UN Women and the People’s Republic of China will co-host a landmark event in conjunction with the UN Summit on the post-2015 development framework and as part of the 20th Anniversary commemoration of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. At the high-level “Global Leaders’ Meeting on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment:...

Almost 800 women die every day while giving birth, and the curse of maternal mortality stretches from Sierra Leone to Myanmar. By the time the pregnant 17 years old arrives at a hospital in Sierra Leone, it is already too late. Her baby has died—maybe the day before, maybe even longer. She has been left in labor for far too long—approximately...

Yinchuan (Women of China) - On September 12, the Chinese city of Yinchuan hosted the first ever women's forum between China and countries in the Middle East with the aim of promoting bilateral economic exchanges and cooperation among Chinese and Arab women. Launched during the annual China-Arab States Expo held from September 10 to 12, the...

As reported by Nisaa FM, CEO Middle East in March announced its fifth ranking of the 100 Most Powerful Arab Women. Last week, on September 16 2015, Forbes Middle East unveiled its own ranking of the Most Powerful Arab Women for 2015. The names were announced at an impressive ceremony in Dubai, where the achievements of women in reaching the top of their...

New York (UN Women) - 25 September is #OrangeDay, a day of action to end all forms of violence against women and girls. This week, the day also marks an important threshold in the international campaign for gender equality and women’s rights: from September 25 to 27, the United Nations summit for the adoption of the post-2015 development...

Gaza (Al Jazeera) – Being a journalist in Gaza has never been more challenging than it is the case today. Since 2005, three wars (2008-9, 2012 and 2014) have been waged on the tiny coastal territory bordering the Mediterranean Sea, and its 1.8 million citizens have become increasingly isolated from the outside world, forced to live under prison-like...

Geneva (UNHCR) - On 15 September, the United Nation’s Refugee Agency (UNHCR) announced that Aqeela Asifi - an Afghan refugee teacher who has dedicated her life to bringing education to refugee girls in Pakistan - has been awarded the 2015 UNHCR Nansen Refugee Award. A former teacher in Kabul, Asifi was forced to flee the city with her...

New York (Women in the World) – The city of Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city and the world’s second-largest in terms of population, has for the past many years frequently made world headlines because of the alarming amount of violence and unrest caused by a weak law enforcement system and oppressive Taliban control. Early in 2015,...

Marrakech (Morocco World News) - The Salé-based Abi Raqraq Association announced on 12 September that it will host the ninth edition of the Salé International Women’s Film Festival from September 28 to October 3 2015. One of the main highlights of the week-long event is the competition held for twelve long feature-films which...

Pretoria (Gender Links) – "Women and men experience conflict differently and therefore understand peace differently". This quote from the United Nations website on Gender and Peacekeeping sums up the vision behind the second UN peacekeeping training program for female officers, convened by UN Women in collaboration with...

Ramallah - On 31 August 2015, 15-year-old Ahed Tamimi made world headlines when a video of Ahed helping her mother and aunt wrestle her younger brother out of the grip of an Israeli soldier went viral. This was not the first time Ahed’s unshakable commitment to resisting the occupation of Palestinian land made her the subject of international...

Cape Town (UN News Centre) - The Black Mamba Anti-Poaching Unit, a South African ranger group consisting mostly of women, has been named as one of the winners of the top United Nations environmental prize, Champions of the Earth. Bestowed by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the award recognizes the “rapid and impressive impact”...