In continuation of the long-lasting awareness raising work in the sphere of advancing women’s rights, the UNO Baku – Department of Public Information (UNDPI) team travelled to Shamkir to join in on galvanizing actions for gender equality at the Second Women’s Leadership Conference that took place on 23 May in Shamkir. “Women represent a force to be reckoned with,” said the UNDPI Representative, in her introductory speech. She also evoked the sentiment that “women’s participation is essential in all contexts - during peace, through conflict and post-conflict, and during all kinds of transitions”.

A conference room full of women convened to represent Shamkir and its neighbouring regions, with women’s civil society organizations and media representatives in attendance, as well as many notable women from various governmental and international institutions, all of whom brought their expertise and specialization on ways to enhance women’s leadership.

Concluding her speech, the UNDPI Representative declared the auspicious event an important opportunity to bring together all concerned parties and to put forth recommendations on how to boost the process of women’s empowerment in Azerbaijan.

Ms. Sadagat Gahramanova, Deputy Chairwoman of the State Committee on Family, Women and Children's Affairs, shared her views on the issue of decision-making for Azerbaijani women. “Our aim is to improve the status of women in Azerbaijan by advancing their influence in the decision-making processes, by supporting civil society organizations that focus on issues important to women, and by raising public awareness of those concerns,” she added.

Working groups discussed the role of gender-focused NGOs across a number of development sectors. In addition to women’s entrepreneurship, participants discussed strengthening women's involvement in local self-governance and in civil society. As a result of the discussions, the participants identified and adopted priorities for the Action Plan, together with Final Recommendations on ‘Strengthening women's participation in decision-making processes’.

A film on women's entrepreneurship, and various public service announcements entitled “Raise your Voice against Domestic Violence”, “Gender Equality Support”, “The Scale of Rights”, “Shattered Dream”, and “The Life Ladder” were screened at the end of the conference  . These PSAs were produced by the ’Clean World’ Public Union in coalition with the Citizens' Labor Rights League, within the framework of Women's Participation Program, and with funding by USAID and the implementation of Counterpart International.

To instill a sense of participation and responsibility for bright young minds, the UNO Baku – Department of Public Information (UNDPI) Representative met with keen high school students from Mingachevir on 27 May, imparting knowledge on them regarding the history and structure of the United Nations.

The session was a follow-up to the UN4U campaign launched by the DPI Representative in the city of Ganja, aimed at establishing a dialogue with students, connecting them to the UN, and actively engaging and inspiring them to take an interest in global issues.

“Youth, with their capacity for increased knowledge, represents the country’s most precious asset: they are the ones who will propel Azerbaijan’s global leadership toward peace, development, human rights, and the rule of law,” said Ms. Envera Selimovic, the UNDPI Representative, in starting the session. “This is why the focus on students and academics is so important,” she added.

The UN4U campaign showcases the need for multilateralism to address key global challenges, which requires the full involvement of youth, academic institutions and universities. It is also an effort to give space to younger generations, such that they might understand and accept their societal roles and responsibilities.

”The positive spirit with which Azerbaijani youth want to engage in global issues is inspiring,” said Ms. Selimovic, after hearing students share their knowledge on world issues and the activities of the UN around the world.

“An ever-growing number of young people across Azerbaijan are seeking knowledge on global issues and international standards, as well as ways to voice their opinions about the future they want,” said Mr. Fizuli Asadov, the host of the session, at the Mingachevir youth and vocational centre. “We are thankful to the DPI team for always coming back to encourage the youth of our region to persevere, in assisting their effort to build a better life,” added Asadov.

The second movie, entitled Life Betrayed, cast a limelight on the UN’s efforts in the realm of women’s empowerment, girls’ education, gender equality, and overall human rights issues.

“I have met many young girls and women from all walks of life. The youth, especially among girls, should recognize one fact – that knowledge is the beginning, and it represents power,” said Ms. Selimovic.

“The UN means so much more than what we can learn in a textbook or in class. Meeting such energetic and open-minded UN officials today was an eye-opening experience for me,” said Gunay Gozalova, a 19 year old student from Mingachevir. 

More than 40 young, predominantly female leaders from Ganja City convened for a conference of Young Leaders Club Initiative Group on 27 May. The Representative of UNO Baku drove 348 km from Baku to Ganja to join them and raise awareness on the UN’s activities around the globe, its mission and ideas, as well as to discuss gender equality and empowerment of women within the broader Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) campaign.

As a lead-in to UN4U activities - an opportunity for UN officials to speak at schools and to reach a large and impressionable young audience, the UNO representative’s visit to Ganja kicked off a series of exciting activities and events by UNO, many of them involving youth and young leaders. “This is some of the many endeavors by UNO to share knowledge and engage with bright minds like you,” she told the audience.

Screening of “Betrayed Life” – a short movie depicting a young woman’s tragic life, who becomes a victim of domestic violence and falls prey to human traffickers, sparked the interest of the participants and triggered an interesting discussion. Students discussed issues ranging from the human rights, gender equality, girls education to empowerment of rural women among others. 

Having just concluded their seminar, the students were full of questions and comments on the role of the UN in protecting and promoting human rights, particularly rights of young girls and women. The UNO Representative responded to the queries at length, describing the challenges before the World Body as well as the successes achieved.

She also emphasized the importance of education, the need to achieve the MDGls and urged youth leaders to learn more about the UN and its work and to consider how they could contribute to the progress on the UN’s key objectives of peace, development and human rights.

Qualified women and girls from all over the world can join the United Nations as employees without facing any obstacle or discrimination.
 
Addressing some 135 female students from Iman Secondary School in district three of Tehran on the occasion of “Week of Jobs”, the Officer-in-Charge of UNIC Tehran said UN job opportunities are open to qualified women and girls with a variety of expertise and education both for local and international posts.
 
“Women can even become judges in the UN System, such as Rosalyn Higgins from England, who was the first woman to be elected to the International Court of Justice and the President of the Court, based in The Hague, Netherlands,” he added.

 
He said the UN wants to have equal number of male and female employees and in this regard, the Department of Public Information (DPI) was among the first UN Offices which achieved “gender parity” namely having equal number of women and men employees at all levels.
 
As part of the Centre’s UN4U, the Officer-in-Charge briefed the students on the UN as well as job opportunities in the UN System in Iran, at the school’s hall on 27 April. The briefing was followed by a question and answer session. Copies of the Persian version of “Image and Reality” and “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” were given to the students.