Mr. Chairman,
Distinguished Delegates,

1. - Firstly, I would like to express, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China, our appreciation to the Secretary-General for the reports submitted under this agenda item.

2. - In the view of the Group of 77 and China, gender equality and empowerment of women are essential conditions for development and human rights promotion.

3. - In this regard, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action remains the most comprehensive global policy framework for the full realization of gender equality, women's human rights and the empowerment of women and girls. Since the United Nations convened the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing sixteen years ago, Member States with the support of the international community including the UN System, have developed and strengthened legal frameworks that promote women's rights and enhance gender equality. Women have increasingly gained access to education, health, jobs and social safety nets.

4. - However, despite this encouraging evolution, the progress has been uneven among areas and regions. There are still severe problems affecting women, such as poverty, violence and discrimination. We recognize an urgent need for further actions at all levels to address these problems and their root causes, which include unequal power relations between men and women as well as conflicts and socio-economic constraints.

5. - In addition to these persistent obstacles to the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, new threats and challenges are emerging. The Group of 77 and China would like to stress the importance of addressing the on-going impact of the global economic and financial crisis, world food crisis and continuing food insecurity, energy crisis and the challenges posed by climate change, particularly on women and children.

6. - The G-77 and China is also deeply concerned about the suffering of women and girls living under foreign occupation, and underlines the urgency for collective actions to remove the obstacles to the full realization of their rights.

7. - In line with the Beijing Declaration, the Group of 77 and China is convinced that women's empowerment and their full participation in all spheres of society, including participation in the decision making-process and access to power, are fundamental for the achievement of equality, development and peace. To this end, it is necessary to continue to foster an increasing political participation of women at all levels of decision.

Mr. Chairman,

8. - As Member States strive for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, we must recognize the contribution of progress in gender equality and empowerment of women, to these goals. In doing so, Member States must further mainstream the gender perspective into the development strategies and actions.

9. - It is also important to enhance international cooperation and global partnership for achieving gender equality and empowerment of women, including the fulfilment of commitments on official development assistance, debt relief, market access, financial and technical support and capacity building, in particular in areas such as women education, health and job creation in order to help eliminating gender disparities.

Mr Chairman,

10. - A year ago, the United Nations Entity on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) was established by the General Assembly. The Group of 77 and China is confident that UN-Women will continue to make a relevant contribution to a world-wide achievement of gender equality and empowerment of women.

11. - In closing, the Group of 77 and China reaffirms its commitment to the full implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and looks forward to working together towards the further advancement of women.

Thank you.