"China has also made strong efforts to ensure maternal health and safety. In 2023, maternal mortality decreased to 15.1 per 100,000 beds. Of course, no woman should die giving birth, but the decrease in China is quite outstanding," said UN Women's deputy executive director.

by Martina Fuchs

UNITED NATIONS, March 6 (Xinhua) -- As International Women's Day takes place on Saturday, UN Women has urged strong action for the rights and empowerment of women and girls around the world, commending China for playing a leading role in promoting female entrepreneurs, granting access to higher education and eradicating poverty.

In a virtual interview with Xinhua, Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, UN Women's deputy executive director, said China has played a crucial role in creating a world where all women and girls enjoy equal rights and opportunities.

PROGRESS SLOW, UNEVEN

The rights of women and girls are facing unprecedented growing threats worldwide from rising discrimination, weakening legal protections, and reduced funding for programs and institutions that support and protect women, UN Women warned on Thursday.

Its latest report Women's Rights in Review 30 Years After Beijing, published ahead of the 50th International Women's Day on March 8, shows that in 2024 nearly a quarter of governments worldwide reported a backlash on women's rights.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a global framework for gender equality and a historic milestone in the development of women's rights globally.

Gumbonzvanda said she was in Beijing 30 years ago. "Seeing where we are today, there has been significant progress. More girls are in school, more than ever before. Maternal mortality has dropped by one-third and women's representation in parliament has improved by 26 percent. But that is not enough," she added.

"We continue to see that progress has been slow and uneven, and not in all areas. Whilst progress has been made, the pace has not been enough. UN Women continues to prioritize issues around women, poverty and the prevention of violence against women," she noted.

Despite important progress, only 87 countries have ever been led by a woman, and a woman or girl is killed every 10 minutes by a partner or member of her own family, she said.

The report also features the new Beijing+30 Action Agenda, a roadmap focusing on six actions: a digital revolution for all women and girls to ensure equal access to technology, freedom from poverty, zero violence, full and equal decision-making power, peace and security as well as climate justice.

"The digital revolution for all women and girls is a critical priority, as well as women in decision-making, climate justice issues, and peace and security for women. We want a world of peace," Gumbonzvanda stressed.

Established in 2010, UN Women is an organization under the United Nations dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women with the aim to accelerate progress on meeting the needs of women and girls worldwide.

CHINA'S PIVOTAL ROLE

"Over the past five years, the proportion of women in the total employment population in China has reached 43 percent and that progress is very notable," Gumbonzvanda said. "Women also account for 55 percent of internet entrepreneurs in China and 45 percent among the science and technology workers in China. That is remarkable progress."

"China has also made strong efforts to ensure maternal health and safety. In 2023, maternal mortality decreased to 15.1 per 100,000 beds. Of course, no woman should die giving birth, but the decrease in China is quite outstanding," she said.

"In education, we also see great progress in China. The enrollment of women in higher education reached 60.2 percent in 2023," she added.

Gumbonzvanda said that China has been "a very strong advocate" for the UN Sustainable Development Goal 1, which calls for ending poverty by 2030.

"That focus has been very critical as China has lifted over 770 million people out of extreme poverty over the last four decades. This is the effort that needs to continue," she noted.

She expressed her hope that UN Women will step up collaboration with China.

"We want China to continue to be a strong advocate, a strong convener, like we have done 30 years ago, and be the voice around issues of gender equality, the empowerment and rights of women in multilateral spaces like the UN. We really appreciate the continued global voice of China," Gumbonzvanda said.

"This year marks the 30th year since the Beijing Conference. We hope China will continue to be a place where we can come to for inspiration and for the world to sustain this agenda. We really appreciate the relationship with China and the role of China in the United Nations," she stressed.