The Guardian: Activists call on world leaders to make gender equality pledge a reality
“World leaders must back up their pledge to end gender inequality with concrete commitments on how they plan to empower women, said activists preparing for the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women. The annual CSW meeting to review progress on women’s empowerment, which begins in New York on Monday, is the first since the U.N. General Assembly adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)…” (Ford, 3/14).

U.N. News Centre: Education and reproductive health for girls key to sustainable development — U.N.
“…Speaking at the event, organized by UNFPA and U.N. Women ahead of next week’s Commission on the Status of Women, Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson said it should not ‘take an act of courage’ to go to school, but that in too many parts of the world, girls risk their lives just to attend class. … Noting that girls who are subject to poverty, early marriage, female genital mutilation, abuse, and other violations hold a great potential for progress in their homes and the world, Mr. Eliasson recalled that the U.N. has had a mandate for gender equality since the day it was founded…” (3/11).