Issuing Presidential Statement, Security Council Expresses Grave Concern about Increase in Attacks on Schools, Underlines Education’s Contribution to Peace
Source: ReliefWeb
The Security Council today urged Member States to develop effective measures to prevent and address attacks and threats against schools, including by developing domestic legal frameworks. In a presidential statement document S/PRST/2020/8) issued by Niger, Council President for September, the 15-member organ reaffirmed the right to education and its contribution to the achievement of peace and security, expressing grave concern about the significant increase in attacks on schools in recent years and the alarming number of children denied access to quality education. The Council also voiced deep concern at the military use of schools in contravention of applicable international humanitarian law, encouraging Member States to take concrete measures to deter the use of schools for such purposes.
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Melinda Gates calls on Leaders to Ensure that Women, Girls are Not Left Behind in the Global Response to COVID-19
Source: allAfrica
Melinda Gates has launched a paper exploring how the COVID-19 pandemic has exploited pre-existing inequalities and drastically impacted women’s lives and livelihoods. In the paper, titled “The Pandemic’s Toll on Women and Girls,” Melinda makes the case that to recover fully from this pandemic, leaders must respond to the ways that it is affecting men and women differently. She puts forward a set of specific, practical policy recommendations that governments should consider in their pandemic response—to improve health systems for women and girls, design more inclusive economic policies, gather better data, and prioritize women’s leadership.Writing in the paper, Melinda describes how previous disease outbreaks, including AIDS and Ebola, tend to exploit existing forces of inequality, particularly around gender, systemic racism, and poverty.
The broader impacts of this crisis are having a disproportionate impact on women and girls.In Africa, for example, women account for around 40% of COVID-19 cases. However, African women and girls are disproportionately affected by reduced access to health care services and are at greater risk of gender-based violence. Women make up the majority of workers in the informal sector, which leaves them at greater risk of losing their income.
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New Report: A Right Not a Gift (2020)
Source: The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation
In the year 2000, the groundbreaking resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security was adopted by the UN Security Council. A landmark victory for the women’s movement. 20 years down the road, this study showcases women’s championship for building feminist peace, and identifies the potentials and shortcomings of the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
Read the report here.
