Towards 30 Years of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action: UNiTE to End Violence Against Women


As the global community approaches the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA) in 2025, the 2024 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) theme, “Towards 30 Years of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action: UNiTE to End Violence Against Women,” calls for renewed commitment to eradicating violence against women. This year's campaign emphasizes the urgent need for actionable change to address one of the most pervasive human rights violations in the world.

The Legacy of the Beijing Declaration:

Adopted in 1995 at the Fourth World Conference on Women, the Beijing Declaration remains a cornerstone of gender equality advocacy. It identified violence against women as a key barrier to achieving equality, calling for robust policy frameworks, accountability mechanisms, and cultural shifts. Three decades later, these goals remain critical as gender-based violence continues to manifest in various forms, including domestic abuse, sexual harassment, online violence, and systemic oppression.

The 2024 theme aligns with the UNiTE Campaign, a global initiative launched in 2008 to prevent and eliminate violence against women. It emphasizes multi-stakeholder engagement, from governments and civil society organizations to individuals, in fostering a zero-tolerance culture for GBV.


Violence Against Women: A Persistent Global Crisis:

Globally, 736 million women nearly one in three have experienced physical or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime. Despite widespread awareness, these numbers have shown little improvement in recent years, underlining the persistence of GBV. The United Nations estimates that every 10 minutes, a woman is killed by a partner or family member, amounting to over 51,000 femicides annually.

Other alarming statistics include:

70% of women in crisis settings, such as war or displacement, are at risk of GBV compared to 35% in non-crisis contexts.

16% to 58% of women globally face technology-facilitated violence, including cyber harassment and stalking, with Generation Z and Millennials most affected.

230 million women and girls worldwide have undergone Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), an increase of 15% over the last decade.

One in four adolescent girls is subjected to abuse by a partner, highlighting the need for interventions targeting young people.


The UNiTE Campaign: A Path Forward

The UNiTE Campaign provides a framework for addressing GBV through coordinated global action. Its core objectives for 2024 include:

1. Enhancing Awareness: Public campaigns to challenge norms that perpetuate violence, such as rigid gender roles and harmful traditional practices.


2. Strengthening Accountability: Advocacy for governments to prioritize GBV in policy agendas, ensure legal protections, and allocate sufficient resources to address the issue.


3. Empowering Survivors: Supporting survivors with access to justice, healthcare, shelters, and psychosocial services, particularly in underserved and crisis-affected areas.


4. Engaging Men and Boys: Promoting allyship among men to dismantle patriarchal structures and foster positive masculinity.


5. Leveraging Technology: Utilizing digital tools to address cyberviolence, improve reporting mechanisms, and expand access to support services.


Honoring the Vision of Beijing:
As we approach three decades since the Beijing Declaration, this year’s 16 Days of Activism campaign is a critical reminder of unfulfilled promises. Addressing GBV requires transformative change, including:

Implementing gender-responsive budgeting to fund women’s rights organizations and survivor support programs.

Strengthening the capacity of law enforcement and judiciary systems to handle GBV cases with sensitivity and urgency.

Promoting gender-equitable education and public awareness campaigns to challenge cultural norms that perpetuate violence.

A Global Responsibility:
Violence against women is not just a women’s issue, it is a societal one. The 16 Days of Activism in 2024 calls on everyone to contribute to a future free from violence. This includes participating in community dialogues, holding leaders accountable, and actively advocating for comprehensive policies.


Conclusion: Building a Safer World
The 2024 theme serves as both a call to action and a reflection point. By uniting as a global community, we can honor the legacy of the Beijing Declaration and create a safer, more equitable world where every woman and girl can live free from violence. Ending GBV is not just a moral imperative but a prerequisite for achieving sustainable development and universal human rights

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