Calling for civil society input as preparations for CSW 57 begin
16 July 2012
As preparations for next year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) get underway, efforts are being made to bring civil society voices in at the early stages, using an online discussion forum. The forum, operated by UN Women and open to all CSOs and experts, will be held between 23 July and 3 August 2012.
The priority theme for the event, held each year at UN Headquarters in New York, will be the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls. Discussions will see particular focus on two areas: primary prevention – stopping violence before it starts – and multi-sectoral services and responses to victims and survivors.
CSW is an annual opportunity for Member States to discuss areas of concern for women and girls, and to agree on approaches to address these issues. The online forum will collect best practices, experiences and recommendations from organizations and practitioners on the ground, and will feed this into reports by the UN Secretary-General, to help guide discussions by Commission members during the session. The forum aims to ensure that CSW’s discussions will be led by high quality materials and reports, and will therefore highlight the most effective responses to VAW, with strong evidence; identify the gaps and challenges in achieving the most effective responses; and demonstrate the need to prevent violence before it starts.
For more on CSW 57, go to its webpage. Please also click here for more information on the online forum and how to join it.
