The brief has been developed under the ‘Enhancing Access to Justice for Women in Asia and the Pacific’ Regional Programme, jointly implemented by UN Women, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the International Commission of Jurists, with generous support from the Government of Sweden.

This multi-country study on women-led MSMEs, with a focus on microenterprises in China, Indonesia, Thailand, Rwanda and Uganda, is a key output of the Together Digital Programme. It is intended to inform the design and implementation of programmmes, initiatives, and strategies supporting women’s entrepreneurship.

This report is based on an assessment of COVID-19 fiscal stimulus response and policy measures in nine countries in Asia and the Pacific (Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam).

Indonesia recognizes that a stable, just and peaceful society cannot be achieved without acknowledging and highlighting women’s important role in building peace, preventing conflict and addressing emerging security threats such as climate change and violent extremism. Within the global framework of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), Indonesia has endeavoured to localize the WPS agenda into a National Action Plan (NAP). In 2014, through a Presidential Decree (Perpres No. 18), the first NAP for the Protection and Empowerment of Women and Children during Social Conflicts, also known as NAP WPS, was launched. It included three pillars: prevention, mitigation and empowerment, and participation of women and children.

This is the second report issued that synthesizes the priorities and recommendations of Afghan women from consultations undertaken by UN Women, UNAMA and IOM. The aim of the consultations is to bring in the voices of a diverse cross-section of Afghan women on policy and programming challenges facing Afghanistan, to ensure that their perspectives inform decision-making.

This brief provides an evidence-based analysis of recent trends in online hate speech. Focused on Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, this brief analyses misogynistic hate speech which has occurred in the context of increasing polarization, shrinking democratic space and the ongoing gendered impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since August 2021, the Taliban have implemented a consistent and continuously expanding assault on women’s rights in Afghanistan. An assault which, with each passing day, decree after decree, sees the Taliban move closer to approximating their period of rule in Afghanistan during the 1990s. This Gender Alert brings together publicly available gender data and analysis covering the period between August 2022 and February 2023.

In this edition, we share updates on our partnership with the Government of Indonesia, local and village administrations, and civil society organizations (CSOs) to protect and empower women migrant workers for safe and fair migration. We worked closely with ASEAN and development partners to promote women, peace, and security in Southeast Asia

This brief summarizes the key gender equality issues and key commitments in Cook Islands. Thematic areas covered in the brief include Women’s Human Rights, Women’s Representation and Leadership, Women’s Economic Empowerment, Education, Health/Sexual and Reproductive Health, Ending Violence against Women and Girls, and Gender and Protection in Humanitarian Action.

The purpose of this brief is to present the key priorities of Afghan women across the country and their recommendations on what the international community and national stakeholders can do to change the current situation.

This study is part of WeEmpowerAsia, a joint program of the European Union and UN Women, which aims to increase the number of women who lead and participate in private-sector businesses in seven countries across Asia, including Indonesia.

This Gender Alert concludes that the 24 December 2022 ban: (1) is discriminatory and dictates who humanitarian actors can(not) employ, and who they can reach with assistance; (2) has multilayered implications that go beyond the inability of reaching women and girls with life-saving assistance, including dealing a further blow to the Afghan economy amid the ongoing crisis; and (3) speeds up the erasure of Afghan women and girls from all aspects of Afghan public and private life.

Findings and recommendations from the RNA are intended to serve as a source of information for actors supporting women’s livelihoods in Afghanistan, including UN agencies and other international organizations.

This Gender Alert maps gender trends and recommendations in connection to the evictions of internally displaced persons and the destruction of informal settlements in Badghis. It has been developed by the Gender in Humanitarian Action (GiHA) Working Group and the Women Advisory Group (WAG) to the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) in Afghanistan

The complex and protracted humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan affects persons of all genders, at-risk and marginalized groups differently. Women and girls are disproportionately affected because of gender-specific restrictions that directly impact their ability to realize their rights. Traditional gender norms and patriarchal cultures have long reinforced discrimination against women and girls in Afghanistan, increasing their vulnerability and decreasing their capacity to recover from shocks, leaving them disproportionately affected during crises.

The second thematic brief looks at the legal and justice system changes and implications for gender equality and women’s rights in Afghanistan since the Taliban take-over on 15 August 2021. While incremental progress was made prior to August 2021 to advance access to justice for women and girls in Afghanistan, there has been an observable and swift backslide. Institutions and infrastructure supporting the legal rights of women, such as legal aid and shelters, have been largely dismantled.

The journey of women migrant workers begins in the village. Most of them come from the village, and it is an entry and exit point wherein information on overseas employment opportunities and requirements can be obtained. UN Women, in partnership with Kalyanamitra initiated "Strengthening the Capacity of village and Migrant Communities to Prevent and Respond to Violence against Women Migrant Workers and Trafficking" project in 2020-2022. The story of change from the villages is captured in this book to inspire everyone, including small village communities, that they can play their part in ending gender-based violence and trafficking.

The brief concluded that the indirect ramifications of dismissing women staff in the media sector removes them from public space, contributing to the retreat of women into domestic environments. The justification underpinning this retreat is often that of protecting women, which normalizes the narrative that women are inherently vulnerable and require protection, erasing their agency and vital contribution to a pluralistic society.

Pathways for women’s meaningful participation, across all levels of decision-making in politics, the media, the security sector and conflict prevention and resolution mechanisms which, despite challenges, had previously been possible, are currently non-existent. In the lead-up of the Global Open Debate, UN Women Afghanistan run a serios of in-country consultations with Afghan women leaders from diverse sectors in October 2022. The infor­mation presented in this briefs captures the views and policy recommendation of Afghan women on the relevance of the WPS agenda to Afghanistan.

A study looking at Promoting the Recruitment and Retention of Women Humani­tarian Workers in Afghanistan. The study aims to identify specific barriers faced by Afghan women in their work for humanitarian aid agencies. It also aims to share best practices and recommendations for reversing these barriers, and for enabling more women to participate in humanitarian action. This will be vital for ensuring access by women, chil­dren, and marginalized groups to life-saving assistance.