In focus: 78th session of the UN General Assembly

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Scene outside the General Assembly building (with the #UNGA hashtag sign) following the observance of International Women’s Day 2023 at UN Headquarters in New York on 8 March 2023. Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown.
Scene outside the General Assembly building (with the #UNGA hashtag sign) following the observance of International Women’s Day 2023 at UN Headquarters in New York on 8 March 2023. Photo: UN Women/Ryan Brown.

The 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 78) opened on Tuesday, 5 September 2023, with the high-level debate beginning on Tuesday, 19 September.

At high-level events and intergovernmental conversations held during the General Assembly, UN Women will work to ensure that the needs, viewpoints, and voices of women and girls are prioritized, and to remind the global community that there can be no real progress without gender equality.

The 78th session also marks the half-way point to the deadline set for achieving the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

On 7 September, UN Women and UN DESA’s 2023 gender snapshot report revealed that current trends would leave more than 340 million women and girls—an estimated 8 per cent of the world’s female population—in extreme poverty by 2030. The report showed that a mere two of the SDG indicators aimed at women’s equality were “close to target” and none were at the “target met or almost met” level.

At the SDG Summit, on 18 and 19 September, leaders will review the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the 17 SDGs. In preparation for that event, the Generation Equality Midpoint Moment, organized by UN Women and the Governments of Iceland and Tanzania, will be showcased as part of SDG Acceleration Day on 17 September.

The General Assembly’s high-level debate runs from Tuesday 19 September to Saturday 23 September, and resumes for one day on Tuesday 26 September. This year’s theme is “Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity: Accelerating action on the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals towards peace, prosperity, progress and the sustainability for all”.

Watch this space for news and updates on gender equality at UNGA 78, and watch livestreams of the events.

Event information will be updated on an ongoing basis.