1. Zonta and UN Relations The Start, Women Rights, Zonta’s Work
The picture shows hundreds of women in a line outside the UN Building in New York, March 2017.
They want to advocate Women’s Rights in the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).
Zonta is among them.
The end of this presentation has a link to the You Tube movie «Educating girls through Let us learn Madagascar», a project by Zonta and UNICEF (5:15 min).
Ideas for Zonta Clubs in District 13
By UN and CoE Committee in D-13 June 2019
Astrid Grude Eikseth, Hanne Friis, Elsemette Cassoe
Hildur Helga Gisladottir, Ruta Jasioniene,

2. Zonta and UN cooperates in two ways
1. Service projects among women and girls: money and support
Madagascar Niger Liberia Jordan
2. Advocacy work in UN for advancing
the status of women: influence
Zonta and UN cooperates in two ways
Zonta International was founded in 1919 and has cooperated with UN since UN started in They have common aims and work to realize The Human Rights for women and girls. Service and Advocacy goes hand in hand. Zonta’s service projects are today made in cooperation with UN agencies.
In and Zonta projects are about Educating girls in Madagascar, Reducing early marriage in Niger and 12 countries, Fistula project in Liberia, Addressing syrian refugees in Jordan.
Advocacy is defined in Zonta Bylaws like this:
“Advocacy is the expression of support for or opposition to a cause, argument or proposal. Advocacy may include influencing laws, legislation or attitudes.
Zonta advocacy is an action taken in “the public interest” or for “the greater good” with respect to
empowering women and girls and advancing their human rights”.

3. From the history – a women pioneer
Helvi Sipilã from Finland was
Zonta International President in
She became the first female Assistant Secretary General in
She made great progress in work for women:
The first UN Women Conference in Mexico 1975
The Women Convention CEDAW in 1979
Started UNIFEM help fund for women.

4. Why should UN listen to Zonta?
Zonta is a leading organization of professionals.
Zonta has general consultative status in ECOSOC.
(ECOSOC = Economic and Social Council)
Zonta International has a high standing and cooperates with other NGOs.
(NGO = Non-Governmental Organizations)
Under-Secretary-General Pfumzille Mlambo Ngzuka
& Executive Director
UN has 193 member states. When different UN bodies have meetings, it is for the representatives of goverments.
But Non Governmental Organizations can participate on certain conditions. ECOSOC is one of six Councils in UN.
UN Women is a strong voice for women, created in Executive Director is Pfumzille…, earlier The Deputy President of South Africa.
Zonta is the largest NGO supporter of UN Women Programs and has promised 4 million USD in to UN projects.

5. Benefits of Consultative Status
Advocate issues of concern
Provide expertise through written and oral statements
Organize side events on issues
Access to UN – networking w UN staff & member countries
Attend International conferences/events
Zonta has had consultative status in ECOSOC since 1969.
On the photo from left is PIP Maria Jose Landeira Østergaard, now Chairman of ZI Advocacy committee, ZI President-Elect Susanne von Bassewitz and ZI President Sonja Hønig Schough,

6. ZI UN Committee Chairman Ingeborg Geyer 20 members
Themes this biennium:
Sustainable Development Goals
Ending child marriage
Women’s employment
Gender pay gap
Human trafficking
Human rights
Actions towards UN bodies, ZI districts > clubs
Astrid and Leslie, NY 2015
Ingeborg Geyer
The ZI UN Committee is divided into 5 groups, who work in different places in the world.
Ingeborg Geyer is the Chairman of the whole ZI UN Committee She was for many years the Chairman of the ZI Committee who worked towards UN in Vienna. She has lot of knowledge, which she generously shares with Zonta members on all levels.

7. Zonta UN Committee - sites
UN Main Office New York
Palace of Nations Geneva; also ILO
Zonta has UN sub committees on five places, in New York, Geneva, Vienna, Paris and Bangkok (UN ESCAP).
They have influence as NGOs on different matters.
UN Office in Vienna
UNESCO in Paris

8. UN bodies for Women issues
General Assembly
Secr. - General
HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
CEDAW-Committee
ECOSOC
(Economic and Social Council)
ECOSOC /HLPF
(Economic and Social Council)
Functional Commissions
CSW
(Commission on the Status of Women)
Funds and programs:
Unicef
UNFPA
Trust Fund
UN WOMEN
(Coordinating role)
2011
Regional Commissions
ECE (Economic Commission of Europe)
Explanations of the figure:
1.ECOSOC: Economic and Social Council is the main body for economic, societal and environmental issues. Also for the implementation of the agreed development goals, SDG, through HLPF = High Level Political Forum. ECOSOC cooperates with governments & parlamentarians, academia and funds and NGO’s!
2.CSW - Commission on the Status of Women from1946. This commission is exclusively dedicated to promotion of gender equality & empowerment of women and meets every March in NY.
3. UN Women started to work in A coordinating and more effective role on gender issues was neccessary.
4. ECE – A Regional commision for Economical questions in Europa, (also North-America and Cental Asia participate).
5. CoNGO – The conference of NGO’s who have consultative status in ECOSOC.
6. CEDAW- Committee in Geneva, who watch the member states’ work on gender equity. CEDAW = Convention of the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination against women. The Committee reports to the High Commissioner for Human Rights.
According to different UN tools
Standing committees
CoNGO
(ex. NGO CSW NY)

9. Women Human Rights’ Tools
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women 1979 (CEDAW)
Beijing Platform for Action 1995 (BPfA)
Sustainable Development Goals (Agenda 2030)
These three agreements in UN are so important that we may call them «The Holy Trinity» for women rights!
They contain the core of what the international society has adopted for the human rights for women and girls.
And ZI strongly advocates their knowledge base and implementation in different fora.
The Beijing Platform for Action from 1995 (BPfA) is the conclusion of the UN members’ meeting at the 4th UN Women Conference in Beijing. It has very radical claims for 12 vital areas in the lives of women and girls, and is ever since been mentioned when it comes
to claim something to the advancement of women and girls.

10. CEDAW - «A bill of rights for women»
CEDAW stands for “Convention on the Elimination of all
forms of Discrimination against Women” from 1979.
188 nations have ratified it.
The nations have to write gender equality into their legislation and delete discriminating decisions. They are obliged to protect women against discrimination, and ensure civil, social, economic, cultural and political rights.
All governments have to establish institutions to follow up and measure the progress in the antidiscrimination efforts and report to the CEDAW committee every 4th year.
All 4 nations in the areas of District 13 have recently given their reports to the CEDAW Committee in UN.
And NGOs and civil society are invited to give a «Shadow report» to the committee to give alternative voices.
Here Zonta Areas can contribute.

11. Sustainable Development Goals 2015, Agenda 2030
25. sept 2015 were 17 SDG adopted in UN General Assembly, all member states agreed! These goals are said to save a future world.
ZI and other women NGO’s objective was to let gender equality and empowering women and girls be «a stand alone goal».
And we succeeded, see SDG 5! But SDG 5 is also a cross-cutting goal, without which the other 16 goals cannot be reached.
«It is on its own right, as well as a prerequisite», says Zonta. Examples are: education, access to labor marked and political participation, women’s access to decent work.

12. Example of Zonta’s Advocacy work: «Economic Security, Violence against Women and the Workplace»
The NGOs like Zonta can arrange a side event inside UN only in cooperation with a member state. Here Zonta cooperated with Zambia
at the CSW61 meeting in March «Social dialogues» is special developed in Nordic countries and means the three party cooperation: the state, the employer and employee organizations.
The picture shows the chair of ZI UN Committee Leslie Wright as moderator and ZI President Sonja Hönig Schough as speaker. Simone Ovart from ZI and people from UN Women and ILO participated.
An example of Zonta’s Service projects is «Let us learn Madagscar» in cooperatation with UNICEF.
See next slide and the movie.
Event in UN: Agreement on violence against women has consequences for workplaces and women’s life. We need guidelines in private sector for safe work places developed through social dialogues, it was said.

13. Example of Zonta’s Service Project: “Let us Learn Madagascar”
About 90 percent of Madagascar’s population lives on less than US$2 per day, leaving children particularly vulnerable.
More than a quarter of Madagascar’s children are excluded from formal education, and one out of three girls will become pregnant before the age of 18. Junior secondary school enrollment fees are prohibitively expensive for families, forcing parents to select one child to continue their education, often leaving girls behind.
Zonta International has committed US$1,000,000 to UNICEF USA to create opportunities for vulnerable and excluded girls to realize their rights to an education in a secure and protective environment.

14. LET US LEARN MADAGASCAR