In Conversation With: Ambassador Corinne Kitsell, United Kingdom
Vienna, April 2022 - Ambassador Kitsell joined the UK Mission in Vienna in October 2020. She has been a strong advocate for gender equality and women's empowerment throughout her career and has been an International Gender Champion since 2021. (Read more)

Palestine: Survivors of Gender-Based Violence Supported by Justice Services in the West Bank
Palestine, 21 March 2022 - Forty-year old Nada* tells of being subjected to verbal and physical violence by a man at her local village council, where she had gone to demand her right to inheritance as the only daughter, as right deined by her brothers following the passing of her parents. (Read more)

 International Women's Day 2022
Vienna, March 2022 - The theme for 2022 International Women’s Day is “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”, recognising the contributions of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation and response to build a more sustainable future for all. (Read more)

UNODC supports the empowerment of female criminal justice practitioners

UNODC Field Offices, March 2022- Through trainings and networking opportunities, UNODC supports women practitioners to be active and make tangible contributions to the criminal justice system. (Read more)

Nigerian Correctional Service partners with UNODC, UNFPA to provide dignity kits to women in custodial cenres in Nigeria
Abuja, 11 January 2022 - Globally, women in prisons are a minority and their needs do not often receive adequate attention from relevant authorities. In Nigeria, only 2% of all persons presently in detention are women. (Read more)

UNODC supports Bosnia and Herzegovina in addressing violence against women
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1 December 2021 - UNODC in Bosnia and Herzegovina held a webinar last week which focused on key technical needs for ensuring the delivery of gender-responsive police and justice services to women subjected to gender-based violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina. (Read more)

UNODC's New Listen First series, 'Super Skills', supports skill development for vulnerable children worldwide
Vienna, 20 November 2021 - On World Children’s Day, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) released a new series of the ‘Listen First’ initiative – the Science of Skills.The new series will focus on social and emotional skill development as a foundation for drug use prevention in children and early adolescents. (Read more)

Vienna Discussion Forum 2021: Cyber Equality and Digital Inclusion
Vienna, November 2021 - UNIDO and UNODC, together with the Permanent Missions of Finalnd, Norway and Sweden in Vienna, hosted the third annual Vienna Discussion Forum (VDF), a platform to discuss gender equality in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. (Read more)

LPOMEX Best Practices: Implementing an intersectional approach to gender mainstreaming
Mexico, October 2021 - The UNOV/UNODC Gender Team spoke to members of the Gender Advisory Group; Violeta Zarco, Edwin Cantu, and Maria Medellin, to discuss their experiences of implementing an intersectional approach to gender mainstreaming. (Read more)

Adopting a Gender Perspective to Support Victims of Terrorism
Vienna, October 2021 - The UNODC Terrorism Prevention Branch interviewed Ms. Fatima Bello Raji, a female legal practitioner and humanitarian actor working in Yola, Adamawa State, to discuss the importance of adopting a gender perspective to support victims of terrorism. (Read more)

UNODC-WCO CCP MENA launches 'Customs, Cargo & Women - A Talk for Her!'
Beirut, Lebanon, 26 October 2021 - The UNODC-WCO Container Control Programme (CCP) launched a new regional initiative under the name of  'Customs, Cargo & Women – A Talk for Her!', to promote women’s empowerment and gender equality in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. (Read more)

Community based policing-oriented approach to reducing gender-based violence in Cambodia Cambodia, October 2021 - The UNOV/UNODC Gender Team spoke to E. Felipe De La Torre (Ecuador), UNODC Regional Coordinator for Southeast Asia, about ROSEAP's recent project to tackle gender-based violence and the importance of gender mainstreaming in criminal justice responses to gender-based violence. (Read more)

Setting an example for women in Southeast Asian Law Enforcement
Bangkok, Thailand and Hanoi, Viet Nam, September 2021 - Law enforcement agencies in Southeast Asia remain heavily male-dominated organizations. UNODC and its partners are encouraging police forces in Southeast Asia to better reflect the diversity of the communities that they serve. (Read more)

Strengthening the prevention and care for victims of gender-based violence in Ecuador, a shared challenge between UNODC and UN WOMEN

Quito, June 28 2021- In order to strengthen the prevention and care for victims of gender-based violence in Ecuador, UNODC has formalized a partnership with UN Women in Ecuador. (Read more)

UNODC Gender Equality Forum
Vienna, June 2021 - The UNODC Gender Team with the support of the Government of Ireland, hosted the first ever UNODC Gender Equality Forum, a virtual conference held from the 22nd to the 24th of June to discuss the future of gender equality and women's empowermnet in UNODC's mandated areas. (Read more)

How UNODC Wants to Eliminate Gender-Based Violence Against Women
Vienna, Austria, 20 May 2021 - UNODC is implementing several initiatives around the world in the field of crime prevention and criminal justice, through trainings with police, reviewing legislative initiatives, promoting essential services for suvivors, or coaching judges to improve criminal justice systems, to name a few. (Read more)

Female Police Officers Step into the Frontlines as First Responders in Pakistan
Islamabad, Pakistan, 26 April 2021 - UNODC Pakistan has readily taken initiative through its Rule of Law programme and trained the first-ever cadre of female police officers in Balochistan as first responders for Gender-Based Violence. (Read more)

Making the Streets Safer for Women & Girls in Mexico
Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, 22 April 2021 - Girls and women have the right to feel safe everywhere yet all too often, cities and public spaces are not designed with women’s safety in mind. The Spotlight Initiative in Mexico worked with municipal institutions on plans to improve the city’s public spaces in the city of Ciudad Juarez. (Read more)

UNODC Programme Office Ethiopia Launches Gender Newsletter
Ethiopia, April 2021 - The UNODC Programme Office in Ethiopia is pleased to share its first Gender Newsletter that focuses on the work delivered to advocate for the empowerment of women in the criminal justice sector in Ethiopia. (Read more)

New Handbook on Gender-Responsive Police Services for Women and Girls Subject to Violence
Cairo, Egypt, 21 April 2021 - A new global Police Handbook aims to provide guidance and practical knowledge for police middle managers in addressing some of the most difficult challenges that women survivors of violence face when accessing police services around the world was presented to representatives from law enforcement entities in the Arab States. (Read more)

Training of trainers: Enhancing expertise in the criminal justice system in Ethiopia
Bishoftu, Ethiopia, 12 April 2021 - The UNODC Programme Office in Ethiopia partnered with key training institutes and academies in Ethiopia to deliver 3 weeks of training to 77 personnel (57 men/20 women) who train prison wardens, police officers, and prosecution personnel, in order to sustain capacities in the criminal justice system. (Read more)

Interview with Lelise Terfasa: Women leading the way towards gender equality within UNOV/UNODC
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 8 March 2021 - Prior to joining the UNODC Programme Office in Ethiopia, Lelise worked as a Team Leader of a special prosecution unit for crimes against women and children in Ethiopia and was Deputy Head of the Federal Attorney General branch office. Please read about her motivations, her achievements and how she commemorated International Women's Day 2021. (Read more)

Palestine: Promoting Gender-Sensitive Reporting in the Media
West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestine, 8 March 2021 - Media plays a vital role in shaping perceptions of violence against women and girls and its impact. As part of the HAYA Joint Programme, journalists and media professionals are receiving training on ethical and non-discriminatory reporting on gender justice and violence against women. (Read more)

UNODC ranked as high performing in the 2021 Global Health 50/50 report
Vienna, March 2021 - Gender equality is fundamental to everyone’s health, dignity and livelihoods. The work of UNODC in advancing gender equality in global health has recently been recognised in the 2021 Global Health 50/50 report, “Gender equality: Flying blind in a time of crisis”.  (Read more)

UNOV/UNODC celebrates International Women's Day 2021
Vienna, March 2021 - This International Women’s Day, UNOV/UNODC is celebrating the leadership shown by women across the organisations. Through a series of interviews, inspirational women from Field Offices and HQ are celebrated for their efforts towards advancing gender equality commitments and promoting these aspects across the Offices’ mandated areas of work. (Read more)

Vienna Based Organizations celebrate International Women's Day 2021

Vienna, 8 March 2020 - For International Women's Day 2021, the Vienna Based Organizations have come together to celebrate female colleagues throughout the organizations. Colleagues from UNOV/UNODC, IAEA, CTBTO, UNIDO and IOM describe the women leaders who inspire them.
(Read more)

Interview Artifical Intelligence and Gender in the Judiciaries
Vienna, February 2021 - In 2020, the Global Judicial Integrity Network won an award for its project focusing on gender bias and discrimination in artificial intelligence (AI) systems used in judiciaries. The project is a continuation of the Network’s previous work on gender-related issues in the judiciary as well as their work on the ethical use of AI. (Read more)

Interview Container Control Program Women's Network
Vienna, February 2021 - The Container Control Program (CCP) Women’s Network, established in 2015, aims to actively promote women’s roles and foster an inclusive dialogue around female participation, leadership, empowerment and freedom from discrimination in a sector often dominated by men. The network was one of the first of its kind within UNODC and continues to empower women working in law enforcement. (Read more)

UNODC Celebrates its Enduring Commitment to Fighting Gender-Based Violence & Discrimination
Vienna, 30 December 2020 - UNODC remains strongly comitted to the task by promoting gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls through its programmes, while fighting against gender-based disrcimination in the criminal justice system and gender-based violence. (Read more)

Vienna Discussion Forum 2020: The future is gender-inclusive: Global responses in crisis management and recovery
Vienna, 27 November 2020 - UNODC and UNIDO, together with the Permanent Missions of Finland, Norway and Sweden in Vienna, hosted the second annual Vienna Discussion Forum (VDF), a platform to discuss gender equality in the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. [Read more]

UNODC Celebrates Fifth Anniversary of CCP Women's Network
Vienna, 19 November 2020 - Aware of the added value that women bring to law enforcement, as well as the global disparities in terms of women’s participation, the UNODC-WCO Container Control Programme (CCP) endeavoured in 2015, to increase the number of women officers working in its Port Control Units (PCUs) and Air Cargo Control Units (ACCUs) around the world. Today they celebrate their fifth anniversary. [Read more; see also here]

UNODC Participates in 'Enabling Environment Guidelines Week'
Vienna, 23 October 2020 - The Enabling Environment Guidelines (EEGs) address inclusivity and diversity within the UN by changing the organisational culture and engaging in a corporate transformation. Read more on the event marking the one-year anniversary of the EEGs launch, hosted by the Vienna-based Organisations’ Gender Focal Points and Focal Points for Women (VBO GFPs). Listen to the opening remark of UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly. [Read more]

Guterras to Security Council: Women leaders 'essential to peace and progress for all'
New York, October 2020 -  Women continue to be under-represented in key decision-making over the battle against COVID-19, the chief of the UN gender empowerment agency said on Thursday, addressing the Security Council, adding that the situation is even "worse for women in conflict areas". [Read more]

Enabling Environment Guidelines - Interview with Katja Pehrman (UN Women Senior Adviser)
Vienna, October 2020 - The EEGs provide UN system-wide guidance on the creation of an enabling environment that promotes a more diverse, inclusive and respectful work environment. Marking the one-year anniversary of the EEGs launch, the Gender Team interviewed Katja Pehrman, Senior Adviser and Gender Focal Point at UN Women, on the process of developing, their role in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic and her personal vision for the future. [Read more]

Gender-based violence in times of the pandemic-Interview with Claudia Baroni and Sven Pfeiffer (Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Officers)
Vienna, October 2020 -During the pandemic there has been a dramatic increase of violence against women and girls, particularly of domestic violence. As the UNODC takes the lead in the UN system in developing model strategies, model policies and practical measures for the elimination of violence against women, we interviewed Claudia Baroni and Sven Peiffer (Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Officers) on their perspective. [Read more]

Interview with Cristina Iampieri (Sahel Programme Coordinator) on Gender Equality in the G5 Sahel Programme
Vienna, September 2020 -The UNODC supported the Bureau of Defense and Security of the G5 Sahel Programme in developing and operationalizing the police component of the Joint Force and was tasked with mainstreaming gender throughout the programme. We interviewed Cristina Iampieri, Sahel Programme Coordinator, on her work. (Read more)

 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from a gender perspective: Tunisia's post COVID-19 Priorities

Tunis, Tunisia 27 August 2020 - The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by world leaders in 2015, embody a roadmap for progress that is sustainable and leaves no one behind. Achieving gender equality and women's empowerment is integral to each of the 17 goals. Through this vision, the Tunisian Ministry of Women, Family, Children, and Elderly Affairs organised the international forum "Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from a gender perspective: Tunisia's post-COVID-19 priorities" in Tunis, Tunisia. (Read more)

"Society may judge what we did,  but it cannot judge what we will become": Providing a new chance to female prisoners in Indonesia
Jakarta, Indonesia 11 March 2020 - This week in Indonesia, a new project was opened in the Semarang Female Correction Facility, situated about  400km's east of the capital, Jakarta. Aimed at transferring knowledge around the ancient technique of batik dyeing, the idea is to train  inmates, with commercially viable skills that they can use post-release. (Read more)