Blog of Olga Tzortzatou Nanopoulou, SI Representative to the United Nations in Geneva.

From October 19th to 20th, the Beijing +30 Review for Civil Society in the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) region took place in Geneva. With a strong focus on the role of civil society, the review invited NGOs to engage in the evaluation of the 12 critical areas outlined in the Beijing Platform for Action (BPfA). The BPfA emphasises that equitable access to healthcare is fundamental to achieving gender equality, underscoring the importance of addressing disparities in healthcare access, digital health inclusion, and mental health support.

The workshop on Health shed light on the gender inequalities in healthcare access and the digital gender gap which prevents women and girls from achieving their human right to health. As stated by the speakers, the exponential increase in digital health technologies and AI has exacerbated gender biases due to male-centric design and lack of legislation. Furthermore, it was showcased that women and girls have a disproportional susceptibility and increase in cardiovascular and respiratory diseases as well as malignancies from climate change. The interaction of several environmental factors such as air pollution, heat waves, wildfires, and vector-borne diseases detrimentally impact the health of women and girls. These factors lead to multiple medical complications for pregnant mothers and their newborns.

Compared to men, women and girls have higher rates of depression and anxiety which increased by 25% due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Exposure to social media is one of the contributing factors to the rise in mental health conditions worldwide.  Adolescent girls as well as pregnant and post-partum women are the most vulnerable.

Unfortunately, cases are underdiagnosed and untreated leading to increased rates of suicide, developmental delays, and mental health disorders in children of struggling mothers. The take-home message of this workshop was that the goal is that all women and girls, particularly those from vulnerable groups, must be empowered with access to preventive services, reproductive health, mental health screening and treatment free of stigma to close the gender gaps in health and achieve the strategic objectives of section C from the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.