Turning commitments into action: Bangladesh’s roadmap to Advancethe Beijing+30 political declaration
Date:
Author: Shararat Islam
Dhaka, Bangladesh — The Ministry of Women and Children Affairs (MoWCA), in partnership with UN Women, convened a national consultation to disseminate the outcomes of the 69th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW69), marking 30 years since the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action. The consultation brought together government officials, civil society representatives—including voices from marginalized communities—and development partners to reaffirm Bangladesh’s commitment to gender equality and the Beijing+30 agenda.
The key outcome was the launch of a national roadmap aligned with the CSW69 Political Declaration. MoWCA Joint Secretary Prakash Kanti Chowdhury reiterated Bangladesh’s priorities: poverty eradication, ending gender-based violence, promoting women’s leadership and participation, advancing peace and security, and ensuring digital inclusion and climate justice. He outlined several initiatives, including reforming the national child protection system through the Shishu Academy, and forming a women-led cyber unit to address digital harassment.
UN Women Representative, Gitanjali Singh highlighted that the Beijing +30 Political Declaration adopted by consensus demonstrates multilateral solidarity and political intent to advance women’s empowerment and gender equality. She highlighted the need for financing and data, “The UN estimates that USD 360 billion in additional investment per year is required to achieve gender equality and women's empowerment by 2030. Progressive fiscal reform and an overhaul of the global financial architecture that creates and exacerbates global inequalities are long overdue. Women’s organizations, an engine of change across the Beijing+30 Action Agenda, require sustainable and flexible funding to do their essential work."
Civil society organizations (CSOs) urged several actions: integrating unpaid care work into national policy; ensuring affirmative action to boost women’s participation in governance; direct election of women from diverse backgrounds; prioritizing transgender rights aligned with the 2023 bill to the Ministry of Social Welfare; and enhanced services for women in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and among floating populations. They also called for lifting reservations on the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).
MoWCA Adviser Sharmin S. Murshid underlined a unified vision for the Ministry: “Protect women, protect children, and eliminate violence.” She announced plans for rapid-response teams and enhanced training for frontline responders. Murshid also proposed initiating a high-level dialogue with Türkiye, Tunisia, and Morocco on gender equality reforms in Islamic contexts.
Reflections from three CSO representatives who attended CSW69 underscored the need for inclusivity. Tamanna Singh from the Dalit Women Forum highlighted underrepresentation of marginalized groups and called for increased participation of Dalit, indigenous and disabled women in future global fora. Fawzia Khondker of Pragroshor advocated for full implementation of the 33 per cent women’s quota in political parties. “With over 60 per cent of the population landless, inheritance laws are largely irrelevant for most,” noted Roshan Jahan Moni from Association for Land Reform and Development (ALRD) emphasizing the urgency of land rights and access to khas land for landless women.
In her closing remarks, Shireen Huq, Head of the Women’s Affairs Reform Commission, emphasized sustaining momentum. “Through nationwide consultations, we have gathered 433 actionable recommendations,” she noted. These are categorized into three tiers: “doable” (for immediate implementation), “desirable” (for the next elected government), and “dreams” (long-term reforms), including establishing a permanent women’s commission to coordinate and monitor gender equality initiatives.
The national roadmap, incorporating feedback from this consultation, will be shared in September at the UNGA 80 High Level Meeting. It marks an important step for Bangladesh in turning global commitments into inclusive and practical national actions.
See also
- Bangladesh is a focus country for this UN Women project funded by the Government of the Republic of Korea through its Ministry of Gender Equality and Family: Beijing+30 Activation: Strengthening Women’s Leadership to Accelerate Progress on Women’s Rights in Asia