Women's Rights in Review 30 Years After Beijing

Published in March 2024, UN Women’s latest report Women's Rights in Review 30 Years After Beijing shows that nearly a quarter of governments worldwide reported a backlash on women’s rights.

Despite important progress, only 87 countries have ever been led by a woman, and a woman or girl is killed every ten minutes by a partner or a member of her own family. Digital technology and artificial intelligence spread harmful stereotypes, while the digital gender gap limits women’s opportunities.

In the past decade, the world registered a disturbing 50 per cent increase in the number of women and girls living in conflict, and women’s rights defenders confront daily harassment, personal attacks and even death. 

The year 2025 marks three decades of progress since the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most visionary roadmap on women’s rights. This report, which draws on feedback provided by 159 Governments to the United Nations Secretary-General, shows progress that must be acknowledged – since 1995, parity has been achieved in girls’ education, and maternal mortality has dropped by a third. 

Women’s representation in parliaments more than doubled, and countries continue to remove discriminatory laws, with 1,531 legal reforms between 1995 and 2024 in 189 countries and territories.  This demonstrates that when women’s rights are fully upheld in their countries, families, communities and economies flourish.

Yet, significant efforts are still required to achieve gender equality and bring us closer to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. With this in mind, the report also features the new Beijing+30 Action Agenda, a courageous roadmap to complete UN Women’s unfinished business by focusing on:

1. A digital revolution for all women and girls: We must ensure equal access to technology, equip women and girls to lead in AI and digital innovation, and guarantee their online safety and privacy.
    
2. Freedom from poverty: Investments in comprehensive social protection, universal health coverage, education and robust care services are needed for women and girls to thrive and can create millions of green and decent jobs.
    
3. Zero violence: Countries must adopt and implement legislation to end violence against women and girls, in all its forms, with well-resourced plans that include support for community-based organisations on the frontlines of response and prevention.
    
4. Full and equal decision-making power: Temporary special measures like gender quotas have proven their effectiveness in rapidly increasing women’s participation.
    
5. Peace and security: Fully financed national plans on women, peace and security and gender-responsive humanitarian aid are essential. Frontline women’s organisations, so often the first responders to crisis, must receive dedicated, sustained funding to build lasting peace.
    
6. Climate justice: We must prioritise women’s and girls’ rights in climate adaptation, centre their leadership and knowledge, and ensure that they benefit from new green jobs.

(UN Women/ile)

Read more and download the report on the UN Women website