Women’s Empowerment
The Brazilian committee, headed by Minister of Women, Fida Goncalves, and accompanied by the First Lady, Janja Lula da Silva, dialogued with countries on G20 priorities and took part in two events within the framework of the Group.
In 2024, the 68th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) discussed the current situation of women in conflicts around the world. | Photo: Claudio Kubene/PR`
Brazil brought to the 68th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) the agenda to be discussed in the G20 Women’s Empowerment Working Group, coordinated by the Ministry of Women. Minister of Women Ferdinand Goncalves and First Lady Janja Lula da Silva, along with the Brazilian delegation, discussed Brazil’s women-related priorities in bilateral meetings and conferences during the CSW Programme Week.
The theme of Brazil’s presidency of this year’s G20 summit is “Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet,” reflecting a commitment to more equitable governance by making fighting inequality and social inclusion national priorities. 2024 marks the first year of the G20 Working Group on Women’s Empowerment, which will strengthen the Brazilian government’s efforts to address gender inequality.
The institutionalization of the Working Group on Women’s Empowerment, established to support ministries responsible for the implementation of gender equality policies in G20 countries, demonstrates member states’ commitment to the empowerment of girls and women.
According to Isis Taboas, coordinator of the G20 Working Group on Women’s Empowerment, the gender gap remains one of the deepest in the world and the Brazilian Government recognizes that promoting equality plays a fundamental role in building a sustainable and fair future.
“It is an honor for Brazil to host the first meeting of the Working Group on Women’s Empowerment at the G20, reinforcing our unwavering determination to address the widespread challenge of gender inequality. Moreover, the creation of this Working Group within the G20 represents a continuation of the G20’s commitment to gender equality, which began in 2015 with the creation of the W20 and was strengthened in 2019 with the creation of Empower”, the Women’s Ministry Adviser stressed, referring to the two groups considering the participation of civil society. Her speech took place last Wednesday (13th) in New York at the event “Gender Equality, Disparities in Women’s Health and Care Economy: Voices of W20 Brazil in the G20 2024”.
In line with the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of All Women and Girls, Brazil proposed that the Working Group focus on women’s equality and economic empowerment, including in the health and care economy, addressing gender-based violence and discrimination, and promoting climate justice for women.
During the panel “Philanthropy for Gender Justice: How Foundations Can Contribute to the Achievement of G20 Priorities in Brazil”, held on Wednesday (13th) in parallel with the 68th CSW, Isis Taboas reaffirmed the Brazilian government’s commitment to developing and building durable economic support mechanisms for social transformation processes aimed at promoting equality, human rights and democracy.
“The Brazilian Ministry of Women is aware of the magnitude of the financial challenges towards gender equality and is working to design and develop public financing mechanisms that can improve and expand support for the changes necessary to build and enforce women’s human rights,” she asserted.
According to Tabouas, in the context of climate justice, girls and women are disproportionately affected by environmental change, and it is essential to consider their intersectionality when discussing the allocation of financial resources to address these gender-related disparities. “It is also important to increase women’s participation in regional and global decision-making forums related to climate justice,” she added.
Pedro Martins Simões, from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ G20 Coordination Team, also accompanied him to the event.
The Brazilian Commission was headed by Minister of Women, Fida Goncalves, accompanied by the wife of President Janja Lula da Silva. | Photo: Claudio Kubene/Audiovisual PR
During the week that the Brazilian delegation took part in bilateral meetings, Minister Ferdinand Goncalves discussed the G20 Summit in Brazil with her colleagues and officials from other countries.
On the second day of the CSW, the head of the Brazilian delegation met with Australia’s Minister for Women and Finance, Katie Gallagher, to discuss G20 priorities and how the two countries can work together to tackle gender inequality. Minister Ferdinand Goncalves said she looks forward to welcoming her Australian colleague to Brazil for the upcoming G20 high-level meeting in the country in the second half of the year.
The forum was also discussed in a meeting with Canada’s Minister of Women, Gender Equality and Youth, Marcy Yenne, in which Minister Ferdinand Goncalves and Janja Lula da Silva explained the key axes proposed by the G20 Women’s Empowerment Working Group and how the federal government has addressed gender issues across the board.
During bilateral talks with the United States on Wednesday (13th), the Casa Branca team present at the meeting noted that online violence against women is an issue within the G20, both in the Digital Economy Group and the Women’s Empowerment Group, and there are high hopes that the Brazilian Presidency will work to fulfil commitments signed in previous mandates of the group on this and other issues.
Fernández also received Lisa Paus, Minister of Family, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth of Germany, at the Brazilian Permanent Mission to the United Nations on Thursday (14th), to discuss, inter alia, public policies towards the care economy and climate justice, two priority themes for Brazil at the G20 within the framework of the Women’s Working Group, as well as the implementation of the Equal Pay Law in Brazil and a gender perspective on public budgets.
During a bilateral meeting with South Africa’s Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu, which will assume the G20 presidency in November after Brazil, the Minister for Women stressed at the start of the meeting the importance of the two countries exchanging experiences on the issue of political equality, given that Brazil is only 142nd in the international ranking of female politicians, while South Africa is 12th out of 193 countries in terms of gender equality in parliament according to a UN analysis. The authorities of both countries agreed to cooperate in the transition of the G20 presidency.
The G20 Women’s Empowerment Working Group was created during the Indian Presidency in 2023 and will meet for the first time under the Brazilian Presidency in 2024, coordinated by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. The Working Group’s objective is to help countries address gender inequality and promote women’s empowerment in various dimensions.
Its main objective is to strengthen the gender debate among G20 countries and disseminate good practices and public policies that uphold the rights of women and girls.
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