UN to establish gender equality body

The UN General Assembly reached an “informal agreement” to establish a single UN body with greater clout to promote equality for women.

Jamal Benomar, chief of staff to the General Assembly president, said that the 192-member world body scheduled a meeting this afternoon to adopt a resolution merging four existing UN bodies into a new “United Nations entity for gender equality and the empowerment of women, to be known as UN Women”.

The General Assembly unanimously approved a resolution last September supporting the merger of the four UN bodies dealing with women.

The resolution that is virtually certain to be approved today will authorise the merger and order the new “entity” to be operational by January 1.