UN: Progress for Women Is Slow, Uneven, at Risk of Setbacks
2020-03-08
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1The world's women are making gains in several areas, but the United Nations says progress has been slow and uneven.
2They say some forward moves could even be at risk of setback.
3Sunday is International Women's Day.
4In a new report, the U.N. says men still hold a large majority of elected positions, make more money and have access to better jobs and education.
5In addition, women in many parts of the world are still facing severe difficulties including child marriage, illiteracy, partner violence and a lack of access to family planning.
6Rural and native women face these problems in addition to greater discrimination and deeper poverty.
7"We see still, even within these conditions, the possibility to change and the possibility to move forward," U.N. Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said at the launch of the report Thursday.
8Some countries already have seized that chance.
9The report found that Latin America is one of the few places where the number of women in the labor force has increased in the past 20 years.
10Countries like Chile and Uruguay have increased childcare coverage, the report noted.
11Researcher Silke Staab of U.N. Women said that those countries "recognized that women's economic empowerment will not become a reality if families are lacking that kind of support."
12Much of sub-Saharan Africa struggles to provide access to family planning.
13But two countries - Ethiopia and Rwanda - have made it a top goal.
14In the last 20 years, access to birth control methods has grown by 40 percent.
15The U.N. says progress has happened in places where governments have invested in health systems, trained workers and improved both the quality of and access to health services.
16The UN reports progress in keeping more girls in school and the passage of laws to better protect women.
17It also reports that the number of women who die during pregnancy or childbirth has dropped by half.
18But there is still much more to do, the UN adds.
19Staab said, "What is needed now is a concerted drive to scale up, expand and deepen policies and programs that can move the needle on women's rights to the benefit of all."
20I'm Ashley Thompson.
1The world's women are making gains in several areas, but the United Nations says progress has been slow and uneven. They say some forward moves could even be at risk of setback. 2Sunday is International Women's Day. In a new report, the U.N. says men still hold a large majority of elected positions, make more money and have access to better jobs and education. 3In addition, women in many parts of the world are still facing severe difficulties including child marriage, illiteracy, partner violence and a lack of access to family planning. Rural and native women face these problems in addition to greater discrimination and deeper poverty. 4Seize the chance 5"We see still, even within these conditions, the possibility to change and the possibility to move forward," U.N. Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka said at the launch of the report Thursday. 6Some countries already have seized that chance. 7The report found that Latin America is one of the few places where the number of women in the labor force has increased in the past 20 years. 8Countries like Chile and Uruguay have increased childcare coverage, the report noted. Researcher Silke Staab of U.N. Women said that those countries "recognized that women's economic empowerment will not become a reality if families are lacking that kind of support." 9Much of sub-Saharan Africa struggles to provide access to family planning. 10But two countries - Ethiopia and Rwanda - have made it a top goal. In the last 20 years, access to birth control methods has grown by 40 percent. 11Investment in public works, and workers 12The U.N. says progress has happened in places where governments have invested in health systems, trained workers and improved both the quality of and access to health services. 13The UN reports progress in keeping more girls in school and the passage of laws to better protect women. It also reports that the number of women who die during pregnancy or childbirth has dropped by half. 14But there is still much more to do, the UN adds. 15Staab said, "What is needed now is a concerted drive to scale up, expand and deepen policies and programs that can move the needle on women's rights to the benefit of all." 16I'm Ashley Thompson. 17VOA's Margaret Besheer reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted it for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. 18We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. 19_____________________________________________________________ 20Words in This Story 21access -n. the right or ability to approach, enter, or use 22illiteracy -n. the state of not knowing how to read or write 23concerted -n. done in a planned and deliberate way usually by several or many people 24scale up -phrasal verb to increase in size 25move the needle -expression to make progress 26benefit -v. to be useful or helpful to (someone or something)