UN chief urges single world agency for women

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged the world body yesterday to create a single agency to empower women and girls and fight for their rights.

In an address to mark International Women's Day, Mr Ban said the 192-member United Nations should take the lead in the global battle with a fully funded new agency that combines the work currently done by three different UN bodies.

"Such a new body should be able to call on all of the UN system's resources in the work to empower women and realise gender equality worldwide," Mr Ban said. "It should mobilise forces of change at the global level and inspire enhanced results at the country level."

A UN panel recommended in November that the UN Development Fund for Women, the UN Division for the Advancement of Women, and the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues be combined into one ambitiously funded agency.

The combined budgets of the three units is currently less than $80 million annually.

Mr Ban said much more needed to be done in the fight for women's rights, particularly in combating violence against women and girls around the world, which is the theme for this year's International Women's Day.