Women’s Network news round-up: from gender equality roadmaps to South Africa’s call for women leaders
International Women’s Day took place this year on 8 March and there have been a flurry of stories from all corners of the world to coincide with it – from renewed pushes to advance gender equality globally and announcements of gender-focused government policies, to discussion around flexible work in civil services and provisions for public sector women.
Here’s our round-up of related news, including coverage of the UN’s and EU’s new gender equality plans; former president of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s warning that aid cuts could erase women from public life; public service workforce news; and more.
The Global Government Women’s Network is a free network for women in civil and public services around the world – a global community of women who can advise and support each other as they navigate their careers, underpinned by exclusive news, opinion, analysis and events. Visit the Women’s Network hub and become a member here.
One in four countries report backlash on women’s rights – and UN’s and EU’s new roadmaps
Women’s and girls’ rights are facing unprecedented growing threats worldwide, from higher levels of discrimination to weaker legal protections, and less funding for programmes and institutions that support and protect women, according to a UN review of women’s rights.
The review coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action – a comprehensive plan to achieve the equal rights of all women and girls, endorsed by 189 governments in 1995.
In the foreword of the report, Sima Bahous, under-secretary general of the UN and executive director of UN Women, said that “although gender inequality is one of the most pressing challenges of our time, it also presents an unparalleled opportunity to transform societies” and that the anniversary of the Beijing declaration “offers a chance to reflect on progress and accelerate action”.
UN Women’s efforts to do this include its Beijing+30 Action Agenda, which comprises six actions to advancing gender equality: bridging the digital gender gap; placing women at the heart of sustainable economic development; ending violence against women; advancing women’s leadership in decision-making; increasing accountability in peace security and humanitarian action; and striving for climate justice.
It has also called for the “critical inclusion” of youth in these efforts. “By embedding youth across all six actions, we multiply their impact and ensure that today’s decisions shape tomorrow’s world,” Bahous said. Read the report here.
The European Commission has also published a report on gender equality in the EU and launched a roadmap for women’s rights off the back of it.
In the report’s conclusion, it said “the journey to achieving full gender equality remains a long and arduous one”. It noted that women continue to be under-represented in decision-making positions – for the first time in the history of the European Parliament there has been a decline in the number of women members (see more statistics in the section below) – and it drew attention to headlines in the past year from Afghanistan’s ban on women’s participation in public life to the harrowing case of Gisèle Pelicot in France.
“These serve as stark reminders that progress on gender equality is fragile and that it still takes extraordinary resilience to fight for women’s rights,” it said, calling for “coordinated common efforts” to implement related EU legislation “so that the rights and dignity of women and girls will finally and consistently be enforced, protected and promoted”.
Its roadmap, which it described as a “long-term vision for progress”, aims to further pave the way towards freedom from gender-based violence; the highest standards of health; equal pay and economic empowerment; work-life balance and care; equal employment opportunities and adequate working conditions, quality and inclusive education; political participation and equal representation; and institutional mechanisms that deliver on women’s rights.
Read the EU’s gender equality report here and the roadmap here.
Facts and figures: women’s leadership and political participation
UN Women has said that women’s equal participation and leadership in political and public life are essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, but that data shows that women are underrepresented at all levels of decision-making worldwide and that achieving gender parity in political life is a long way off.
Among its statistics, it found that as of 1 January 2025, there are 25 countries where women serve as heads of state and/or government and that at the current rate, gender equality in the highest positions of power will not be reached for another 130 years.
It also found that as of 1 January this year, women represented 22.9% of Cabinet members heading ministries, and that there are only nine countries in which women hold half or more Cabinet minister positions leading policy areas.
More here, including statistics on women in national parliaments and women in local government.
Johnson Sirleaf: Aid cuts could erase women from public life
In an opinion piece, former president of Liberia Ellen Johnson Sirleaf argued that the dismantling of USAID and cuts to aid funding by other traditional donors risks doing irreparable damage and critical development milestones being missed, and that programmes supporting women’s public leadership will be hit particularly hard.
“There are many issues competing for attention and funding during this tumultuous time, and gender equality must remain high on the agenda. If we don’t invest in women now, we will look back at this moment as a missed opportunity with significant consequences for global development,” she said.
Flexible work a top priority for public service women in Australia
Support for work from home arrangements has doubled in a decade, according to the Community and Public Sector Union’s latest survey of women in the public service.
Almost all (96.7%) respondents said working from home in normal hours is important or very important in 2024 – this is up from 49.2% in 2015 – while women who said being able to negotiate part-time work is important or very important rose from 65% to 75.5% over the same period.
Australian opposition leader Peter Dutton recently softened his pledge to get public servants to return to work five days a week. The incumbent Labor Party has argued that the policy shows the Coalition is anti-women. (The Australian federal election will be held on or before 17 May this year).
South Africa pushes for women’s empowerment in public service transformation
South Africa’s public service and administration minister Inkosi Mzamo Buthelezi highlighted the challenges faced by women in the “patriarchal landscape” during a departmental International Women’s Day event, and urged women to recognise their inherent strength and leadership potential.
“Being a woman is not a limitation but a force of nature… Without your leadership as women, without your vision and resolve, the promise of an ethical, effective, and people-centred public service would remain an empty ambition,” he said.
He noted that the representation of women in senior management positions within the public service is 45.62%, and called on women to step into leadership roles with confidence. “The future of public service awaits your leadership. You have within you all it takes to redefine leadership in government and to build a legacy of service that speaks for generations to come.” Read the article.
GGF produces the Women Leaders Index. As part of the last index in 2022, Zukiswa Mqolomba, deputy chairperson of South Africa’s Public Service Commission spoke about why representation of women in the country’s public service isn’t just a numbers game. Read her interview.
UK government on plan to tackle gender-based violence – and more
The UK government has announced a suite of policies to support women, including pledging to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, work to empower women in the workplace and harness their economic potential, and backing miscarriage bereavement leave. It has also appointed a new UK special envoy to champion women’s rights.
Jess Phillips, parliamentary under-secretary of state for safeguarding and violence against women and girls, said that the government’s violence against women and girls strategy – expected to be published this summer – would aim to tackle the root causes of abuse, including underlying behaviours held by some men and boys.
She also said that work is underway to improve the policing and criminal justice system response, including through embedding domestic abuse specialists in emergency call centres, measures to protect stalking victims, measures to address drinks spiking, and new ‘Domestic Abuse Protection Orders’. More on that here.
However, recent polling by Ipsos found that 67% of women are not confident that the UK government will effectively tackle gender-based violence.
In other UK news, the government announced that Harriet Harman is the new UK special envoy for women and girls.
“Harriet Harman will coordinate efforts across the globe to ensure women and girls are empowered and have their rights protected, including sexual and reproductive health and rights, access to education, and freedom from gender-based violence,” it said. You can read the announcement here.
Women into Leadership seminars
Global Government Forum’s Women into Leadership seminars are designed for women in the civil service who want to understand what works in terms of overcoming obstacles and achieving promotion, why it works, and how you can make it work for you.
The intention is to help you develop a far deeper understanding of the external and internal factors that can hold women back, and most importantly, what actions you can realistically take to overcome these obstacles.
Women into Leadership I – next taking place on Thursday 27March
Women into Leadership II – next taking place on Thursday 3 April
About Mia Hunt
Mia has been editor of globalgovernmentforum.com since 2019. She has 15 years’ experience as a journalist and editor and specialises in writing for civil and public servants worldwide, including covering sustainability policy and related issues. She has led the Global Government Women’s Network since it launched in 2023. Previously, she covered commercial property having been market reports and supplements editor at Property Week and deputy editor at Retail Destination. She graduated from Kingston University London with a first-class honours degree in journalism and was part of the team that produced The River newspaper, which won Publication of the Year at the Guardian Student Media Awards in 2010.
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