Statement by Ambassador Susan E. Rice, U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, on the Formation of UN Women

Susan E. Rice
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
U.S. Mission to the United Nations 

New York, NY

July 2, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

I welcome the adoption by consensus of the UN General Assembly Resolution that creates UN Women, a stronger and more efficient agency at the United Nations charged with strengthening gender equality and empowering women around the world. UN Women combines the mandates and work of four UN offices and funds in order to give one streamlined, powerful voice to UN efforts to advance the status and lives of women globally.

Today’s establishment of UN Women is an important step forward in advancing women’s rights. UN Women recognizes the universality of the goal of improving women’s lives, from economic empowerment and increased women’s participation in political processes to protection of women and girls from violence and discrimination.

I look forward to the appointment of an Under-Secretary General to lead this important agency and ensure that it fully delivers for women worldwide. I am pleased that UN Women will have a seat on Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s core policy team, giving women’s issues the status and weight that they deserve in the UN system.

Women around the world have high expectations of this vital new agency, and the United States looks forward to partnering with UN Women in our shared efforts to ensure these expectations are fulfilled.

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