Around the world and through the decades, we have all shared in the global struggle for gender equality.

For the first time, gender equality ranks alongside healthcare and climate change as a top global concern, yet 58% of young people don’t know how to support it.

Members of the Green Valley Women’s Association take part in Vanuatu’s International Day of Rural Women celebrations in the village of Emua. Emua is one of five market sites on Efate Island that are part of UN Women’s Markets for Change programme. After it was devastated by Cyclone Pam in March 2015, it was one of the first markets to be up and running again. Over a decade, the programme operating in Fiji, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu, has demonstrated how local markets can become engines of women’s empowerment and economic growth, not just places to buy and sell goods. 

Fifteen years ago, UN Women was created with a bold mission: to become the United Nation’s powerhouse for gender equality and women’s empowerment. Active in more than 80 countries, UN Women has become a driving force, leading campaigns, reshaping laws, and rallying people everywhere to stand up for the rights, equality, and empowerment of the world’s 4 billion women and girls.

Thirty years after the Beijing Platform for Action, women remain underrepresented in UN peace operations, yet their leadership is crucial to building lasting global peace and security.

Online misogyny is increasingly infiltrating schoolyards, workplaces, and intimate relationships, reflecting deeper societal issues that need urgent attention and action.

A new UN Women report warns that half of women-led and women's rights organizations in humanitarian crisis zones may close within six months due to funding cuts, jeopardizing vital services for millions of women and families. In a survey of 411 organizations across 44 crisis-affected countries, 90% reported financial impacts from reduced foreign aid, with over 60% already cutting back on services like emergency healthcare and shelter. Between 2021 and 2022, women’s rights organizations received less than 1% of humanitarian aid funding and heavily depend on government support, which is now diminishing. These organizations play a crucial role in delivering essential humanitarian services in Myanmar, Palestine, Sudan, and Afghanistan.

Climate change deepens gender inequality, disproportionately impacting women and girls—yet their leadership and knowledge are key to building resilient, sustainable solutions.

Conflict is driving a growing mental health crisis for women, yet access to care remains scarce despite soaring needs and alarming statistics.

Generations of fearless feminists have driven progress, but while equality has improved, change remains slow, fragile, and uneven.

Equal rights, equal opportunities and equal power is Un Women’s call to action for all women and girls worldwide on International Women’s Day (8 March). As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the world is deeply unequal.  International Women’s Day is an opportunity to stand up and demand action and to deliver on the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action to make the world equal and better for everyone. The official UN Commemoration event of the International Women’s Day will take place on 7 March at the UN General Assembly Hall in New York.

The 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) runs from March 10 to 21. Over these two weeks, Member States, UN entities, and NGOs worldwide will assess advancements related to the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a groundbreaking document for women's rights celebrating its 30th anniversary. The Commission will evaluate the progress and the challenges in gender equality, and it will include multiple interactive dialogues and side events on interesting current topics with a focus on women’s empowerment. Stay tuned on UN Web TV!

Join us on 8 March to celebrate International Women’s Day! Let's take action for equal rights, power, and opportunities for everyone, especially young women and girls, who are key to creating lasting change. 2025 marks 30 years since the Beijing Declaration, a milestone for women's rights that has helped shape legal protections, services, and shifted outdated norms. Following this document’s dreams, let's inspire action with UN Women! Engage leaders, discover how to help, use #ForAllWomenAndGirls to drive change, and join on line to our official event and live blog! (7 March, 10 a.m. New York time)

Thirty years after the most revolutionary agreement on gender equality was adapted, the rights of far too many women and girls are still not fulfilled.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, established in 1995 by 189 governments at the Fourth World Conference on Women, is the most comprehensive plan for achieving equal rights for all women and girls. It focuses on 12 critical areas, including jobs and economy, political participation, peace, the environment, ending violence against women and more. As we approach the 30th anniversary in 2025, it is crucial to continue the fight for gender equality and equitable power structures for all. Are you ready?!