Locations
Statement at the High-level Opening of the GANHRI Annual Conference 2025
March 12, 2025
Chair of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), Maryam Abdullah Al Attiyah,
President of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Jürg Lauber,
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a privilege to join GANHRI’s Annual Conference via this video message.
This year’s focus is on the role of National Human Rights Institutions -- or NHRIs -- in promoting gender equality and advancing the human rights of all women and girls.
As this conference convenes, the world is gathering in New York for the 69th Annual Meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women — a powerful reminder that our global community remains steadfast in its pursuit of equality and justice for women and girls, which are essential for the progress of all of humanity and we continue to do so despite some of the setbacks.
At the same time, we take stock of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action on its 30th anniversary — a visionary agenda at the time for realizing women’s rights in our age.
Over the past three decades, remarkable inroads have been made.
For instance, nearly every country has acted to tackle violence against women and girls, narrow gaps in education, and reduce maternal mortality.
Legal reforms have dismantled discriminatory laws, strengthened institutions, and deepened commitments to women’s visibility and opportunity.
Yet, we all know that progress is uneven, fragile, and too often reversible.
Globally, women still have only two-thirds of the legal rights of men.
At the current pace, it will take an additional 137 years to eliminate extreme poverty for women.
This situation is hindering human development and stifling global progress, never mind what it is in terms of affecting women and girls directly in their most fundamental rights.
Accepting this status quo is to choose failure—not just for women and girls, but also a collective failure on our part as societies, as economies, and in terms of our shared futures.
National Human Rights Institutions are demonstrating the centrality of human rights as a means to accelerate change through education, advocacy, legal support and beyond.
They serve as vital bridges, translating international commitments into tangible improvements in the daily lives of women and girls.
For example, in Uzbekistan, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) partnered with the Ombudsperson’s Office and civil society to support legal reforms addressing violence against women and girls.
Subsequently, a Presidential Decree was adopted to strengthen women’s leadership and economic participation while simplifying divorce processes for victims of domestic violence—just one but a very compelling example of the impact of partnerships.
Or let’s look to Peru where the Tri-Partite Partnership between GANHRI, the UN Human Rights Office and UNDP also supported the Ombudsperson’s Office in ensuring that women’s voices and rights remain central to their work.
As part of this effort, the Dictionary for Peace was developed, an innovative tool that presents key concepts for ‘peace journalism’ while encouraging women's equal engagement in conflict prevention.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
These stories vividly demonstrate the transformative potential of bold and united action.
They highlight the indispensable role that National Human Rights Institutions play at the national-level, from empowering women human rights defenders to dismantling systemic inequalities.
On the global stage, these institutions also stand as pillars of accountability, leveraging frameworks like the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Universal Periodic Review to ensure that international commitments translate into real change.
At this pivotal moment, let us recall the historic consensus reached in Beijing 30 years ago to create a world where every woman and girl can thrive.
As part of the United Nations family, UNDP will continue to ensure that each development breakthrough – from energy to digital to finance – becomes an even greater catalyst for women’s rights and human rights.
It means forging a world where equality transcends aspiration and becomes a lived reality for every woman, everywhere.
In that vein, I wish you a highly productive and successful conference and please continue to count on UNDP as your partner.
