International Women’s Day 2024 Invest in women: Accelerate progress

It is also aligned with the priority theme of the 68th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, “Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective”. [...] In October 2023, the Member States of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) collectively endorsed the "Voluntary Guidelines on Gender Equality and Women's and Girls' Empowerment in Food Security and Nutrition" that provides concrete guidance to boost gender equality and women's empowerment. [...] A global initiative will be launched at the 68th session of the CSW in New York, which aims to call for collective action and mobilise resources towards advancing gender equality and women's empowerment, harnessing the momentum generated by the CFS Voluntary Guidelines and FAO's SWAF report to drive tangible progress on the ground. [...] The RBAs aim to advocate for policy changes at national and international levels to dismantle systemic barriers hindering rural women's progress, as well as to promote financial inclusion for rural women by facilitating their equal access to credit, resources and markets and ensuring their full engagement in economic activities. [...] By closely tracking the impact of mainstreaming gender issues through their operations, the RBAs want to show tangible progress made in empowering women and fostering inclusive and sustainable development at both local and global scales.