Advancing gender equality and eye health: Reflections on UN Commission on the Status of Women 68 and beyond

The 68th session of the UN Commission for the Status of Women (CSW68), convened last month in New York City, serving as a pivotal moment for UN Member States to unite and commit to robust measures in combating women’s and girls’ poverty worldwide.

With the priority theme being ‘Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective’, the Agreed Conclusions, presented by the UN Secretary General at the close of the two weeks, underscored a sobering reality:

Globally, 10.3 per cent of women live in extreme poverty today and progress towards ending poverty needs to be 26 times faster to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

The Agreed Conclusions further elucidated the profound impact of poverty on women and girls, describing them as “shock absorbers” in times of crisis. Consequently, it emphasised the urgent need to bolster resources to address this issue and strive for more positive and equitable outcomes for women and girls.

This was my second time attending the CSW as the Head of Gender and Advocacy and Engagement at The Fred Hollows Foundation. The Fred Hollows Foundation is a global leader in international development, working in over 25 countries to combat avoidable blindness and vision loss. Our goal is to transform lives through innovative eye health solutions, and we believe that a stronger systems-change approach at the national and global level will generate the broad and sustained transformation required to benefit people living with preventable vision loss.

In July 2021, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted the first-ever resolution on eye health. Of the 1.1 billion people living with vision impairment that could have been prevented or treated, 55% are women. The resolution elevated eye health as a critical social, development and economic issue, and called upon member states and other stakeholders to eliminate barriers and discrimination against women and girls in accessing support and eye health services. There is no doubt that addressing eye health inequalities can help close the gender gap and ensure women are able to exercise their rights in all areas of society.

While the conclusion of the CSW68 did culminate in robust commitments by UN Member States to address the pervasive issue of women’s and girls’ poverty, it would be remiss not to mention that its sessions were often overshadowed by the looming financial constraints currently faced by the United Nations. Throughout the two weeks, this tension was palpable, particularly when negotiations were forced to promptly stop at 6pm each night, with lights and heating also turned off when sessions were not on. This time limitation raised concerns, including whether CSOs had the access they were due and even to the extent of whether agreed conclusions could be reached. Despite these barriers, however, the Agreed Conclusions were published.

Our parallel event hosted on the fringe of the CSW sought to bring attention to the central role achieving UHC for women has in combating poverty and driving economic empowerment for growth for women and girls.

Looking ahead, attention is now focused on the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action, with the 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69) scheduled for March 2025 in New York. As the global community continues its efforts towards gender equality, the outcomes of CSW68 serve as a critical step in addressing women’s and girls’ poverty worldwide.