In New York this week, Fiji’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, and Acting President of the UN General Assembly, Ambassador Peter Thomson, called for greater concern and commitment at the United Nations for gender equality and women’s empowerment.
Ambassador Thomson was speaking as one of the three panelists in the context of the Commission on the Status of Women currently underway in New York. The other two panelists were the UN Secretary-General, Mr Ban Ki-moon, and the Executive Director of UN Women, Ms Michelle Bachelet.
In his address, Ambassador Thomson highlighted the achievements of the UN General Assembly in fostering gender equality. In this regard, he explained the intent of the General Assembly when it established UN Women in 2010. It was he said, “to respond to the voices of millions of women around the world, demanding that the United Nations strengthen its gender architecture to better serve women and the world.”
Ambassador Thomson was speaking in his capacity as Acting President of the UN General Assembly, an office he holds from 27th February to 9th March.