This year's session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, about to begin in New York, once again has a varied and compelling agenda. Up for consideration and debate will be:
- the equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including caregiving in the context of HIV/AIDS;
- a review of progress toward the equal participation of women and men in decision-making processes at all levels;
- the gender perspectives of the financial crisis;
- gender perspectives on global public health: implementing the internationally agreed development goals, including the MDGs; and
- addressing violence against women through legal reform.
And these are only the topics around which the official programme is structured. A series of parallel and supporting events covering these themes and others is being held by NGOs as well as government and UN agencies.
openDemocracy and friends will be posting reports, comment and podcasts over the coming days. Watch this space.