Women´s Development Summit

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Women´s Development Summit
Women´s Development Summit
Gender Equality for Development & Peace
What is Women´s Development Summit?

The Women´s Development Summit (formerly Istanbul Summit) is an international, non-governmental, multi-sector forum, which aims to gather stakeholders from every quarter of the international community to discuss the Global Agenda in a gen- der sensitive approach.The Summit provides a setting for networking and experience sharing among members of civil society organizations, state institutions, intergovernmental organizations, academia, and private sector, to encourage and increase women’s role in sustainable development, peace & security, with the idea that gender equality is a prerequisite to these aims. The Summit is organized annually by Journalists and Writers Foundation (JWF) based in New York.

Topic of Women´s Development Summit 2017/2018:
Gender Mainstreaming in Sustainable Development Goals

The year 2015 became a turning point with the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the heads of states at a special summit at the United Nations. Sustainable development is a holistic approach to well-being that calls on societies to pursue economic, social, and environmental objectives in an integrated manner. In recent years however, many countries have achieved economic growth with the cost of sharply rising inequality, deepening social exclusion and deterioration of environment. The SDGs are designed to help countries to achieve a more balanced approach ensuring resilient, equitable and inclusive societies thereby leading to higher levels of well-being for the present and future genera- tions. The agenda is bold, multi-dimensional and universal in coverage and reflects a broad collective will; all nations agreed to participate that no one is to be „left behind“: “We resolve, between now and 2030, to end poverty and hunger everywhere; to reduce ill health, physical and mental; to combat ine- qualities within and among countries; to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies; to protect human rights and promote gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls; and to ensure the lasting protection of the planet and its natural resources. We resolve also to create conditions for sustainable, inclusive and sustained economic growth, shared prosperity and decent work for all, taking into account different levels of national development and capacities.“ Sustainable development and Gender-Mainstreaming are strongly interrelated and mutually reinforcing. Promoting gender equality with a peop- le-centred approach is of ultimate importance for economic, environmental and social development. The year 2015 became a turning point with the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the heads of states at a special summit at the United Nations. Sustainable development is a holistic approach to well-being that calls on societies to pursue economic, social, and environmental objectives in an integrated manner. In recent years however, many countries have achieved economic growth with the cost of sharply rising inequality, deepening social exclusion and deterioration of environment. generations.

Preparation & Consultation Meetings

This year, the organizers of the Summit decided to develop the Summit a step further: Focusing on three different subtitles, Preparation & Consultation Meetings will take place in order to set the groundwork for the Woomen´s Development Summit 2018, which will be held in November 2018. With the outcome of these Meetings, it will be possible to have an in-depth insight to the very important issue of gender-mainstreaming in sustainable development goals.

First Preparation & Consultation Meeting
The Gender Perspective on Social inclusiveness of Refugees, IDPs and Migrants- 09 November 2017, Frankfurt, Germany

The World is experiencing a massive movement of refugees and asylum seekers fleeing from war, conflicts, and persecutions in their country of origin. According to existing studies and research, women do not make up the majority of these flows; however, as they find themselves in a very vulnerable condition just because of their gender, there is a need for a prompt and concrete intervention to support them. Exactly for this reason, gender is essential in developing and implementing measures and policies aimed at protecting and empowering women refugees and asylum seekers in order to allow them to become active contributors to the host society. To this aim, their needs have to be recognised and fulfilled with reference to their background conditions, the situation they are escaping from, and what happened to them during their journey towards the host country.

Being aware of this, the Journalists and Writers Foundation, based in New York, decided to organize a Regional Preparation & Consultation Meeting on this topic, in order to set the groundwork for Women´s Development Summit 2018: Gender-Mainstreaming in Sustainable Development Goals.