Bob McMullan, Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance, and Inés Alberdi, Executive Director of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) signed a Partnership Framework to strengthen efforts to achieve both gender equality in development and the Millennium Development Goals.
The new Partnership Framework, signed on 12 August 2009, provides a strategic shared focus for future practical collaboration and cooperation over the next six years.
Focus areas for the partnership are: promoting gender equality in developing countries and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs); ensuring gender equality and women's empowerment are integrated into UN reform initiatives; ending violence against women; and building public awareness of the outcomes of the Partnership.
The partnership recognises that gender equality is crucial to achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), but globally is the area where progress has been the slowest. Advancing gender equality is a strategic step in further improving development outcomes in the region.
The Partnership Framework further strengthens the existing relationship between the Australian Agency for International Development and UNIFEM. Internationally, AusAID and UNIFEM already work closely in a number of areas including to promote women's leadership and address violence against women.
More information:
UNIFEM AusAID Partnership Framework
Release: Partnership to Advance Gender Equality in Developing World