Invitation to Forus Event at CSW69

Title: Accelerating Gender Equality: Empowering Women and Girls Beyond Beijing+30
Date: Friday, March 21, 2025
Time: 8:30–10:00 am EDT
Venue: Church Center for the United Nations (CCUN), 8th Floor, 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017

Event Summary:

Join Forus and its member organizations for an engaging side event at CSW69, as we leverage the momentum of the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action to rally global support for gender equality. This event provides a platform to advance the gender agenda ahead of the 2025 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) review of SDG 5 on Gender Equality, emphasizing the urgency of addressing gender inequities through coordinated advocacy at all levels.

Context & Background:

Thirty years after Beijing, gender inequality persists at alarming levels:

• 300 years to end child marriage,
• 286 years to close legal protection gaps,
• 140 years to achieve leadership parity.

The 2025 HLPF review presents a crucial opportunity for decisive action to achieve gender equality. Additionally, with the selection of the next UN Secretary-General, we aim to advocate for a leader committed to championing the gender equality agenda. Through the March With Us campaign, with the Forus network representing over 24,000 NGOs, we will spotlight activists’ stories, particularly highlighting women’s resilience in crisis contexts and the importance of new masculinities.

Key Focus Areas:

• Ending child marriage and strengthening legal protections.
• Advancing economic empowerment and closing the gender wage gap.
• Addressing all forms of gender-based violence.
• Expanding access to sexual and reproductive health and rights.
• Promoting women’s leadership and representation.
• Safeguarding civil society’s role in gender advocacy.
• Strengthening Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) initiatives.
• Advocating for UN leadership committed to gender equity.

Join us to amplify civil society’s role, highlight pressing gender challenges, and foster leadership dedicated to equality worldwide.