New York, US (PANA) - The Executive Director of UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), Ms. Michelle Bachelet, said on Thursday that her priority this year is to enhance the economic empowerment and political participation of women. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has called on business leaders attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, to increase their investment in women’s education and health, to ensure their well-being and encourage their participation in the world economy. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - The UN International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has launched a new web portal focusing on helping girls and women to access job opportunities, training and career advice in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector. Full text...

Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A workshop in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, on the psychological and social support for battered women has called for institutional suppoty for victims of the inhumane act. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - Ms. Rashida Manjoo, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, on Friday called for greater efforts to improve the plight of women in Somalia, thousands of whom remain extremely vulnerable to discrimination and violence. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro has stressed that efforts to restore peace and stability in Africa’s Great Lakes region will not come to fruition unless the scourge of sexual violence is completely eradicated and justice systems are strengthened to end impunity. Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - Director of international organization Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS), Bineta Diop, has urged Africans to come together to deal with the various crises that are having a negative impact on the continent. Full text...

Brazzaville, Congo (PANA) - The coordinator of the UNESCO Chair in Science Education, Prof. Samuel Mawete, has called for the involvement of Congolese women in the management of public affairs. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Ms. Margot Wallstrom, on Friday marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women with a call for solidarity with the survivors of sexual violence in conflict throughout the world. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called for engaging all of society, especially young people, to end violence against women, a scourge that spans the globe and takes many forms, including rape, domestic violence and harassment at work. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - Marking the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Full text...

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) – Equality Now, an international non-governmental organization (NGO), working to protect the human rights of women around the world, Tuesday announced the appointment of Yasmeen Hassan as its Global Director. Full text...

Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire (PANA) - The Special Representative of the Secretary General of the United Nations for the fight against sexual violence in armed conflict, Margot Wallström, arrived in Abidjan, the Ivorian capital, Monday. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro on Friday called for greater effort to raise the number of women holding senior positions at the UN, saying that the majority of them remain in the lower ranks although more women are now being hired to fill management posts. Full text...

Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - More than 100 Sudanese women, drawn from the three states of the region of Darfur, took part in an open-day dialogue on the role of women in peace in the embattled region, a press statement from the United nations African Union Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) indicated Thursday.Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - The UN Security Council has urged countries to implement a landmark resolution which seeks to strengthen women’s participation in peacebuilding, Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday called for the involvement of more women in conflict prevention and mediation, saying ``their participation is essential to building blocks in reinforcing democracy''. Full text...

Lomé,Togo (PANA) - A meeting on the women's access to legal and judicial services in Africa, held in Lome, Togo, has adopted an eight-year (2012-2020) Action Plan. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - The UN Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, Ms. Gabriela Knaul has called for the integration of a gender perspective into countries’ criminal justice systems to ensure women are not "ruled out of the law. Full text...

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) – The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has denounced hindrances to women entrepreneurship in developing countries in its 2011 report on the information economy launched on Wednesday in Addis Ababa. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday called on the Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - The president of Senegalese NGO, Association femme enfant environnement (AFEE), Seynabou Tall Wade, on Thursday in Geneva, Switzerland, received the 2011 distinction award for her role in protecting the interest of underprivileged women and children in the rural areas.Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - Ms. Rashida Manjoo, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, on Tuesday said that violence against women across the world continued to be pervasive and widespread and reminded member states of their obligation under international law to protect women. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has hailed Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Leymah Gbowee, a Liberian peace activist, and Tawakkul Karman, a pro-democracy activist from Yemen, for jointly winning the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize. Full text...

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) - The Africa Progress Panel (APP) has welcomed the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberian activist Leymah Gbowee and Yemeni rights activist Tawakkul Karman. Full text...

Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - More encomiums have continued to pour in for the three women winners of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winners, Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberian peace activist Leymah Roberta Gbowee, and Yemeni activist Tawakkul Karman. Full text...

Khartoum, Sudan (PANA) - The African Union (AU) on Friday congratulated Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, a joint winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Full text...

Paris, France (PANA) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Friday congratulated the three women winners of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize, saying that one of them, President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf of Liberia, was a symbol of the rise of democracy in Africa.Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), on Monday kicked off a two-day meeting in Paris, France, devoted to gender inequality in classroom achievement and on women’s leadership role in education. Full text...

Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - A group of Mauritanian women have called for gender equality at elective offices and in senior government positions, according to their letter which was made available to PANA on Monday. Full text...

Luanda, Angola (PANA) - The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Norwegian government will support gender equality and women promotion in Angola through the financial agreement signed Wednesday, in Luanda. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - Newly independent South Sudan and 34 other countries were Thursday awarded grants by UN Women to fight violence against women.Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - Women still face legal and regulatory hurdles to fully participate in the economy in most countries across the globe, a new report by the World Bank has said. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday said that sexual violence in conflict represents a threat to peace and security and is not just a health or human rights issue.Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – The World Bank has said in a new report that while gender equality matters in its own right, it is also 'smart economics'.Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - A new report by the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on WednesdayFull text...

Nouakchott, Mauritania (PANA) - About 60 scientists from eight Islamic countries in West Africa Monday began talks at a sub-regional conference on "Islam and Female Genital Mutilations (FGM)", official sources told PANA here. Full text...

Paris, France (PANA) - UNESCO and the multinational consumer product company, Procter and Gamble’s Always brand, have launched a partnership to promote literacy for young girls and women, according to a UNESCO press statement issued here Thursday. Full text...

New York, US PANA) - Ms. Margot Wallstrom, the Special Representative of the UN Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – The Advocacy Committee on Violence against Women, which brings together about 15 civil society organisations, on Monday condemned the resurgence of gang rapes in Senegal.Full text...

Luanda, Angola (PANA) - The vice chairperson of the Pan-African Women’s Organisation (PAWO) for southern Africa, Carolina Cerqueira of Angola, Sunday expressed her solidarity with African women facing serious societal problems, such as Somali women and others in the horn of Africa. Full text...

Bujumbura, Burundi (PANA) – The rate of women resorting to modern contraceptive methods to control births or limit unwanted pregnancies, stood at only 20% in 2010 nationwide. Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) - The Gambia Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (GAMCOTRAP) is gaining ground in the battle against female genital mutilation (FGM), with several communities in the West African nation abandoning the practice, PANA reported from here Friday. Full text...

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania (PANA) - International human rights organisation Equality Now, in conjunction with Solidarity for African Women’s Rights (SOAWR), have released a Guide to Using the Protocol on the Rights to Women in Africa for Legal Action at local, national, and regional levels – five years after the Protocol came into force.Full text...

Bamako, Mali (PANA) - The Malian Children’s Parliament on Thursday urged the international community to create a framework for dialogue, exchange and sharing of experiences between the different children's parliaments in the West-African sub-region and the world. Full text...

Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – Gambian Vice-President Isatou Njie-Saidy, has called for the empowerment of women and girls, emphasizing that “investing in women and girls is cost-effective and essential to solving the world’s most challenging problems,” PANA reported from here Tuesday.Full text...

Bamako, Mali (PANA) - The Chief Executive Officer of Plan International, Nigel Chapman, will embark on a working visit to Mali from Wednesday, the NGO’s country office in Mali told PANA here. Full text...

Paris, France (PANA) – France on Friday called on the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Congo (MONUSCO) to intensify its collaboration with the Congolese authorities and civil society to prevent the resurgence of rape in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - A report by UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), on Wednesday said governments around the world had not done enough to guarantee equality before the law for women and should rescind legislation that limits the access of women to legal systems. Full text...

New York, US (PANA) - The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday said that it was time to make ``faster and wider progress'' in promoting the participation of women in all levels of society, including democratic institutions. Full text...