C_2022342EN.01027601.xml

P9_TA(2022)0048

The EU priorities for the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women

European Parliament resolution of 17 February 2022 on the EU priorities for the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (2022/2536(RSP))

(2022/C 342/19)

The European Parliament,

—

having regard to the 66th session of the UN Commission the Status of Women and its priority theme ‘of achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change, environmental and disaster risk reduction policies and programmes’, and to the draft conclusions thereof,

—	having regard to the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action of 15 September 1995 and the outcomes of its review conferences,

—	having regard to the 1979 UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women,

—	having regard to Articles 21 and 23 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union,

—

having regard to the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the principle of ‘leaving no one behind’ and, in particular, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 1 which seeks to end poverty, SDG 3 which seeks to ensure people can live healthy lives, SDG 5 which seeks to achieve gender equality and improve living conditions for women, SDG 8 which seeks to achieve sustainable and economic growth, and SDG 13 which seeks to take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts,

—	having regard to the Agreement adopted at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Paris on 12 December 2015 (the Paris Agreement),

—	having regard to its resolution of 24 June 2021 on the 25th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD25) (Nairobi Summit) (1),

—	having regard to its resolution of 16 January 2018 on women, gender equality and climate justice (2),

—	having regard to its resolution of 23 October 2020 on Gender Equality in EU’s foreign and security policy (3),

—	having regard to the EU action plan on gender equality and women’s empowerment in external action 2021–2025 (GAP III),

—	having regard to the EU gender equality strategy for 2020-2025 of 5 March 2020,

—	having regard to its resolution of 24 June 2021 on the situation of sexual and reproductive health and rights in the EU, in the frame of women’s health (4),

—	having regard to the conclusions on gender and climate change adopted at the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) to the UNFCCC held in Glasgow from 31 October to 6 November 2021,

—	having regard to Article 157(4) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

—	having regard to Rule 132(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

whereas equality between men and women is a fundamental principle of the EU enshrined in the Treaty on European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights; whereas gender mainstreaming is therefore an important tool in the integration of this principle in all EU policies, measures and actions, including external action;

B.	whereas 189 governments across the world, including the European Union and its Member States, committed to working towards gender equality and empowering all women and girls at the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995;

whereas the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action clearly defined the link between gender, the environment and sustainable development, and asserted that women have a strategic role to play in the development of sustainable and ecologically sound consumption and production patterns, and that they need to participate on an equal basis in decision-making about the environment at all levels;

D.	whereas the SDGs acknowledge the link between achieving gender equality and all the SDGs, including SDG 13 on climate change, providing for the possibility of tackling the root causes of gender inequalities and thus strengthening women’s resilience to climate change;

whereas gender inequality, combined with the climate and environmental crises and disasters, is one of the greatest challenges of our time, with a cross-border dimension affecting the entire planet and having disproportionate impacts on women in all their diversity, especially those facing intersectional discrimination, in marginalised situations and in conflict settings;

whereas women in all their diversity are in a more vulnerable situation and face higher risks and burdens from the effects of climate change and environmental and natural disasters for various reasons, ranging from their unequal access to resources, education, job opportunities and land rights, to prevailing social and cultural norms and their diverse intersectional discrimination experiences;

G.	whereas the unprecedented crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and its multifaceted effects on society, including the deepening of pre-existing social and gender inequalities, may negatively impact the implementation of effective gender-responsive climate action;

H.	whereas climate change occurs globally but has a greater destructive impact on the countries and communities least responsible for global warming; whereas those with fewer financial resources needed to adapt will be hit the hardest and suffer the most from the impacts of climate change;

whereas climate change causes an increase in displacement as people are forced to leave their homes temporarily or permanently when the environment becomes unliveable for them; whereas on average since 2010, 21,5 million people have been displaced each year due to climate-related disasters; whereas according to UN figures, women and girls account for 80 % of people displaced by climate change and those most affected by extreme temperatures and natural disasters;

whereas the adverse effects of climate change and their negative repercussions on the socioeconomic situation can lead to severe violations of women’s and girls’ basic rights, especially for internally displaced people, migrants and asylum seekers, such as increased risks of sexual and gender-based violence, exploitation and human trafficking, forced marriages, organ harvesting and impacts that arise from having limited access to healthcare, including reproductive and mental health services;

whereas gender equality and women’s rights are human rights and a prerequisite for sustainable development, efficient management of climate challenges, environmental peace and stability and achieving a fair and just transition that leaves no one behind; whereas all climate action must include gender and intersectional perspectives and ensure equal participation of women in all their diversity in decision-making bodies at all levels;

L.	whereas women’s unequal participation in decision-making processes and labour markets compounds inequalities and often prevents women from fully contributing to and participating in policymaking, planning and implementation related to climate change and environmental and disaster risks;

whereas a gender-responsive just transition has the potential to create decent jobs for women; whereas women still face structural and cultural barriers to participation in all aspects of delivering the energy and climate transition; whereas in terms of employment, the energy sector remains one of the most gender-imbalanced sectors of the economy globally;

whereas women, especially single parents, those experiencing intersectional discrimination and those above retirement age, are disproportionately affected by both climate change and poverty; whereas women in all their diversity are also more likely to experience energy poverty at some point in their lives; whereas the ecological transition should also take into account the social and gender dimensions;

O.	whereas many smallholder farms are owned by women who will be disproportionately affected by climate change and more extreme weather events, leading to food and water shortages and making them more prone to malnutrition;

P.	whereas the Paris Agreement establishes that its Parties should consider their respective obligations with regard to human rights and gender equality, among other issues, when taking action to address climate change as part of the implementation of the agreement;

whereas women need to play stronger roles in the climate change space as leaders, elected representatives, professionals and technical agents for change; whereas women are still under-represented in climate change decision-making bodies at national level in the EU Member States and at EU level, including the European Parliament, and represent only 32 % of the renewable energy workforce globally (5);

whereas the gender dimension of climate change is acknowledged in the EU’s gender equality strategy for 2020-2025; whereas GAP III incudes a priority area on climate change and environment for the first time; whereas EU climate policy can have a significant impact on the protection of human rights and the promotion of gender-responsive climate policies globally;

Achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change, environmental and disaster risk reduction policies and programmes

Addresses the following recommendations to the Council:

(a)	to reconfirm its unwavering commitment to the Beijing Platform for Action and subsequent review conferences and to the range of actions for gender equality outlined therein;

(b)	to underline the importance of a positive outcome of the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, to be held from 14 to 25 March 2022, including through the adoption of a set of forward-looking and ambitious commitments outlined in the political declaration;

(c)

to ensure the full involvement of Parliament and its Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality in the decision-making process regarding the EU’s position at the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women and ensure that it has adequate information and access to the EU position document ahead of the negotiations;

(d)

to ensure that the EU shows strong leadership and takes a unified position on the importance of empowering women and achieving gender equality in the context of combating climate change, and to take strong action to univocally denounce any form of backlash against gender equality or measures undermining women’s rights, autonomy and emancipation in every field;

(e)

to pledge its strong support for the work of UN Women, which is a central actor in the UN system for advancing women’s rights and bringing together all relevant stakeholders in order to generate policy change and coordinate actions; to call on all UN member states, together with the EU, to ensure adequate funding for UN Women;

(f)	to reaffirm the commitments to gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls made at the relevant UN summits and conferences, including the International Conference on Population and Development and its programme of action and the outcome documents of its reviews;

(g)

to recognise that women in all their diversity, in particular indigenous people and members of other natural resource-dependent communities, are disproportionately affected by climate change, environmental degradation and disasters, such as ecosystem loss, loss of access to key natural resources, malnutrition, and respiratory, water-related and vector-borne diseases;

(h)	to take note of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on gender-responsive climate action and to ensure that all climate policies and programmes reflect these impacts and aim to strengthen women’s resilience and adaptive capacities;

(i)	to reiterate its aim of supporting and developing the renewed five-year gender action plan agreed at COP25 to promote gender equality in the UNFCCC process, and to lead by example by committing to achieve gender-balanced representation within the delegations to the UNFCCC;

(j)

to vocally stress that women and girls are not only affected by climate change, but are also powerful agents of change in the climate transition; to commit to meaningful and equal participation of women in all their diversity in decision-making bodies at all levels in the field of climate policy and action as well as in post-conflict resolution; to ensure equal involvement for women in the design and implementation of ambitious and localised preparedness, mitigation and adaptation programmes, thereby ensuring effective gender-transformative climate action, disaster risk reduction and the inclusive and sustainable management of natural resources; to promote the broad and meaningful participation of civil society, women’s organisations and marginalised groups in decision- and policymaking at all levels; to encourage the participation of young people and young women in particular;

(k)	to take immediate action to address climate change to prevent people being driven out of their homes and communities, and thereby tackling the growing phenomenon of climate-induced displacement;

(l)

to advocate for, support and take concrete measures to protect women at risk due to climate change and environmental disasters, especially against displacement, poverty, human trafficking, gender-based violence and food insecurity, as well as threats to their livelihood, and to ensure that they have access to essential services and adequate and accessible sanitation, and to safeguard their physical and mental health, including sexual and reproductive health and rights;

(m)

to step up its commitment to fight gender-based violence in all its forms, especially in the light of the increased risk for women affected by climate change; to strengthen preventive measures and ensure victim support in order to avoid secondary victimisation; to further commit as part of a regional and international partnership to help guide and fund the fight against gender-based violence;

(n)	to address and strongly condemn the increase in of conflict-related gender-based violence including sexual violence, especially in areas affected by climate change, through its external relations and in all human rights provisions in international agreements;

(o)

to advocate for the implementation of targeted gender equality measures combined with gender mainstreaming in environmental and climate change policies; to implement systematic gender impact assessments based on the collection of disaggregated data to better understand gender-specific aspects of climate change and natural disasters and ensure gender expertise in relevant climate actions and policies, including in the framework of the European Green Deal; to adopt and implement gender-responsive budgeting, practices and roadmaps to ensure adequate funding is earmarked for the promotion of gender equality;

(p)

to recognise the linkages between gender-responsive climate action and the just transition with a view to promoting inclusive opportunities for all in the green economy; to ensure that any policies connected with the green transition take into account gender-specific needs and do not negatively affect women, girls and people facing intersectional discrimination;

(q)	to commit to organising gender equality-focused training for EU officials, especially for those dealing with development and climate policies;

(r)	to build and strengthen the resilience of women and girls in the context of climate change, environmental degradation and disasters by investing in gender-responsive social services, health and care systems, and to ensure decent work;

(s)	to advocate for increased efforts for greater inclusion of women in the labour market and to improve support for female entrepreneurship in the areas of climate and environmental technology and research; to boost innovation in these crucial areas while encouraging women’s financial independence;

(t)

to call for the EU and the Member States to promote access for women in all their diversity to emerging job opportunities in the green transition with a view to ensuring that green jobs are equally beneficial and accessible for all; to facilitate and increase women’s access to information and education, including in the areas of science, technology and economics, thus enhancing their knowledge, skills and opportunities for participation in environmental decisions while fighting gender stereotypes;

(u)	to acknowledge the fact that the sectors in which the majority of the workforce is female are carbon-neutral (such as care); to take advantage of this fact and the opportunities it can offer, and to promote these sectors as a means of addressing climate change and the just transition;

(v)	to call on Member States and the EU to fully implement GAP III and deliver on the objectives of the priority area on climate change and the environment;

(w)

to protect the rights of and provide specific support for women environmental human rights defenders and ensure that violations and abuses against them are investigated and that those responsible are held accountable; to ensure that grassroots organisations for women’s rights are supported through the provision of adequate funding and the removal of restrictions that impede their ability to operate;

(x)

to emphasise the need to protect and promote the rights of groups experiencing multiple and intersectional forms of discrimination, including women with disabilities, Black women and women of colour, migrant and ethnic-minority women, older women, women in rural and depopulated areas, single mothers and LGBTIQ people; to work to promote the concept of combating multiple discrimination and to integrate intersectional analysis throughout all UN bodies and the EU and its Member States;

o o

Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the EU Special Representative for Human Rights.

(1) Texts adopted, P9_TA(2021)0315.

(2) OJ C 458, 19.12.2018, p. 34.

(3) OJ C 404, 6.10.2021, p. 202.

(4) Texts adopted, P9_TA(2021)0314.

(5) EPRS briefing, Beijing Platform for Action: 25-year review and future priorities, 27 February 2020, available at: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)646194