Gender Equality ‘Dangerously’ off Track, Deputy Secretary-General Warns Global Leaders Meeting, Calls for Future Where Every Woman Earns, Learns, Leads

Following are Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed's remarks at the opening segment of the Global Leaders Meeting on Women, in Beijing today:

Thirty years ago, in this very city, the world came together, and a gavel fell. And in that decisive moment, a new declaration was born.

From Beijing, the world spoke with one voice, clear and unshakeable: Women's rights are human rights.

Many women who came here from all over the world, came filled with the fire of possibility. They left Beijing believing women had shifted the trajectory for women and girls everywhere. And for billions, that declaration did light the path to progress.

But for billions more, that path remains unfinished. The promise, a distant echo.

I extend my profound gratitude to the Member States who have kept this flame alive. In particular, I want to acknowledge China for hosting that historic conference once again. Your commitment is a vital reminder: This agenda must deliver for all of us, and its success depends on all of us.

Yet, despite our pledges - renewed just weeks ago during the High-Level Week at the United Nations - progress for women and girls is moving at a glacial pace. In many areas, it is not just stalled; it is reversing.

We stand just five years from the deadline for our 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The hour is late. We are running out of time to make good on the promise we made three decades ago.

So, let us be clear-eyed about the road ahead. I would like to offer four imperatives to frame our collective action.

First, the Beijing Declaration is not a relic; it is our road map. The commitments forged here resonate through every major framework since - from Cairo to Copenhagen to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and into our Pact for the Future. The message has not aged a day: Delivering on women's rights is the very engine of our shared progress.

But at this critical juncture, with gender equality dangerously off track, the message is not enough. We cannot simply repeat our ambitions; we must revolutionize our actions.

And we must be honest: progress has been profoundly unequal. The woman in a village facing climate catastrophe, the girl fleeing conflict and sexual violence - their realities are starkly different.

In every crisis, women and girls bear the heaviest burden, their plight is magnified by the structural barriers we have yet to dismantle. Our urgency and actions must match their reality.

Second, women's empowerment cannot be a side project; it must be central to the design of national visions and plans. Empowerment begins with a non-negotiable foundation: protection. We cannot speak of empowering women while they live in the shadow of violence and in constant fear.

But safety is only the beginning.

True empowerment means unlocking every door to education, to healthcare, decent work and full political participation.

It means upholding sexual and reproductive health and rights. We know that underinvestment in women is a direct limit on human potential, their agency and even more so in the lives of young women.

We are not without our guide. The United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women remains our cornerstone. It is the legal bedrock that holds nations accountable to the promises of Beijing.

Now, we must breathe life into this framework. In every negotiating room, in every budget we draft and every policy we design, gender equality must be our organizing principle.

Third, we must place women and girls at the very heart of the green and digital transitions. These are not abstract agendas; they are shaping the lives of women today. Algorithms must not distort women's agency and their role in the new era of technology.

Invest in clean cooking solutions, and you protect a woman's health and grant her time. Invest in clean energy, and you create the jobs she needs.

Build a digital transformation on the solid ground of basic education and then add digital skills. This is how we forge real pathways to innovation and dignified work.

The evidence is undeniable. Our UN Gender Snapshot reveals that bridging the gender digital divide could lift 30 million people from extreme poverty and inject $1.5 trillion into the global economy in just five years. But let me be clear. No economy can reach its full potential while sidelining half its population.

Fourth, women's leadership is the ultimate litmus test for a prosperous society. We have the evidence that where women lead, we see more durable peace, more profitable businesses and more inclusive policies.

Beijing was also about numbers - because numbers matter. A critical mass of women in leadership amplifies their collective voice and cements lasting change. We must strengthen the pipeline for women to lead at every level: in parliaments and boardrooms, yes, but also in families, classrooms and communities, where a girl first learns her voice matters.

And let us be clear: this is not a "women's issue". Too often, it is women who fill this room. Gender equality needs everyone at the table. It will only be achieved when men and women lead together, as equals.

We commend His Excellency President Xi [Jinping] for leading this Global Leaders Meeting on Women and his commitment to the women's rights agenda.

Our work is far from done. Let us make Beijing+30 the turning point where we finally deliver.

Let us recommit to a future where every woman and girl can learn, earn and lead - a future where progress is measured not only in GDP [gross domestic product], but in dignity and equality.

Let us finally recognize, in our policies and in our investments, a truth we have long proclaimed: Women hold up half the sky. It is time we built a world that supports them in return.

Let Beijing+30 be remembered as the moment when we had the courage to finish what we started. Thank you.