Leaving no one behind: Commission on the Status of Women, SDG5, and the future of feminist advocacy
“Progress is possible, but it has been far too slow, uneven, and fragile.” UN Women, UN entity for Gender equality and for Women empowerment.
From March 10 to 16, I was a Canadian delegate at the 69th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) in New York. After a very competitive selection process across Canada, I was among seven other leaders and advocates chosen to represent Canada as CSOs (civil society organization) representatives. I was representing KAIROS with other delegates from Fora: Network for Change; Equitas-International Centre for Human Rights Education; Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology; Humanity & Inclusion Canada; Women, Peace, and Security Network-Canada; 2 Spirits in Motion Society.
UNCSW is the UN’s main intergovernmental body for advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. This year’s CSW69 was particularly significant as it was set to be a landmark event in the global push for gender equality. It also coincided with Beijing+30, a milestone anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA), which is a landmark document on gender equality adopted at the Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995. The main focus/theme for this year was the review and appraisal of the implementation of this historic and fundamental document on advancing women’s rights, as well as the outcomes of the 23rd special session of the General Assembly in 2000 which reviewed progress towards the Platform for Action five years after its adoption.
Conversations and tangible and trackable commitments are needed more than ever when gender inequality is stagnating social progress and limiting opportunities for youth and women, perpetuating cycles of poverty and hindering overall development. Advancing gender equality is critical to achieving all the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), and all areas of a healthy society, from reducing poverty to promoting the health, education, protection and the well-being of girls and boys.
As an advocate myself, driven with a passion of creating a more sustainable and secure world through the SDGs, I came to realise that none of the SDGs are achievable without meeting gender equality first. Gender equality is a human right. How can we desire to create a better world, if this fundamental human right, meaning that everyone, regardless of gender, deserves equal opportunities and respect, is not met?
In fact, with 2030 around the corner, recent data indicates that the world is off track to achieve SDG5 (gender equality). Platforms like CSW represent opportunities to redefine our collective commitment to getting us on track to meet this goal.
The CSW also offered a key platform for member states including Canada, CSOs and young professionals/advocates to discuss and review the implementation of the BPfA.
The Beijing Declaration is both a roadmap and a promise—a commitment from governments that gender equality and women’s rights are non-negotiable. However, its implementation must be intersectional, and account for the unique experiences of young women, particularly those facing compounding barriers such as disability, racial and ethnic discrimination, migration, and conflict. The Platform for Action is only as strong as our collective will to implement it meaningfully, ensuring that stakeholders who are often left behind have the power to shape policies that affect their lives, rather than being tokenized in decision-making spaces.
Canada’s approach through Gender-Based Analysis Plus (GBA+) is an example of how we can strengthen gender mainstreaming by considering multiple layers of marginalization. However, without meaningful investment in young feminist organizations, especially in the Global South, and without dismantling colonial funding structures that leave grassroots organizations dependent on intermediary organizations in the Global North, our progress will remain fragile.
Lifting the voices of youth is critical too. On March 14, Canada appointed me with a special mission to deliver Canada’s statement during the high-level interactive dialogue, Beijing@30: A dialogue with youth representatives during 11th plenary meeting of CSW69. At a time when member states are encouraged to give a platform to youth voices, and implement concrete, action-oriented and transformative outcomes that leave no one behind, Canada’s move to cede their time for the first time during that panel to a youth representative – me – demonstrates its commitment for youth inclusion and is the way to go moving forward.
During the three-minute intervention, I had the opportunity to reflect again on the BPfA, which remains one of the most transformative frameworks for advancing gender equality. Yet, 30 years later, young women continue to face structural barriers that limit their full and meaningful participation. These barriers are compounded by escalating conflicts, economic disparities, climate crises, and shrinking civic spaces. It’s important to protect the gains of the BPfA and expand and modernize its commitments for a more inclusive and right-based opportunities for leadership.
Here are some key points I presented during the panel, representing insights and innovative solutions to protect the gains made so far by the BPfA and to create new pathways for young people to engage in gender equality, access to education and economic empowerment.
- Meaningful participation of women and young people in peacebuilding and humanitarian processes (WPS YPS).
- Resourced and protected civic space for young people and youth activists, and the creation of long-term funding mechanisms that enable rather than exploit their contributions.
- Inclusive and rights-based education framework for young women starting at an early age. We need more access to quality, disability inclusive, and gender-transformative education.
Feminist financing and long-term, sustainable funding for grassroots feminist organizations, particularly those led by young women in the Global South.
Let us leave no one behind! Moving forward, let us not forget our roles in achieving SDG5, and therefore every other SGDs. Let’s emphasize the critical role that we each play in shaping the future that we want, while including a generational dialogue with youth and grassroots perspectives and lived experiences. This engagement will reinforce our commitment to accelerate progress on the goals of the Beijing Platform for Action. Member states should also be held accountable, ensuring that the fight for lasting change continues.
By Danielle Kamtié, KAIROS’ Africa Partnerships and Global Climate Justice Program Coordinator
