PCW, NGAs, and CSOs conduct UNCSW 67 Feedback Forum
Philippine Delegates meet once again to feedback on the agreed conclusions of the 67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. Posing for posterity were (from left to right) PCW Chief GAD Specialist of PCW Policy Development, Planning, and Monitoring and Evaluation Division Ms. Anita E. Baleda; PCW Executive Director Atty. Kristine Rosary E. Yuzon-Chaves; DILG’s Undersecretary for Plans, Public Affairs, and Communication Atty. Margarita Gutierrez, and Assistant Secretary for Administration, Finance and Comptrollership Ester Aldana; DICT Head Executive Assistant Patricia Nicole Uy; DFA Desk Officer, Socio-Cultural Division Office of United Nations and International Organizations Evella Rose Macadangdang; NEDA Senior Economic Development Staff Christine Joy Mamuyac, Senior Economic Development Staff; CHR Executive Assistant IV Liza P. De Luna; PCO Planning Officer II and Media Research and Development Staff, Jean Denielle Cusi. and PCW Senior GAD Specialist Avery Silk Arevalo
The Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), as the primary government agency advancing the human rights of women and girls in the Philippines and upholding the country’s international commitments, led the Feedback Forum on the 67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW 67) in Prime Hotel Quezon City on May 18, 2023.
During the 67th UNCSW, which occurred from March 6 to 17, 2023, at the UN Headquarters in New York City, the Philippines sent official delegates from various government agencies and non-government organizations.
The discussions focused on the commitment of the Philippines to address different issues encompassing the priority theme “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls,” and the review theme “Challenges and opportunities in achieving gender equality and the empowerment of rural women and girls.”
Present during the Feedback Forum were officials and representatives from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), Commission on Human Rights (CHR), Presidential Communications Office (PCO), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), as well as the Pambansang Koalisyon ng Kababaihan sa Kanayunan (PKKK) and other civil society organizations.
During the event, Atty. Margarita N. Gutierrez, the Undersecretary for Plans, Public Affairs, and Communications at the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), delivered the opening remarks. She expressed her heartfelt appreciation and paid tribute to the delegates for their invaluable contributions and unwavering dedication, which played a pivotal role in the successful participation of the Philippines in the UNCSW 67.
DILG’s Undersecretary for Plans, Public Affairs and Communication Atty. Margarita Gutierrez delivered her opening statement for the 67th UN CSW Feedback Forum, highlighting the continuous commitment of the Philippines to the international community in adhering to the Agree Conclusions during the convention
“Let’s once again set together, look back to the debates and conversation that transpired during this year’s event, and let’s move out initiatives and courses of action as early as now in order to prepare ahead not only on the two-week session next year but also for everything else that will entail us.” Atty. Gutierrez said.
The DILG Undersecretary added, “More importantly, let us ensure that our commitments and learnings from CSW 67 will be incorporated and ingrained into our programs and interventions to the remaining months of 2023. We have a huge task ahead of us as we will chair next year’s event. We have to make our country proud as always.”
The Agreed Conclusions and responsible agencies
PCW’s Chief GAD Specialist of the Policy Development, Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation Division Ms. Anita E. Baleda presented the Agreed Conclusions and the government agencies responsible for specific action items. Agencies are tasked to consider these conclusions as a reference in implementing their GAD programs and projects
Ms. Anita E. Baleda, the Chief GAD Specialist of the Policy Development, Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation Division (PDPMED) presented the overview of the 67th UNCSW and the tedious procedures and processes undertaken by the delegates to come up with the agreed conclusions in line with the priority theme for 2023 “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls,”
Ms. Baleda explained that particular issues raised in the agreed conclusions were assigned to the agencies based on their related mandates and their capability to implement targeted programs and projects for its resolution.
Ms. Baleda enumerated the following agreed conclusions together with the concerned agencies who may adopt these recommendations on their programs and projects:
- Prioritizing digital equity to close the gender digital divide (PCW, PIA, DICT, DOST, Senate, HoR, NEDA, NAPC, Deped, CHED)
- Leveraging financing for inclusive digital transformation and innovation towards achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls (DICT, DOST, Senate, HoR, NEDA DOST, CHED, PIDS, DTI, NDRRMC)
- Fostering gender-responsive digital and science and technology education in the digital age (DepEd, CHED, DSWD, DICT, NEDA, DILG)
- Promoting the full, equal, and meaningful participation and leadership as well as full employment of women in technology and innovation (DOLE, DSWD, NEDA, DILG DOST, DepEd, CHED, TESDA)
- Adopting gender-responsive technology design, development, and deployment (DICT, NEDA, DOST, DOLE)
- Strengthening fairness, transparency, and accountability in the digital age (DICT Senate, HoR. PCW)
- Enhancing data science to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls (PSA)
- Preventing and eliminating all forms of violence, including gender-based violence that occurs through or is amplified by the use of technologies (PCW, CHR, DILG, PHRCS, IACVAWC)
Ms. Baleda concluded the presentation with hopes that government agencies will consider these in framing their programs and projects to the urgent need of women and girls for access and maximized use of modern and digital information and communication platforms for more inclusive and continuous progress, which is part of the country’s international commitment in closing the gender gap.
Sharing of learnings and personal takeaways from the 67TH UNCSW
Philippine Delegates share their experiences and lessons learned from the 67th UNCSW. Present during the forum were DILG’s Undersecretary for Plans, Public Affairs, and Communication Atty. Margarita Gutierrez, and Assistant Secretary for Administration, Finance and Comptrollership Ester Aldana; DICT Head Executive Assistant Patricia Nicole Uy; DFA Desk Officer, Socio-Cultural Division Office of United Nations and International Organizations Evella Rose Macadangdang; NEDA Senior Economic Development Staff Christine Joy Mamuyac, Senior Economic Development Staff; CHR Executive Assistant IV Liza P. De Luna; and PCO Planning Officer II and Media Research and Development Staff, Jean Denielle Cusi.
In an engaging friendly, open forum, the PH Delegates shared their experiences and significant contribution during the various sessions and side events of the UNCSW 67.
The delegates shared that they have presented the achievements of the Philippines, highlighting the country’s efforts in digital transformation. They discussed the development of innovative tools such as digital transformation tool kits, technical programs for small enterprise programs, and other digital-based initiatives in formal and technical education.
Also shared during the forum how other countries commend the Philippines in crafting legislation based on specific needs and issues of women victim-survivors of gender-based violence like the passage of the Republic Act 11313 or the Safe Spaces Act, as well as the law that protects children from online abuse and harassment as stated by the Republic Act 11930 or the Anti-Online Sexual Abuse or Exploitation of Children.
Service mechanisms of the country were also shared, like the laws of e-lawyering and e-reporting for VAWC and the use of the National Emergency Hotline 911.
The delegates are proud that the UNCSW sessions gave them the space to network and held discussions on remarkable experts and policymakers from different sectors and causes.
They also gave briefings on their key bilateral meetings with the United States, Timor Leste, and Singapore, during which areas of cooperation with regard to GEWE, women’s political participation and leadership, and food security were discussed, among other issues.
As shared by the delegates, the Philippines also shared the same concerns with other countries in the world when it comes to issues of gender-based violence induced by modern technology, migration, food security problems induced by agricultural problems, the welfare of the rural workers in accessing key services, and technological gap between young and old women.
DFA’s Director Christina Rola McKernan of the Socio-Cultural Division for the UN and International Organizations (UNIO) discussed the set of priority themes and functions to be acted by the Philippines in preparation for its Chairship of the 68th UNCSW for 2024
As the Philippines was elected to Chair the 68th UNCSW in 2024, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) through Director Christina Rola McKernan of the Socio-Cultural Division for the UN and International Organizations (UNIO) discussed the priority and review themes and the assigned agencies for specific sessions of the next year’s convention.
According to Director McKernan, the 68th CSW will adopt the priority theme: “Accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective”
She also states that the discussion will be focused on the issues of social protection systems, access to public services, sustainable infrastructure for gender equality, and the empowerment of women and girls.
Director McKernan also cited that the government agencies to be assigned for specific functions for the preparations and actual event would be the DFA, PCW, and Philippine Mission in New York for the oversight functions, and for the discussions on the priority, themes will be National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Finance (DOF), and DILG—meanwhile, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), DSWD, NEDA where assigned to oversee the review themes for the sessions.
Key takeaways from the Agreed Conclusions and the necessary actions
Atty. Roseny Fangco, First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of the Philippines to the UN in New York, highlighted the issues from the Agreed Conclusions, like online and technology-facilitated gender-based violence, women migrant workers, and the welfare of rural women and girls.
In a recorded statement, First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of the Philippines to the UN in New York, Atty. Roseny Fangco highlighted the importance of technology to utilize innovation in education to promote gender equality and the risk of it being misused.
Atty. Fangco expressed her heartfelt gratitude to the Philippine delegates for their exceptional dedication and unwavering commitment to championing the causes of migrant workers, persons with disabilities, anti-trafficking initiatives, and the rights and well-being of older women.
“The Philippines is friends to all and enemies to none, and this has always been demanded. So, we utilize a very balanced approach to the negotiations. We are a consensus builder, and we believe that dialogue is the best way to bridge differences between delegations. So, we sort of are the consensus builder when there is a divergence of positions” Atty. Fangco said about the positions and causes submitted by the Philippines to the convention.
Atty. Fangco commended the country’s balanced stands on issues between human rights and development. “So as long as this is not a sacrifice, as long as we do not sacrifice our national interest, we tend to propose references to both human rights and development. Other issues were in negotiation slowed down, or sometimes even, you know, bogged down in the mention of the term misuse of information and communications technology,” she said.
The PH First Secretary of the Permanent Mission also weighed the insights of Filipino non-government organizations (NGOs) and civil society organizations (CSOs) insights on the series of sessions.
Atty. Fangco also thanked the PCW for coordinating all the comments and inputs and all PH government agencies involved in the country’s contribution to the agreed conclusions.
Moving forward to PH’s Chairship of the 68th UNCSW
In a closing statement, Deputy Permanent Representative Ariel R. Peñaranda of the Philippine Mission to the United Nations expressed his positive outlook on the Philippines Chairship of the 68th UNCSW in 2024
As part of the event’s conclusion, Deputy Permanent Representative Ariel R. Peñaranda of the Philippine Mission to the United Nations, through a recorded speech, delivered heart-warming support from H.E. Amb. Antonio Lagdameo, Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the UN in New York.
Mr. Peñaranda highlighted the country’s long experience in dealing with different international commitments and the role that it played in vital international conventions like the Fourth World Conference of Women and in the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.
“Every year at the Commission on the Status of Women, the Philippine delegation does its best to represent the concerns of the women of the Philippines. We share good practices; we advocate for progress, and we work with other delegations to arrive at an outcome that is action-oriented and that benefits stakeholders on the ground”, Deputy Peñaranda said.
Deputy Peñaranda also announced that Ambassador Lagdameo was elected by acclamation with the CSW membership to lead the session of the 68th UNCSW in March 2024.
“We are counting on your support to make the Philippine chairship a resounding success. Thank you and see you in New York next year.” Deputy Peñaranda wished as he expressed his positive outlook on the success of the country’s Chairship of next year’s UNCSW.
As one of the lead agencies of the Philippine government involved with agreed outcomes of its different international commitments for gender equality and women’s empowerment, the PCW will circulate the Agreed Conclusions with initially identified implementing agencies to respectively identify and implement programs to address the stated issues from the convention.
For concurrence of the agreed conclusions, additional agencies and development partners are also tasked to report back with priority actions to address barriers to GEWE in relation to innovation, technology, education in the digital age, and empowerment of rural women and girls. As part of its commitment, PCW will link the CSOs to potential donors and offer technical and possibly financial support for their participation in the next year’s convention.
The PCW, DFA, and the New York Permanent mission will tediously work to commence the preparations for the country’s Chairship of the CSW68.
