CSW 2010

As CSW 2010 came to close in New York City, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered the closing remarks at the United Nations headquarters March 12, 2010 marking the 15th anniversary of the U.N. World Conference on Women in Beijing.

On Friday March 5, 2010 at the CSW, the president of the YWCA of Sierra Leone Florence Kaindaneh spoke on a panel about supporting the caregivers of people living with HIV and AIDS. Panellists explored challenges facing caregivers and strategies for supporting and retaining them.

As Canadas only established national network and largest single provider of shelter services for women and children leaving domestic abuse, YWCA Canada has deep roots in the countrys violence against women movement, offering services to approximately 20,000 women every year.

Female and male condoms are the only dual protection methods that prevent HIV, STIs and unintended pregnancy. World YWCA Communications Coordinator Sarah Davies, along with other civil society male and female advocates, discussed the issues of expanding access to female and male condoms through advocacy and programming at the 54^th  CSW in New York City on March 9, 2010.

YWCA Guyana’s General Secretary Glynis Alonzo-Beaton was part of a panel discussion at the CSW 2010 on March 9 about the negative effect that guns have on girls and women in settings of endemic violence.

Walking into the Global Action on Aging Office on March 2, 2010 I get a warm greeting from the facilitators Bonnie Fatio and Arda Aghazarian. The office space is beautiful with silk hangings on the wall and large windows. From the front you can see a spectacular view of the UN building and the river.

Three YWCA leaders from Palestine, Sudan and Sri Lanka briefed CSW participants on the status of conflict situations in their countries underlining the role of YWCAs in strengthening their communities’ capacities for peacemaking on March 5, 2010.

Women and young women from all corners of the globe came to participate in ‘An intergenerational conversation on HIV, Universal Access and Reproductive Health and Violence Against Women’ held by the World YWCA at the 54^th CSW in New York City on March 5, 2010.

The legend of Helvi Sipilä, the Finnish diplomat, lawyer , politician and first-ever female Assistant-Secretary-General of the United Nations was commemorated at the 54^th Commission of Status of Women on March 4, 2010. The ‘She Says YES to Power’ Helvi Sipilä Commemoration Seminar was an opportunity for leading gender equality advocates to reflect on women saying yes to power from around the world.

The Pacific region has the lowest rate of women in parliaments, in the world, with only 2.8% of all parliamentarians across the Pacific Islands being women, compared with 18% globally. At a forum hosted by the Australian Government on March 2, 2010 delegation leaders from the Pacific region came to discuss issues and possible solutions arising from this concerning statistic.