The Office of the Focal Point for Women in the UN System at UN Women leads and coordinates a network of over 650 Gender Focal Points across the UN System.

Appointed under the Secretary-General’s Bulletin Gender Focal Points are essential agents of change. Alongside their regular responsibilities, they use their skills and commitment to advance gender parity and create inclusive, enabling work environments.

In 2024, the number of UN entities that reached gender parity increased to a historic high of 28, a significant increase from only five in 2017. For the first time, gender parity was also reached at the International Professional and Higher Categories grades. 

These landmark achievements were made possible thanks to the dedication and hard work of Gender Focal Points, who, with the support and coordination of the Office of the Focal Point for Women in the UN System, led initiatives to create more balanced recruitment processes, strengthen career development opportunities for women, secure leadership support, and foster inclusive workplace policies that build positive, enabling environments for all personnel.

Building on this momentum, the Office of the Focal Point for Women in the UN System has gathered good practices and success stories from across the UN, highlighting the exceptional work of Gender Focal Points in applying the Enabling Environment and Field-Specific Enabling Environment Guidelines. These guidelines outline practical steps and recommendations to make UN workplaces more supportive, fair, and welcoming for everyone. They include tips for promoting work-life balance, ensuring equal opportunities for career growth, and fostering a culture of respect and inclusion, with specific adaptations for offices in field locations where unique challenges may arise.

In recognition of these accomplishments, several Gender Focal Points were awarded at the Global Annual Gender Focal Point Meeting—an annual gathering where Gender Focal Points from across the UN come together to share progress, challenges, and innovations—in October 2024 for their outstanding contributions.

Good Practice Examples

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is committed to achieving gender parity in the Professional and Higher Categories by 2025. To help reach this target, IAEA started applying Temporary Special Measures (ST/AI/2020/5) in 2020. These measures, temporary in nature, allow to take targeted actions aimed at speeding up progress toward gender parity. By carefully tracking progress each year and focusing on outreach and recruitment for women, the IAEA has raised women’s representation in these roles from 32% in 2020 to 47% in 2024, bringing it closer to achieving full parity.

International Organization for Migrations (IOM)

IOM has reached and maintained a nearly equal balance of men and women at the Professional and Higher Categories level (grades P-1 to P-4) and among senior field leaders like Chiefs of Mission and Heads of Office, with 49% of these roles held by women as of June 2024. This progress has been achieved through various initiatives, including Temporary Special Measures (ST/AI/2020/5). These measures, temporary in nature, allow to take targeted actions aimed at speeding up progress toward gender parity.[GF1]  Efforts are also in place to reach gender parity at higher-level positions (P-5 and above).

Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

OHCHR launched the Gender Accreditation Programme to promote a workplace culture that values gender equality, diversity, and inclusion. This program assesses offices based on seven key criteria, which include providing work-life balance support, enforcing policies against misconduct and sexual exploitation, and ensuring accommodations for staff with specific needs. Since the program began, many OHCHR offices globally have achieved high ratings across these areas, reflecting its positive impact. The Programme’s success was also highlighted when it was nominated for the prestigious 2023 Secretary-General’s Award.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - Nepal 

UNDP Nepal has successfully rolled out its Workforce Diversity Policy, focusing on creating opportunities for marginalized groups and achieving gender parity in long-term contracts by May 2024. This was made possible through targeted outreach aimed at women from disadvantaged backgrounds and flexible measures like remote interviews to improve accessibility for marginalized candidates. The organization has also worked to create a safe and supportive work environment, free from sexual harassment and abuse, by setting up PSEA (Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse) focal points at both its headquarters and four field offices, as well as providing additional training for 360 staff members. In addition, a Zero-tolerance campaign has been launched in English and Nepali to reinforce these values. To further promote inclusivity, the office has renovated facilities to include All-Gender Restrooms and vending machines for menstruation pads, ensuring a welcoming and diverse workplace.

United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) 

UNOPS has introduced its People and Culture Objectives to ensure accountability in promoting gender equality, diversity, inclusion, and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse. This approach actively involves all staff members, supervisors, and leaders in creating a fair and equitable work environment. To improve outreach and attract diverse talent, UNOPS has hosted virtual career events specifically for women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields and has incorporated messages about diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), and flexible working in all job postings. These efforts have engaged over 100 STEM professionals.

In 2023, UNOPS achieved gender parity in recruitment, with women making up 53.9% of new hires. To further support this, UNOPS lowered job requirements in areas where gender parity was lacking, such as reducing educational qualifications to secondary school and halving the required experience. Additionally, its Talent Benches programme, which aims to fill critical roles within the organization, reached 56% female representation by 2024, demonstrating UNOPS's ongoing commitment to achieving gender parity.

United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) - Peace and Security Cluster

The UNOPS Peace and Security Cluster successfully implemented its Gender and Diversity Strategy, which included 21 customized implementation plans for its country offices and strongly supported the application of Temporary Special Measures to achieve gender parity. These measures, temporary in nature, allow to take targeted actions aimed at speeding up progress toward gender parity.

In 2023, UNOPS’ Peace and Security Cluster took several proactive steps to increase female representation within its workforce. These included reclassifying technical and operational roles to make them more accessible to women, redesigning job postings to eliminate gendered language, and introducing mandatory unconscious bias training for recruitment panels. As a result, women represented 50% of new hires in technical and management roles.

Additionally, UNOPS engaged in extensive outreach with local universities and higher education institutions, involving over 150 participants, to encourage women’s involvement in mine action. In Iraq, these efforts led to women making up 60% of new hires in 2022. Female representation in technical roles also rose from 45% to 62% within just two years, highlighting the success of these initiatives.

United Nations Department for Safety and Security (UNDSS) 

UNDSS launched a dialogue series to engage leadership, middle management, and staff in promoting gender parity and addressing the unique challenges faced in field operations. This initiative contributed to the development of a new, comprehensive Gender Strategy for UNDSS and led to the creation of a concise resource package for Gender Focal Points in field settings, including a one-page guide on reporting misconduct. In addition, UNDSS enhanced its communications efforts and reassessed its recruitment processes to attract a broader pool of women candidates, further strengthening its commitment to gender equality.

International Maritime Organization (IMO)

The International Maritime Organization has approved a new Gender Equality Strategy in 2024 and has organized an in-person workshop and all-staff town hall on Gender Parity in collaboration with UN Women. In alignment with the new Strategy, IMO has implemented a Public Engagement Policy, mandating gender balance in all IMO Secretariat events and panels, as well as in staff participation in external events. It requires that panels organized by IMO reflect gender diversity, and IMO staff, including the Secretary-General, are encouraged to decline invitations to external panels lacking gender balance.

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched a Gender-responsive Leadership Programme aimed at senior management both at headquarters and in the field. This program has raised awareness and driven organizational change around gender equality. As a result, it has strengthened collaboration across agencies, increased funding for gender initiatives, and introduced gender-sensitive training for middle management.

In addition, UNODC’s Early Career Initiative for Women, launched in 2021, has provided valuable support for women to advance their careers. This initiative contributed to a notable increase in female representation at senior levels, with women making up 46% of P-4 roles and 48% of P-5 roles in 2024, up from 43% and 42% in 2020, respectively.

UNODC has also organized workshops for male security staff to address gender parity challenges, creating a space for constructive dialogue and feedback to further improve gender equality efforts across the organization.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has made notable progress in improving gender representation within its recruitment processes, especially during the shortlisting stage. In partnership with an external company specializing in Behavioral Sciences, WIPO has enhanced its recruitment practices to promote gender parity. This effort has led to achieving full gender parity in its entry-level programs for young experts.

UNICEF 

UNICEF has made significant strides in achieving gender parity by implementing Temporary Special Measures (ST/AI/2020/5). These measures, temporary in nature, allow to take targeted actions aimed at speeding up progress toward gender parity. In just 18 months, the representation of women at the P-5 level increased from 43% to almost 49%. This success demonstrates the effectiveness of these measures in addressing gender imbalances while also revealing the underlying gender biases in the recruitment process. It underscores the necessity of taking proactive steps to combat such biases and highlights the value of outreach to a diverse pool of both internal and external candidates.

Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS

UNAIDS has incorporated gender inclusivity into the mandatory performance management competencies for all managers. Additionally, UNAIDS has launched a cultural transformation workstream that focuses on exploring feminist principles, challenging traditional leadership stereotypes, and promoting strong female leadership as role models within the organization. These efforts are designed to foster a more inclusive and equitable workplace.

Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO)

PAHO has successfully implemented a tailored plan to promote gender parity within the organization. This includes the development of a comprehensive dashboard to track progress and the delivery of unconscious bias training. As a result, PAHO has achieved and maintained gender parity at various staff levels, including P-1, P-2, P-3, P-5, and P-6. These efforts have helped ensure that gender equality remains a central focus in PAHO’s recruitment and staffing practices.

United Nations Department for Safety and Security (UNDSS) - Office in Nairobi

UNDSS in Nairobi has made significant strides in closing the gender gap within its Security and Safety Service. Through targeted recruitment efforts, the representation of women increased from 30% in 2017 to 47% in 2023, with the number of women in supervisory roles rising from 3 to 5. Additionally, UNDSS has implemented supportive measures, including the creation of new changing rooms with refrigeration spaces for breast milk. The organization also redesigned uniforms and fragmentation vests to better suit women, further supporting their integration and well-being within the service.