AUSTRALIA TO ADVOCATE FOR RURAL WOMEN AND GIRLS AT CSW62 IN NYC

Australia’s delegation to the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) gathered today in New York prior to the opening of the 62nd session of CSW (CSW62) at the United Nations tomorrow. 

Minister for Women, the Hon Kelly O’Dwyer MP, heads up an impressive delegation of female Australian leaders to CSW – the leading international forum tasked with pursuing gender equality around the world. 

“I am continually impressed by the ingenuity and drive of women and girls from across rural, regional and remote Australia. I am looking forward to telling their stories on the world stage in order to assist other countries to empower their rural women and girls,” Minister O’Dwyer said. 

Minister O’Dwyer will represent Australia in a number of official meetings at CSW62, including several meetings that focus on improving the health, education and safety of women in rural areas around the world. 

“Although there is still work to be done to achieve gender equality in Australia, we have a number of important policy achievements that could assist other nations to similarly empower their women and girls. 

“I’ll be talking about Australian gender equality success stories, including the Australian Government’s commitment to eliminate domestic and family violence, highlighting our diminishing gender pay gap and strategies to achieve pay parity, and the fundamentals that underpin these successes such as universal healthcare and the higher education system. I will also be highlighting how Australia is leading with our world first eSafety Commission image based abuse portal.” 

A number of high profile Australian organisations pursuing gender equality in Australia will join Minister O’Dwyer to host official CSW62 side events. These organisations include the Office of the eSafety Commissioner, the National Rural Women’s Coalition, the Telstra Foundation, Male Champions of Change, the Workforce Gender Equality Agency, the Business Council of Australia and BHP. The Australian Government will also co-host an event on Bridging the Digital Divide with the OECD at the Australian Consulate in New York City. 

“It is not just the Australian Government which is acting to achieve gender equality. NGOs and businesses are doing much of the heavy lifting. Their work is vital if we want to achieve gender equality for all Australian women. I am so pleased several Australian organisations have agreed to join the delegation and share their strategies to achieve gender equality with the world.” 

While in New York City, the Minister will also participate in a complementary program of meetings relating to her Revenue and Financial Services portfolio. 

2018 CSW62 Australian Delegation