements of people have profound consequences
for family structures and well-being and have unequal consequences
for women and men, including in many cases the sexual exploitation
of women.
- According to World Health Organization (WHO)
estimates, by the beginning of 1995 the number of cumulative
cases of acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was 4.5 million. An estimated
19.5 million men, women and children have been infected with
the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) since it was first diagnosed
and it is projected that another 20 million will be infected
by the end of the decade. Among new cases, women are twice
as likely to be infected as men. In the early stage of the
AIDS pandemic, women were not infected in large numbers; however,
about 8 million women are now infected. Young women and adolescents
are particularly vulnerable. It is estimated that by the year
2000 more than 13 million women will be infected and 4 million
women will have died from AIDS-related conditions. In addition,
about 250 million new cases of sexually transmitted diseases
are estimated to occur every year. The rate of transmission
of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, is increasing
at an alarming rate among women and girls, especially in developing
countries.
- Since 1975, significant knowledge and information
have been generated about the status of women and the conditions
in which
they live. Throughout their entire life cycle, women's daily
existence and long-term aspirations are restricted by discriminatory
attitudes, unjust social and economic structures, and a lack
of resources in most countries that prevent their full and
equal participation. In a number of countries, the practice
of prenatal sex selection, higher rates of mortality among
very young girls and lower rates of school enrolment for girls
as compared with boys suggest that son preference is curtailing
the access of girl children to food, education and health care
and even life itself. Discrimination against women begins at
the earliest stages of life and must therefore be addressed
from then onwards.
- The girl child of today is the woman of tomorrow.
The skills, ideas and energy of the girl child are vital for
full attainment
of the goals of equality, development and peace. For the girl
child to develop her full potential she needs to be nurtured
in an enabling environment, where her spiritual, intellectual
and material needs for survival, protection and development
are met and her equal rights safeguarded. If women are to be
equal partners with men, in every aspect of life and development,
now is the time to recognize the human dignity and worth of
the girl child and to ensure the full enjoyment of her human
rights and fundamental freedoms, including the rights assured
by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, [11] universal
ratification of which is strongly urged. Yet there exists world-wide
evidence that discrimination and violence against girls begin
at the earliest stages of life and continue unabated throughout
their lives. They often have less access to nutrition, physical
and mental health care and education and enjoy fewer rights,
opportunities and benefits of childhood and adolescence than
do boys. They are often subjected to various forms of sexual
and economic exploitation, paedophilia, forced prostitution
and possibly the sale of their organs and tissues, violence
and harmful practices such as female infanticide and prenatal
sex selection, incest, female genital mutilation and early
marriage, including child marriage.
- Half the world's population
is under the age of 25 and most of the world's youth - more than
85 per cent - live in developing
countries. Policy makers must recognize the implications of
these demographic factors. Special measures must be taken to
ensure that young women have the life skills necessary for
active and effective participation in all levels of social,
cultural, political and economic leadership. It will be critical
for the international community to demonstrate a new commitment
to the future - a commitment to inspiring a new generation
of women and men to work together for a more just society.
This new generation of leaders must accept and promote a world
in which every child is free from injustice, oppression and
inequality and free to develop her/his own potential. The principle
of equality of women and men must therefore be integral to
the socialization process.
CRITICAL AREAS OF CONCERN
- The advancement of women and the achievement of equality between
women and men are a matter of human rights and a condition for
social justice and should not be seen in isolation as a women's
issue. They are the only way to build a sustainable, just and
developed society. Empowerment of women and equality between
women and men are prerequisites for achieving political, social,
economic, cultural and environmental security among all peoples.
- Most
of the goals set out in the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies
for the Advancement of Women have not been achieved. Barriers
to women's empowerment remain, despite the efforts of Governments,
as well as non-governmental organizations and women and men
everywhere. Vast political, economic and ecological crises
persist in many parts of the world. Among them are wars of
aggression, armed conflicts, colonial or other forms of alien
domination or foreign occupation, civil wars and terrorism.
These situations, combined with systematic or de facto discrimination,
violations of and failure to protect all human rights and fundamental
freedoms of all women, and their civil, cultural, economic,
political and social rights, including the right to development
and ingrained prejudicial attitudes towards women and girls
are but a few of the impediments encountered since the World
Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United
Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace,
in 1985.
- A review of progress since the Nairobi Conference
highlights special concerns - areas of particular urgency that
stand out
as priorities for action. All actors should focus action and
resources on the strategic objectives relating to the critical
areas of concern which are, necessarily, interrelated, interdependent
and of high priority. There is a need for these actors to develop
and implement mechanisms of accountability for all the areas
of concern.
- To this end, Governments, the international community
and civil society, including non-governmental organizations and
the private sector, are called upon to take strategic action
in the following critical areas of concern:
- To this end, Governments, the international community and
civil society, including non-governmental organizations and the
private sector, are called upon to take strategic action in the
following critical areas of concern:
*
The persistent and increasing
burden of poverty on women
*
Inequalities and inadequacies in and
unequal access to education and training
*
Inequalities and inadequacies
in and unequal access to health care and related services
*
Violence
against women
*
The effects of armed or other kinds of conflict
on women, including those living under foreign occupation
*
Inequality
in economic structures and policies, in all forms of productive
activities and in access to resources
*
Inequality between men
and women in the sharing of power and decision-making at all
levels
*
Insufficient mechanisms at all levels to promote the advancement
of women
*
Lack of respect for and inadequate promotion and protection
of the human rights of women
*
Stereotyping of women and inequality
in women's access to and participation in all communication systems,
especially in the
media
*
Gender inequalities in the management of natural resources
and in the safeguarding of the environment
*
Persistent discrimination
against and violation of the rights of the girl child
Strategic Objectives and Actions
- In each critical area of concern, the problem is diagnosed
and strategic objectives are proposed with concrete actions to
be taken by various actors in order to achieve those objectives.
The strategic objectives are derived from the critical areas
of concern and specific actions to be taken to achieve them cut
across the boundaries of equality, development and peace - the
goals of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement
of Women - and reflect their interdependence. The objectives
and actions are interlinked, of high priority and mutually reinforcing.
The Platform for Action is intended to improve the situation
of all women, without exception, who often face similar barriers,
while special attention should be given to groups that are the
most disadvantaged.
- The Platform for Action recognizes that women
face barriers to full equality and advancement because of such
factors as
their race, age, language, ethnicity, culture, religion or
disability, because they are indigenous women or because of
other status. Many women encounter specific obstacles related
to their family status, particularly as single parents; and
to their socio- economic status, including their living conditions
in rural, isolated or impoverished areas. Additional barriers
also exist for refugee women, other displaced women, including
internally displaced women as well as for immigrant women and
migrant women, including women migrant workers. Many women
are also particularly affected by environmental disasters,
serious and infectious diseases and various forms of violence
against women.
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