BNU academics participate in United Nations Commission on the Status of Women

Earlier this month, BNU’s Graduate Teaching Associate in Law, Nasifa Ahmadi, and Academic Liaison Librarian for the School of Business and Law, Dr Elizabeth Ann Kelly, attended the 68th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in New York.

They attended the event as part of the delegation from Associated Country Women of the World and took part in a panel discussion on barriers to accessing societal safeguards for women. During the Parallel Event session, titled, ‘Understanding Barriers to Access: Language, Culture, and Reality’, Dr Kelly featured as a moderator, while Nasifa was a speaker on the panel.

Nasifa Ahmadi inside the UN headquarters in New York

The conference looked at the importance of location and language in the acceleration of gender equality, empowerment, financial inclusion and social protection systems.

It presented perspectives from Indigenous communities in Canada and Mongolia, as well as displaced communities in Afghanistan and Ukraine, while looking to identify successful pathways in addressing current challenges and ensuring future success in equitable empowerment.  

Other speakers on the panel included Hon. Natalie Jameson, Minister of Education and Early Years for the Status of Women in Prince Edward Island, Canada; Svitlana Salamatova, Geopolitical Alliance of Women in Ukraine; Tugrug Uugan-Erdene, Director of Sain Tus Development Bridge NGO, in Mongolia; and Tracy Ridler, Senior First Nations Engagement Consultant in BC, Canada.

Speakers at the CSW68 side event

In addition to Dr Kelly – who is also a Trustee and Board Lead on Advocacy at ACWW – and Nasifa acting in an official capacity for the panel discussion, they also had the opportunity to attend other events at the conference.

This included a session hosted by UN Women, which examined the current humanitarian crisis effecting women and girls in Afghanistan. As an Afghan woman, Nasifa was given the opportunity to directly question the current ambassador of the Permanent Mission of Afghanistan to the United Nations, Naseer Faiq, on how to spread awareness of the difficulties women and girls are facing in Afghanistan.  

Nasifa taking part in the CSW68 side event

As UK residents attending as part of a UK NGO delegation, Dr Kelly and Nasifa accepted invitations to nightly briefings at the UK Consulate and fed back their thoughts on the daily ministerial negotiations on the Commission on the Status of Women Outcome document.

Nasifa’s thoughts on women in conflict zones and the effects of gender apartheid were especially appreciated by members of the Foreign Office, and both her and Dr Kelly were given an advance copy of a new government report ‘Gender Apartheid Inquiry Shattering Women's Rights, Shattering Lives: Parliamentary Ad-Hoc Inquiry Into The Situation Of Women And Girls In Afghanistan And Iran’.  

The goal of this report is to have the UK government be the first to recognize Gender Apartheid as an official crime against humanity.

The UN headquarters in New York

Speaking about taking part in the conference, Dr Kelly said: "I found attending the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women very rewarding.

"Both Nasifa and I learned a lot, and made some valuable connections with others interested in women's advocacy."

Nasifa added: “I had the privilege to attend this event and talk about women and girls from Afghanistan and the barriers to access on culture and reality they face.

“I also asked a question during the UN headquarters side event called, ‘Crimes Against Humanity in Afghanistan with a Gender Lens: Strengthening Global Coordination’ and attended sessions at the UN headquarters every day. 

“I enjoyed the visit and opportunity a lot; it was an eye-opening experience.” 

Watch Nasifa in action at the UN here: Crimes Against Humanity in Afghanistan with a Gender Lens: Strengthening Global Coordination (CSW68 Side Event) | UN Web TV (1.01.29)