Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Moldova and Poland have received the highest number of refugees. As of 12 April, about 96 thousand Ukrainian refugees are residing across the different regions of Moldova. UN Women has been working with partners to gather, analyse and disseminate data to illustrate the differential and disproportionate impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on women and girls. Together with the Border Police of Moldova, UN Women produced a factsheet in mid-March with data on the demographic profiles of Ukrainian refugees hosted in the country. Together with the International Organization for Migration, a displacement survey was conducted and quantitative data was collected. To gather qualitative data for the assessment, UN Women has been talking to women refugees living in temporary placement centers. This is their story.

Despite the myriad challenges of collecting data in conflict, UN Women has been working tirelessly with partners to gather, analyse and disseminate data to illustrate the differential and disproportionate impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on women and girls. At least five publications have been produced so far, revealing the grim reality of war and its evolution, particularly for the most vulnerable women and girls.

UN Under-Secretary-General and UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous visited the Republic of Moldova from 8 to 10 April to reaffirm UN Women’s commitment as a key partner to advance gender equality and women’s leadership in the country. During her visit, Bahous emphasized UN Women’s determination to support Moldova’s efforts as a host country to the thousands of refugees fleeing the war in neighbouring Ukraine. 

In the Pacific region, as in other parts of the world, women are spearheading climate adaptation and mitigation strategies — something Sharon Bhagwan-Rolls, a second-generation Pacific Fijian feminist has championed throughout her three-decade journey in the women’s rights movement.

We are deeply shocked by the images of civilians killed in Bucha and other localities, and gravely concerned about mounting allegations of sexual violence perpetrated against women and girls in the context of the war in Ukraine. We echo the UN Secretary-General in his calls for the war in Ukraine to stop—now. Such wars and related displacement heighten risks of all forms of sexual violence including trafficking in persons, impacting women and girls disproportionately.

At a 21 March side event of the 66th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66), UN leaders, policy makers, and civil society activists highlighted the impacts of climate shocks and environmental hazards on women and girls in humanitarian settings.

Remarks by United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women, Sima Bahous, at the UN Women side event, ‘Climate Shocks Exacerbating Humanitarian Crisis, Insecurity and Gender Inequality – Voices from the Sahel and Afghanistan’, at the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, 21 March 2022

On this International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, we emphasize the long-term approach needed to eliminate racism, and commit to continuing to make racial justice a priority for the women and girls we serve, whose voices must be heard and concerns acted upon.

On 16 March, at a high-level dialogue against the backdrop of the 66th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66), UN Women Executive Director Sima Bahous gathered with Action Coalition Leaders and global Generation Equality actors to reflect on the concrete progress made since the Generation Equality Forum in Paris and to share her bold vision to ensure future success.

Officials, civil society representatives and other practitioners gathered for the Asia-Pacific Regional Consultation ahead of the Sixty-Sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66) agreed that women and girls need to be better represented in all aspects of climate change, environmental and disaster risk reduction (DRR) policy and programme processes, from the leadership and decision-making spaces, data collection and analysis, to policy formulation, programme design, and all the way through to implementation on the ground, as well as the monitoring and evaluating of these efforts.

At a side event on 16 March, under the umbrella of the 24-hours of Generation Equality at the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66), the Global Alliance for Care gathered its Members alongside diverse Generation Equality advocates to highlight that tackling climate change and building resilient societies is dependent on the development of sustainable care systems.

During the 66th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66), UN Women hosted a side event entitled “Beyond COVID-19: Advancing gender responsive policies on climate, care and jobs for a sustainable and equal future”.

Remarks by Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UN Women, Sima Bahous, at the UN Women side event, ‘Beyond COVID-19: Advancing Gender Responsive Policies on Climate, Care and Jobs for a Sustainable and Equal Future’, at the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women

More than 400,000 people from Ukraine have crossed into the Republic of Moldova since Russia’s invasion on 24 February. According to Moldova’s Bureau for Migration and Asylum, over 1,600 Ukrainians had requested asylum as of 10 March.

Opening remarks by Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UN Women, Sima Bahous, at the corporate side event, Generation Equality: The Journey Ahead – High-level Multistakeholder Intergenerational Dialogue, at the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women

“Climate action must include investing in women activists, human rights defenders, and civil society organizations,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a virtual town hall with women representing a range of civil society organizations during the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66).

On the sidelines of the 66th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, Afghan women experts came together in New York to discuss how best international mechanisms can be more effective in upholding the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

At a special event hosted by Mr. Abdulla Shahid, President of the General Assembly, on the sidelines of the 66th Commission on the Status of Women, leaders came together to call for concrete actions and responses to end violence against women in politics around the world.

The 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW66) began its two-week long gathering on Monday with an urgent call for commitments and action towards the full and meaningful inclusion of the world’s women and girls in climate solutions.

We meet at a moment that brings our mandate as the UN into especially sharp focus. All crises and conflicts exact their highest price from women and girls; from Myanmar to Afghanistan, from the Sahel to Haiti, from Palestine to Syria, to Somalia, to Yemen, to Ethiopia. The horrifying war in Ukraine now joins this list.