Call for Applications to the Beijing+30 Civil Society Steering Committee for Asia and the Pacific

UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) are launching this call for applications to the Beijing+30 Civil Society Steering Committee for Asia and the Pacific. Members of the Steering Committee will ensure the effective, coordinated and inclusive engagement of civil society organizations focused on women's rights, gender equality and diverse or intersectional feminist issues, herein referred to as "civil society", in the regional review process leading up to the global review of the 1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 2025.

Background

The 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) is in 2025. The anniversary provides a pivotal moment to review state action and compliance in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995). It also provides an opportunity for feminist movements to analyze the political, economic and social concerns of the moment and consider ways to advance human rights and gender equality for all. The year 2025 will also mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, as well as the final five years of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The Beijing+30 review process begins in 2024 and will culminate in a global review at the 69th Session of the Commission of the Status of Women (CSW) in March 2025. The global review will highlight the challenges and opportunities of UN member States governments to implement the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995). It will also provide an opportunity to look at new and emerging areas of relevance to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. The review process is a multi-stakeholder process with consultations that will include civil society organizations in the review process at every level (national, regional, and global).

In the Asia Pacific region, UNESCAP and UN Women’s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific will facilitate the regional review process. These organizations are collaborating to ensure that civil society is engaged in the regional review process which will culminate in the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review which will take place between 19 and 21 November 2024 and will be preceded by a CSO Forum.

To ensure that civil society engagement is effective, coordinated and inclusive in the regional review process, a Beijing+30 Civil Society Steering Committee for Asia and the Pacific will be established comprising of up to fifteen diverse civil society organizations. This Steering Committee will work closely with UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and ESCAP to support civil society contributions in the leadup to the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review in November in Bangkok including providing inputs to the reviews – both nationally and regionally, including organizing the CSO Forum prior to the conference.

Overall objectives of the Steering Committee

• To coordinate and facilitate input and participation of civil society organizations (both regional and national) in the Beijing+30 regional review process through inclusive virtual CSO consultations;
• To share information and outcomes of the national and regional reviews to their constituencies and to UN Member State governments and other institutions; including through virtual CSO consultations and participation in the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review;
• To lead and facilitate substantive input and advocacy into the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review and Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) review in November 2024 through the consolidation of CSO statements, providing recommendations for expert speakers and other resources persons, and organizing side events;
• To consult with civil society, with particular focus on the inclusion of marginalized and underrepresented groups, and liaise with UN Women and UNESCAP to provide inputs and suggestions on the structure, accessibility, content and participation of civil society at the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review in November 2024;
• To conceptualize, plan and organize an inclusive Civil Society Forum in November 2024 (in the context of available resources) facilitating:
  • Participation of diverse constituencies and sub-regions from Asia and the Pacific in the processes (including developing criteria for selection of civil society organizations, representation etc.);
  • Development of the Civil Society Forum agenda and content;
  • Development of a joint CSO statement for feeding into the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review;
  • Identify post-meeting follow-up actions to be undertaken.
• To develop accessible communication mechanisms with broader civil society about the processes, consultations and outcome follow-ups, leading up to CSW69; and
• To develop processes for the engagement of civil society after the regional review process, to ensure that regional priorities are reflected in the CSW69.

Criteria for selection of Steering Committee membership

• Organizations that are committed to and act in accordance with global human rights principles and also practice inclusive and progressive feminism, whose work does not marginalize or exclude any person or group on the basis of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or sex characteristics, nor on grounds of ethnicity, nationality/citizen status, disability, race, age, caste, indigeneity, socio-economic status, migrant status, household status, HIV and AIDS status, sector of work, religion or other factors
• Global, regional, sub-regional, and/or national CSOs with demonstrated presence, network or relevant thematic experience in Asia and the Pacific. As such, applications submitted by individuals will not be accepted.
• Expertise and history of work on women’s human rights, gender equality and intersectional feminist issues, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (1995) and review processes/Agenda 2030 and the SDGs localization and review processes.
• Demonstration of capacity to coordinate and represent issues or sub-regions and of key constituencies, which should include:
  • Sub-regions of the Pacific, South Asia, Central Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia (at least one or more of these sub-regions);
  • Constituencies representing (at least one or more of these constituencies):
    • Rural women
    • Migrant women
    • Indigenous women
    • Women with disabilities
    • Urban poor women
    • Young women and girls
    • Older women
    • Women and girls in all their diversities, and including all persons of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and/or sex characteristics
    • Women survivors of violence
    • Persons living with HIV and AIDS
    • Women workers from a diversity of sectors, including sex workers
    • Women in ICT (including gender data and artificial intelligence)
    • Women in media
    • Women in or affected by conflict situations (including women refugees or those who are internally displaced)
    • Women from religious groups
    • Others

• Capacity and time to provide substantive expertise, leadership, technical support and advocacy to substantively inform and influence the process.
• Steering committee members must also be able to commit time and human resources to the steering committee. This includes (inter alia):
  • attending regular teleconferences (fortnightly or more frequent as needed);
  • regular email contact;
  • writing and editing documents;
  • communicating with constituencies or sub-regions;
  • participating in virtual working committees;
  • inputting to the survey process;
  • contributing language for civil society statements and review of draft government documents;
  • actively contributing to the civil society forum planning, preparation, delivery, evaluation and follow-up steps;
  • attending the CSO Forum and the Asia-Pacific Ministerial Conference on the Beijing+30 Review in November 2024.

The duration of this Steering Committee’s mandate will extend to the culmination of the global review process i.e. the CSW69 in March 2025.

Selection process

The selection will be carried out by a Selection Committee chaired by UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and composed of membership from UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, UNESCAP and UN Women selected country offices in the Asia-Pacific region. This Selection Committee will be convened within one calendar week of the closing date for receiving applications, and the results will be communicated to the up to fifteen organizations by the end of the following calendar week, the goal being to virtually convene a first meeting of the Steering Committee membership by the last week of May 2024.

Documentation required

UN Women and UNESCAP will circulate this call through UN Women offices and social media channels regionally, through regional inter-agency coordination mechanisms, and existing regional and national civil society organizations.

Applicants should submit the following (which should speak directly to the criteria for selection of Steering Committee members):

• Organizational profile referencing the organizational mandate, target constituencies and program profile, including leadership and engagement in intergovernmental processes (Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and Agenda 2030 and SDGs and other critical global commitments) and the organization’s programming principles and approaches.
• The profile should also provide the organization’s geographical areas of coverage (countries), including where the organization has offices.
• Detail regarding interactivity/partnership/collaboration/coordination with civil society networks;
• Legal registration documentation, clarifying the legal identity of the organization and country of establishment;
• Management structure and profiles of the organization’s management;
• Profile of the person who will be representing the organization on the Steering Committee, confirming their capacity and availability to effectively participate in the Steering Committee;
• A letter of recommendation for the applicant, from a fellow/another/a partner civil society organization;

Applicants should include with their submission a cover note providing information on the primary contact for your organization for the purposes of this application: