Unifem

UNIFEM Australia is proud to launch our Spring Campaign. This Spring, UNIFEM Australia will be raising funds for UNIFEM's Education Program in South East Asia. We will be spotlighting an innovating UNIFEM Program in Laos that has worked to ensure young women who are not in the formal education system still receive the necessary education to protect their human rights. 

In Laos only 78.7% of young women aged 15-24 are literate. 76,000 young women do not attend primary school at all and only 68% of young women who start grade one actually reach the end of primary school. 

In 2007, UNIFEM partnered with the Non Formal Education Development Centre (NFEDC) to revise the non-formal education curriculum and to integrate education on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) into the teaching program of Community Learning Centres across Laos. 

Following the initial pilot, the NFEDC has continued to improve the non-formal education system curriculum. With the support of UNIFEM, the Laos Ministry of Education has officially published the non-formal education system curriculum at a national level. The curriculum will continue to be distributed across the country over a five-year period, specifically targeting the provinces that are most disadvantaged.

From January 1st 2011, the Australian National Committee for UNIFEM will become the Australian National Committee for UN Women. This exciting transition was announced by UNIFEM Executive Director, Dr Ines Alberdi in New York in June 2010. She noted that the eighteen existing National Committees would be strengthened in the transition and it was hoped that they would be able to increase their advocacy and fundraising efforts. The formation of UN Women globally was announced by the Secretary General of the United Nations in June this year. This new entity will be led by an Under-Secretary General and will actively seek to ensure gender equality in all of the programs and work of the United Nations.  

To find out more about GEAR Campaign and the establishment of UN Women click here.

As the representatives of UN Women in Australia, the National Committee will be working to raise awareness of gender and development issues, engage the support of government and raise funds for specific UN Women Programs. We look forward to working with other NGOs to promote UN Women in Australia and will be holding an NGO roundtable in early October. If you would like to be involved in this meeting please contact admin@unifem.org.au.