Output 2: Advancing partnerships and resourcing; Effectively influencing for impact and scale

During the reporting year, the UN Women Nigeria Country Office advanced partnerships and influenced non-traditional partners to support gender equality and women's empowerment. Further, the Country Office increased private sector investment in Gender Based Violence (GBV) through the innovative $25 million private-sector Gender Based Violence (GBV) fund aimed at eliminating violence against women and girls. The Country Office further sustained its media engagement as well as other strategic engagements, including initial engagements with the government of Nigeria towards a "financing for gender equality summit" to expand resources towards gender equality and women empowerment.

The Fiji Multi-Country Office continues to enhance UN Women's visibility, attract financial support, and secure sustainable resourcing to deliver its mandate in advancing gender equality and women's empowerment in the Pacific region. The recent update of two of its important strategies, namely the Media and Communications Strategy, and the Resource Mobilization Strategy will guide the Fiji Multi-Country Office in this regard for the duration of the Strategic Note period, 2023-2027.

The Fiji Multi-Country Office maintains its upward trajectory in social media engagement, witnessing an increase of 9.6 per cent from its 2022 baseline of 43,145 followers. Regarding social media presence, the Fiji Multi-Country Office has a total of 47,300 followers, enhancing visibility and outreach across digital platforms.

Regular engagement is ongoing with existing traditional partners, including donors and members of the Gender Theme Group. These are important avenues for the Fiji Multi-Country Office to provide updates on the initiatives, achievements, progress made and challenges in addressing gender equality and women's empowerment.

There is also ongoing exploration of opportunities for collaborative initiatives with traditional partners, emphasizing shared goals and mutual benefits to increase support for and financing of the gender equality agenda while securing sustainable resourcing. This collaborative approach has been successful for the Fiji Multi-Country Office in strengthening existing partnerships and attracting additional support for two of its largest projects, the Markets for Change Project and the Pacific Partnership to End Violence Against Women & Girls. Both projects commenced Phase II in 2023. The same approach is taken for current ongoing efforts for the design of Phase II of the Women in Leadership in Samoa (WILS) project.

The HeForShe Alliance has catalyzed transformative gender equality progress across its partner organizations by instituting rigorous monitoring and reporting mechanisms. Committing to enhancing gender ratios in key areas—overall company composition, senior leadership, board membership, and new hires—partners have embraced accountability, yielding measurable improvements. 

Remarkably, over the last two years, half of the Alliance's Champions have increased the female to male ratio in their overall workforce. Even more impressive, 70% have uplifted female representation in the top 6% of their organizational hierarchy. Moreover, 55% of the partners have augmented the presence of women on their boards, with notable entities like Vodafone, INSEAD, and Havas achieving gender parity. Additionally, 30% of the organizations reported a rise in the recruitment of women, further underscoring the Alliance's role in shaping a more equitable corporate world. 

Through these efforts, HeForShe is not just advocating for change but is actively forging an inclusive future. Read more>