FAO at the 66th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66)
Hybrid Event, 14/03/2022 - 25/03/2022
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women, and is a functional commission of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).
During the Commission’s annual two-week session, representatives of UN Member States, civil society organizations, UN entities, and others gather at UN headquarters in New York, to discuss progress and gaps in the implementation of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action – the comprehensive global policy framework and blueprint for action, which is a current source of guidance and inspiration ro realize gender equality and the human rights of women and girls, everywhere. key global policy document on gender equality – as well as discuss on emerging issues that affect gender equality and the empowerment of women. Member States will work to agree on further actions to accelerate progress and promote women’s enjoyment of their rights in political, economic, and social fields. The outcomes and recommendations of each session will then be forwarded to ECOSOC for follow-up action.
This 66th Session of the Commission (CSW66) will have as priority theme 'Achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change, environment, and disaster risk reduction policies and programmes,' and as a review theme, 'Women’s economic empowerment in the changing world of work' (agreed conclusions of the sixty-first session).
The Commission will review, as appropriate, its methods of work, taking into consideration the outcome of the process of alignment of the agendas of the UNGA and ECOSOC and its subsidiary bodies, with a view to further enhancing the impact of the work of the Commission. In addition, the Commission will make a recommendation on how to ensure that the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women is a landmark year, where further progress can be made to accelerate the realization of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls everywhere.
The FAO Deputy Director-General, Maria Helena Semedo, will deliver a video message as part of the Commission's general session.
Stay up to date on the key takeaways from FAO's participation at CSW66.
Access the list of all CSW66 side events.
Learn more about FAO's work on gender equality and women's empowerment.
FAO at CSW66: Side events
(all times listed below are New York time)
14 March | 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
"Promoting women's and girls' participation and leadership in disaster risk reduction and financing"
Co-organized by: FAO and the African Risk Capacity (ARC)
The FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa, Abebe Haile-Gabriel, will deliver the keynote address.
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note | Agenda | Watch the recording | Web story on the event | Joint FAO-ARC brief
16 March | 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
"Empowering rural women in value chains for sustainable tourism in Small Island Developing States"
Co-organized by: FAO, the Mountain Partnership/Coalition of Fragile Ecosystems, and Slow Food
The FAO Chief Scientist, Ismahane Elouafi, will deliver opening remarks.
The Permanent Representative of Palau to the UN, Ambassador Ilana Seid, will deliver an opening statement.
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note | Agenda | Watch the recording | Web story on the event
16 March | 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
"The key to achieve gender equality is to have more women representation in high government positions and businesses"
Organized by the International Federation for Peace and Sustainable Development (IFPSD)
Visit the CSW66 website | Agenda
17 March | 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
"Information, voice, power: The role of education and girl-generated data in enabling Girl-led action on climate change"
Co-organized by: World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) and FAO
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note and agenda | Register here
17 March | 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
"Reaching gender equality, youth inclusion and parity in decision making in the climate change dialogue"
Co-organized by: FAO, CGIAR, UNFCCC and YOUNGO
The FAO Deputy Director-General, Maria Helena Semedo, will participate as a speaker.
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note and agenda | Register here | Web story on the event
17 March | 10:30 AM - 11:45 AM
"Empowering women through cooperatives"
Co-organized by: Permanent Mission of Turkey to the United Nations
The FAO Chief Scientist, Ismahane Elouafi, will participate as a speaker.
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note and agenda | Watch the recording
23 March | 9:00 AM - 10:15 AM
"Empowering rural women through a climate resilience lens"
Co-organized by: FAO, IFAD, WFP and UN WOMEN.
Visit the CSW66 website | Concept note | Agenda | Register here | Web story on new phase of UN Joint Programme | Web story on the event
24 March | 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
"Measuring what matters"10 Years of the Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index - Why has it mattered and what's next?"
Co-organized by: FAO, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, IFAD, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and USAID
The FAO Chief Economist, Máximo Torero, will participate as a speaker.