From supplying solar panels to medical supplies, UNOPS is always looking for new suppliers.
The challenges the world faces have never been greater. Join us to help build the future.
We’re committed to operating with transparency and accountability, and building trust between UNOPS and our governing bodies, our partners and the communities we serve.
Our youth family offers critical insights on how global challenges and emerging trends could shape our priorities and impact.
From supplying solar panels to medical supplies, UNOPS is always looking for new suppliers.
The challenges the world faces have never been greater. Join us to help build the future.
We’re committed to operating with transparency and accountability, and building trust between UNOPS and our governing bodies, our partners and the communities we serve.
Our youth family offers critical insights on how global challenges and emerging trends could shape our priorities and impact.
Gender-responsive infrastructure design has the power to address gender inequalities and empower women by responding to diverse needs in society and can accelerate the socio-economic mobility of women, girls and other underserved or disadvantaged groups. Explore further.
This is an unprecedented milestone of women participation in the rural infrastructure sub-sector in The Gambia, supporting women's empowerment and helping to close the inequality gap in the country. “We have never had women working on road construction sites before and UNOPS has shown us that it is possible,” says the Vice President of The Gambia, Dr. Isatou Touray.
Although women and girls make up half of the global population, gender inequalities continue to persist across all sectors – from a lack of access to healthcare and education, to early marriage, to a skills gap contributing to decreased competitiveness in labour markets.
Three years ago, women represented 38 per cent of UNOPS 4000 personnel when United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres stated: “Achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls is the unfinished business of our time, and the greatest human rights challenge in our world.” Rising to the challenge, UNOPS committed to action and launched its Gender Parity Strategy – to be a more sustainable organization, to better represent the people we serve and to ensure women, at all levels, see a future for themselves in the organization. Today, and despite significant obstacles – including the COVID-19 pandemic – UNOPS has achieved gender parity in its workforce. And it strengthens the organization's ability to deliver equitable solutions to partners around the world.
“Gender is the entry point to inclusive infrastructure, which allows for voiceless groups to make their concerns heard,” said Htar Htar, the founder of Akhaya Women Myanmar, a women-led local initiative that provides women with the skills and training necessary to challenge gender stereotypes. Elisa Fernandez, Head of the UN Women Office in Vietnam noted that gender issues have transitioned in recent years from taboo to mainstream. “This momentum should be leveraged to ensure that disadvantaged voices are included in the design, planning and management of all infrastructure projects,” she said. Together, UNOPS and UN Women have developed a series of guides on integrating gender into infrastructure development in the Asia Pacific region that emphasizes the transformative role that infrastructure can play advancing women's empowerment.
It is a core commitment to stand with others for zero tolerance of gender-based violence, sexist attitudes and behaviour.
The equal participation of women at all levels of society is at the core of sustainable development. It is critical for building peaceful and stable societies. And yet in too many aspects of life, women still face barriers – including when it comes to procurement.
Today, the COVID-19 pandemic worsens existing inequalities for women and girls across every sphere – from health and education, to public participation and the economy. It threatens to reverse the limited progress that has been made on gender equality and women's rights. “So many people have suffered from COVID.
Gender-responsive organizations proactively promote women's empowerment and gender equality through: Making sure there is equal opportunity for women and men when: Recruiting and hiring Considering promotions Making leadership appointments Ensuring fair and equal financial remuneration for men and women Designing workplace cultures that are free from biases against women Promoting the inclusion of women-owned and gender-responsive suppliers in your supply chain Developing and implementing policies that promote the safety and protection of all team members, irrespective of their gender, for example, policies that protect against sexual exploitation and abuse Ensuring that any facilities at their workplaces are not discriminatory or create discomfort for women Gender equality and being inclusive of women are important for people to live a life they value, where their needs are met, their human rights are protected and they are able to participate equally in society, as promised in the 2030 Agenda .
To address this and broader issues around gender equality in urban spaces, everyone involved in urban planning needs to understand how women live in and experience their cities. To support local authorities' efforts to develop inclusive, gender-responsive urban plans, Cities Alliance and UNOPS conducted online surveys and organized a series of workshops in Banjul, The Gambia and Kathmandu, Nepal to measure the level of women's engagement.
