Public authorities

The Congress of Local Authorities from Moldova (CALM) including its Women’s Network, is a key partner to promote gender equality at the local level. Photo: CALM

Following its global mandate to help Member States implement gender equality standards, since its establishment in 2010 UN Women has supported the Government of Moldova in its efforts towards achieving gender equality and women empowerment. In particular, UN Women helps the Government conform to the international gender equality agreements to which Moldova is part. The cornerstone of these international commitments is the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). We support the Government in the drafting and implementation of its normative framework for gender equality, in consultation with civil society; and we help public authorities consolidate the capacities of their gender units.

The impact of UN Women’s support for an efficient gender equality machinery:

• The Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family drafted its Strategy for Equality between Men and Women 2017-2021;
• Gender Units from ministries and local public authorities learned how to integrate the gender dimension in sector policies, following international standards;
• The normative framework was amended to allow the functioning of Coordination Groups for Gender in each ministry;
• The Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family increased its capacity to coordinate efficiently the gender equality agenda;
• Public officials in the key state institutions have gathered knowledge on women’s rights in the context of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and other related resolutions on Women, Peace and Security.
• Thanks to a specific coordination council, the Ministry of Labour, Social Protection and Family can now coordinate more efficiently the external assistance provided by development partners in the gender equality domain;

Local authorities also play an important role in several of our projects. The Congress of Local Authorities from Moldova (CALM), including its Women’s Network, is a key partner to promote gender equality and participatory human rights- and gender-sensitive planning and budgeting at the local level.