UN Resident Coordinator remarks at UNCT, Fourah Bay College Joint IWD 2022 Commemoration.

Honourable Deputy Vice-Chancellor,

Colleagues from the UN family,

Esteemed students at the University of Sierra Leone—Fourah Bay College,

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,

Sierra Leone is one of the most vulnerable countries to the adverse effects of climate change. According to the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Index, it is ranked as 157th out of 181 countries able to adapt to climate change, in terms of high vulnerability and low readiness. This has serious implications for the country’s vulnerable population, especially women and girls.

This year’s commemoration of the International Women’s Day focuses on the theme, “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow: recognizing the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, to build a more sustainable future for all”. It is not only a recognition of the immense contribution of women and girls to our society, but also an acknowledgement that climate change is a transversal issue, and that climate adaptation needs to be tackled by all segments of the society, including by women and girls.

This could not be truer than in Sierra Leone, where gender equality and women’s empowerment cut across issues of food security, climate emergencies, access to basic services, political participation, decent employment, and gender-based violence and harmful practices. Sierra Leone ranks 153 out of 162 countries on the 2018 Gender Inequality Index. 68.4 per cent of rural poor are women, with almost all of them experiencing acute or chronic hunger. Climate-related emergencies not only cause major disruptions to food supply, but also to access to essential health services and life-saving medicines, including for maternal health care, contributing to a higher risk of maternal and new-born deaths.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,

All stakeholders, including you, Fourah Bay College students, have a pivotal role in ensuring that climate adaptation, and disaster preparedness, response and early recovery efforts are climate-resilient and more inclusive. This in turn will empower women and girls to protect their rights, make choices and realize their potential, as well as strengthen climate change-affected communities’ ability to adapt.

It is now nearly 50 years since the first International Women’s Day was celebrated in 1975. Yet, issues of gender inequality and the low status of women and girls continue to permeate our society. Implemented responses have simply not been sufficiently transformative. Thus, in Sierra Leone, for example, there is a stark gender imbalance in political participation. This is evidenced by the number of women not only in elective but in appointive positions.  Women currently account for only 11 percent of parliamentarians and 19 percent of local councillors.

However, it is encouraging to note that despite existing discriminatory laws and practices, Sierra Leone has made a lot of progress, and is working towards realizing global and national commitments.  The Government has put in place institutional, policy and legal frameworks to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment.

We commend the Minister of Gender and Children’s Affairs for the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Bill 2021. The Ministry has made key strides in promoting women’s inclusion in decision-making and economic empowerment, among others. We are encouraged by the achievements that Sierra Leone has made thus far. But there is still much that needs to be done to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. One critical pathway forward would be for the Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Bill 2021 to be enacted.

Over many decades, the UN system has made significant progress in advancing gender equality, including through landmark agreements such as the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the UN Security Council Resolution 1325. Gender equality is not only a basic human right, but its achievement has enormous socio-economic ramifications. Empowering women fuels thriving economies, spurs productivity and growth, and engenders climate resilience.

Thus, the interconnected nature of economic, social, and environmental change is at the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with gender equality and women's empowerment being central to the achievement of all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).  In particular, gender equality is a precondition for reducing poverty. Unless progress on gender equality is accelerated, the global community will not only fail to achieve SDG 5, “Achieve Gender Equality and Empower of All Women and Girls”, but it will also forgo the catalytic effect that gender equality can have for the achievement of all the 17 SDGs and the 2030 Agenda more broadly.

On this occasion of the International Women’s Day, on behalf of the UN Country Team, let me call on all stakeholders to join efforts and invest in gender equality and women’s empowerment, including ensuring the meaningful participation of women and girls in policymaking and climate action by shifting and sharing power with excluded groups and people – and promoting gender parity in all decision-making spaces. I reiterate UN Sierra Leone’s commitment to work with the people and Government of Sierra Leone in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.  

Thank you.