BEIJING PLATFORM
FOR ACTION
PHILIPPINE COMISSION FOR WOMEN
Beijing Platform for Action
The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, or BPfA is a landmark document
for advancing women’s rights and gender equality worldwide, agreed upon during
the 4th World Conference on women in 1995. The international community came to
a consensus and agreed to a comprehensive blueprint of commitments supporting
the full development of women and their equality with men in 12 areas of concern:
(1) women and poverty; (2) education and training of women; (3) women and
health; (4) violence against women; (5) women and armed conflict; (6) women and
the economy; (7) women in power and decision-making; (8) institutional
mechanisms; (9) human rights of women; (10) women and media; (11) women and
the environment; (12) the girl child.
The 1995 Beijing Platform for Action flagged 12 key areas where urgent
action was needed to ensure greater equality and opportunities for women
and men, girls and boys. It also laid out concrete ways for countries to
bring about change. UN Women works with governments and partners to
ensure such change is real for women and girls around the world.
Take a look at some of the efforts on each of the 12 Beijing critical areas
of concern:
Women and poverty
When women are poor, their rights are not protected and they face double
discrimination, on account of their gender and economic situation. Women,
their families, communities and economies suffer as a result.
Education and Training of Women
Education is essential for women to reach gender equality and become leaders of
change. While women and girls today are far more educated than ever before,
gaps remain. Educated women benefit entire societies, contributing to flourishing
economies and the improved health, nutrition and education of their families.
Education and training are also tools to help change harmful gender stereotypes.
Women and Health
Women need to be healthy in order to realize their full potential. This
includes proper nutrition, sexual and reproductive rights, and mental
health, as well as freedom from violence.
Violence against Women
Violence hurts women and girls and hampers their ability to thrive in multiple
ways. Since the Beijing Conference, an historic two-thirds of countries have
put laws on the books to stop domestic violence. Yet gaps in laws,
implementation of legal protection and lack of access to essential services
remain for women globally.
Women and Armed Conflict
Wars and armed conflict destroy families and societies and leave women and girls
particularly vulnerable. Sexual violence is widespread and often used as a war
tactic.
Women and the Economy
Whether in businesses, on farms, as entrepreneurs or employees, or through
unpaid domestic or care work at home, women make enormous contributions
to economies. Gender discrimination means women often end up in insecure,
low-wage jobs, and constitute a small minority of those in senior positions.
Women in Power and Decision-making
Once in leadership roles, women make a difference. But they are under-
represented as voters and in top positions, whether in elected office, the civil
service, corporate boardrooms or academia.
Institutional Mechanism
Specialized institutions have played an important part in informing laws,
policies and programmes and advancing gender equality. Robust laws and
policies coupled with stronger mechanisms to coordinate various actors and
ensure their effective enforcement and implementation can push the
agenda.
Human right of Women
Women and girls are entitled to the full and equal enjoyment of all of their
human rights. The Beijing Platform for Action confirms that protection and
promotion of human rights is the first responsibility of governments and core to
the work of the United Nations.
Women and media
The media plays a significant role in perpetuating and challenging social norms
that condone discrimination or violence against women. It can objectify
women but also showcase strong women leaders and protagonists who can
become role models for their audience
Women and the environment
Women are among the most affected by climate change. They are often the
ones gathering water, fishing or farming land affected by flooding.
Meanwhile, their voices are often ignored in environmental planning and
management. They also have less access to land and productive resources.
The girl child
Specific forms of violence and harmful practices, including female genital
mutilation (FGM) and cutting, breast ironing and child marriage, affect girls
in particular, including child sexual abuse.
The BPfA affirmed the principles that would govern future actions and strategies for women and firmly
established an agenda for empowering women by integrating their concerns into national plans and policies.
Governments and the UN agreed to promote gender mainstreaming as a strategy to ensure that a gender
perspective is reflected in all policies and programs at the national, regional, and international levels.
For the Philippines, the Beijing Conference broadened the discussions on women’s rights to include violence
against women, women’s leadership and political participation, and economic concerns. It connected what was
previously regarded as women’s issues with other pressing concerns on the environment, human rights,
population, and armed conflict. The country also adopted gender mainstreaming as a strategy to advance
women’s rights in the country.
The country submitted its Philippine Progress Report on implementing the Beijing Declaration and Platform of
Action and the Outcomes of the 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly (2000), or BPfA+20, in 2015. It
provided an overview of the major achievements and challenges since the passage of the BPfA in 1995, updates
on the 12 BPfA areas of concern covering the period 2009-2013, as well as the emerging issues to inform the
future process of selecting the post-2015 development agenda and successors to the Millennium Development
Goals.
In 2019, the State submitted the BPfA+25 Progress Report, which includes an assessment of current challenges
that affect the implementation of the agreements enshrined in the BPfA. It also highlighted major achievements
on gender equality and women empowerment and its contribution towards the full realization of the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development through a gender perspective. The Report was launched officially in
August 2019 as part of the 10th-anniversary celebration of the passage of the Magna Carta of Women.
Led by the Philippine Commission on Women, the State again went through a participatory process in
developing the BPfA+25 Progress Report. A National Steering Committee was created and chaired by
the PCW and technical working groups composed of government agencies and non-government
organizations. Meetings, consultations, and other related events/activities have been convened/held to
facilitate the drafting and submission of the BPFA+20 Progress Report in accordance with the
Guidance Notes produced by the UN Women.
The Platform for Action imagines a world where each woman and girl can exercise her freedoms and
choices, and realize all her rights, such as to live free from violence, to go to school, to participate in
decisions and to earn equal pay for equal work.
The Beijing process unleashed remarkable political will and worldwide visibility. It connected and
reinforced the activism of women’s movements on a global scale. Conference participants went home
with great hope and clear agreement on how to achieve equality and empowerment.
Since then, governments, civil society and the public have translated the Platform for Action’s
promises into concrete changes in individual countries. These have ushered in enormous
improvements in women’s lives. More women and girls than at any previous point in time serve in
political offices, are protected by laws against gender-based violence, and live under constitutions
guaranteeing gender equality. Regular five-year reviews of progress on fulfilling Beijing
commitments have sustained momentum.
Still, the Platform for Action envisioned gender equality in all dimensions of life—and no country
has yet finished this agenda. Women earn less than men and are more likely to work in poor-quality
jobs. A third suffer physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Gaps in reproductive rights and
health care leave 800 women dying in childbirth each day.
The 20th anniversary of Beijing opens new opportunities to reconnect, regenerate commitment,
charge up political will and mobilize the public. Everyone has a role to play—for our common
good. The evidence is increasingly in that empowering women empowers humanity. Economies
grow faster, for example, and families are healthier and better-educated.
The Beijing Platform for Action, still forward-looking at 20, offers important focus in rallying
people around gender equality and women’s empowerment. Its promises are necessarily ambitious.
But over time, and with the accumulating energy of new generations, they are within reach.
THANK YOU…
