Written by Hana Smith, SI Global Policy Advisor

We are already more than halfway through 2024! Here is a short round-up of some of Soroptimist International’s (SI) Global Policy and Advocacy work in recent months.

United Nations 

May: 

SI submitted its Quadrennial Report to the United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) for 2019-2023. This is a prerequisite to maintain our status at the United Nations. 

In Nairobi, SI’s team of Representatives attended the UN Civil Society Conference, with the support of Women for Water Partnership. Learn more about the Conference by reading the blogs on this topic on our website. 

In Vienna, SI UN Representatives Marion Prechtl, Martina Gredler, Marcella Sigmund and Christine Peer, organised and hosted a side event which was sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Germany to the UN, on ‘Decarbonising Organised Crime: The Role that Women and Girls Play in Accomplishing this Goal’. 

Mary Muia, SI’s Main Representative in Nairobi, made a presentation to the World Health Assembly in Geneva on cervical cancer screening and treatment. 

June: 

In June, SI’s team of UN Representatives in Geneva – Berthe De Vos Neven, Donatella Benjamin, Stacy Ciulik, Pascale Muylaert and Olga Nanopoulos – were active at the 56th Regular Session of the Human Rights Council. SI organised a side event along with Women’s Federation for World Peace International and the NGO Committee on the Status of Women Geneva, entitled ‘Fulfilling the Right to Education through International Cooperation, Especially in Conflict Zones’.

Berthe De Vos, Main SI Representative at UN Geneva, was a keynote speaker at a second side event that SI co-sponsored during the 56th Session of the Human Rights Council, entitled ‘Violence Against Women and Girls: Widows in Refugee Camps and Migration’ and delivered a separate statement to close the event. 

July: 

SI submitted its 2024 High-Level Political Report, showcasing two Club projects from each SI Federation, as well as international projects under the SI Foundation. SI’s HLPF Report for 2024 is now available to read. 

The United Nations also published a parallel report in line with the HLPF, called The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2024. The report details the immense challenges the world is facing in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, based on the latest data and estimates. You can read this report on the UN website. 

The SI UN Representative team in New York have come together to attend the HLPF in person. As Global Organising Partner of the Women’s Major Group in New York, our SI Representatives worked closely on background work in the lead up to the HLPF, and they helped to organise events including one on ‘A Feminist Economy to Leave No One Behind’. 

SI Where We Stand Position Papers 

The SI Advocacy Team continues to work with Representatives from each of the five SI Federations to review existing Where We Stand Position Papers, and to draft new ones where relevant. 

So far in 2024, the following papers have been updated: 

• Access to Education and Training – download
• Climate Change – download
• Criminal Justice Systems – download
• Economic Empowerment – download
• Food Security – download
• Poverty – download
• Social Protection Systems – download
• Water and Sanitation – download
• Women, Peace and Security – download

SI has drafted a new position paper, on Widows, which you can read on our Position Papers web page. 

SI Data Sub-Group 

The SI Data Sub-Group, which was established in 2023, with representation from each SI Federation strongly encourages SI Federations, Unions and Clubs to report their projects. With quality project data, SI can support our UN Representatives to ensure these stories are heard at the international level. This is where our advocacy becomes stronger. But we need your help! 

Women’s 7 Summit 

The Women’s 7 (W7: a sub-group of the G7) Summit was held at the end of May 2024. SI Advocacy Advisor, Pat Black, has been instrumental as a W7 Advisor in 2024. She has liaised with SIHQ and SI Italy Union to embolden SI’s influence. At the Summit, SI was mentioned several times and a young Soroptimist from the Italian Union, Alice Paola Pomè, was among the speakers (standing in for SI Italian Union President). 

Partnerships 

Every Woman Treaty

In the lead up to the 56th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Every Woman Treaty worked with various UN Member States considered ‘Champion Nations’ to build support for a new Optional Protocol to CEDAW to end violence against women and girls. You can read more about this on the Every Woman Treaty website. During this Session, 11 new nations expressed their interest in exploring the possibility of a new binding mechanism to address violence against women and girls. This is a crucial step forward in the process of realising a global Treaty to end violence against women and girls. 

Global Coalition for Social Justice

The Global Coalition for Social Justice held its inaugural meeting in June and SI was represented in-person by Berthe De Vos Neven, SI Main Representative to the UN in Geneva. This meeting was the first time civil society organisations have actively been given a seat in the room with Member States in the history of the International Labour Organisation.