Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

On 15 February 2022, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Central Asia and Head of the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA), Natalia Gherman, participated in the regional consultations within the framework of the Central Asia Women Leaders’ Caucus (CAWLC) in preparation for the 66th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) on gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change. The event was organized by the Government of Turkmenistan, the  UN Women Regional Office  for Europe and Central Asia and the UN RC Office in Turkmenistan.

SRSG Natalia Gherman emphasized an intrinsic link between climate change, empowerment of women and implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda. She underscored importance of co-operation on environmental and climate security in Central Asia, including development of the gender-responsive regional approaches addressing disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls.  In this context she highlighted the potential role of the Women Leaders’ Caucus in spearheading policies and programmes promoting increased role of women in peacebuilding processes and building the resilience of women and girls to climate change, environmental degradation, biodiversity loss and disaster risks.

The meeting, chaired by H.E. Gulshat Mammedova, Speaker of the Parliament of Turkmenistan and Chairperson of the CAWLC, brought together prominent female political leaders, experts and civil society representatives from the Central Asian states and the United Nations.

The meeting discussed the situation and challenges to achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of climate change, environmental and disaster risk reduction policies. Participants formulated joint recommendations for the upcoming CSW 66th session.

The consultations marked an increasing prominence of the Women Leaders’ Caucus of Central Asia, which was established with the support of UNRCCA and UNDP RBEC in December 2020.

Read more about the Central Asia Women Leaders’ Caucus: https://unrcca.unmissions.org/women-leaders-caucus