Marking 30 Years Since Beijing Declaration, Secretary-General Urges Renewed Commitment to Gender Equality

Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres' remarks to the high-level meeting on the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women, in New York today:

Thirty years ago, the world came together to affirm that the rights of women and girls are not separate, secondary, or negotiable - they are human rights.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action is the most ambitious global political commitment on women's rights ever achieved. And it has helped to power advances in some critical areas - legal protection, political participation, education, maternal mortality, recognizing the need to tackle violence against women as a global priority, and more. But progress has been slow and uneven, and no nation has achieved full equality for women and girls.

Sustainable Development Goal Five - gender equality - is lagging far behind. Hard-won gains are now under attack. Meanwhile, conflicts and climate disasters are multiplying. The human rights of women and girls are casualties of both.

Cultural and structural barriers remain entrenched. Technology is spreading hate like a virus. And a wave of misogyny is rolling across the world.

Let us be clear: equal rights and opportunities are not partisan issues. They are global imperatives - and the foundation of peace, prosperity and progress.

In every region, every country, every community, women and girls are fighting for their rights. Demanding freedoms, combatting abusive practices, rallying for legal protections and organizing - to take their rightful place at the table in decision-making and peace processes.

The United Nations stands with them. All leaders should do the same. By speaking out for the rights of women and girls. By making clear that tradition cannot excuse oppression. And by doing everything possible to realize the vision of the Beijing Declaration.

Earlier this year, countries took an important step forward. The Commission on the Status of Women adopted a new Political Declaration, committing to implement the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action - fast and in full. So now all countries must live up to that responsibility.

We need strong, visible support at the highest levels - and concrete plans, backed by real investment: To support women's organizations, services and solutions; to deliver the Beijing +30 Action Agenda; to advance economic empowerment; to defend women's rights; and to confront a challenge that was barely imagined three decades ago.

Artificial intelligence is reshaping our world. But this transformation is unfolding in an industry dominated by men, shaped by biased data and driven by algorithms that frequently reinforce discrimination.

We must confront violence and online hate, and ensure that technology serves equality, not exclusion. That includes investing in women and girls' education in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Because women's participation in decision-making - on this issue and every other - it is not a gift, it is a right. It strengthens societies, enriches debate and boosts equality across the board.

We must remove systematic obstacles to equality for women and girls. From discrimination, to unequal pay, and inequality before the law. We need universal ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. And we need proactive steps to bring women into decision-making at every level.

Here at the United Nations, through a dedicated effort, we achieved and maintained gender parity among senior leadership. Allow me a brief explanation on this.

Some think that we have to bend the rules in favour of women to reach parity. Totally wrong. The only thing we did was to guarantee that there was effective equality opportunities for women and men and that the selection processes have not a misogynous bias and the result was parity at the level of the high direction of the United Nations.

We will keep working to reach gender parity across the Organization. And our Gender Equality Acceleration Plan charts our path forward.

Eighty years ago, the Charter of the United Nations affirmed the equal rights of women and men. Thirty years ago, the Beijing Declaration declared women's rights as human rights.

In this Hall today, we need to hear how you will make those ambitions a reality: Let us hear your commitments. Let us see your plans. Let us deliver the equality for women and girls that our world so sorely needs.