CGD's Vice President of Communications and Policy Outreach, Lawrence MacDonald, will moderate the plenary session of an event in honor of International Women’s Day, hosted by the World Bank, the Nordic Trust Fund, The Leadership Conference Education Fund, and the United Nations Foundation
A Special Event on CEDAW and Women’s Rights
Monday, March 5, 2012
12:00 - 4:30 pm
**Reception to follow: 5-7pm, World Bank Atrium**
12:30 pm: The Importance of CEDAW
Speakers:
Kathy Calvin | CEO, UN Foundation
Melanne Verveer | Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women’s Issues, U.S. Department of State
Dr. Sima Samar | Chairperson, Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission; Former Minister of Women’s Affairs, Afghanistan
1:30 pm: How CEDAW has been used to advance women’s rights
Opening remarks:
Caroline Anstey | Managing Director, World Bank
Moderator:
Lawrence MacDonald | Vice President, Communications and Policy Outreach, Center for Global Development
Panelists:
Mahnaz Afkhami | Founder and President, Women’s Learning Partnership
Meaza Ashenafi | Founder, Ethiopian Women's Lawyers Association
Dubravka Simonovic | Member, CEDAW Committee; Chairperson, Optional Protocol Working Group
Sameena Nazir | Founder and Executive Director, Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy
3:30 pm: The Way Forward
Speakers:
Jeni Klugman | Director, Gender and Development, The World Bank
Wade Henderson | President and CEO, The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
Suzanne Nossel | Executive Director, Amnesty International USA
Closing remarks:
Peter Yeo | Vice President for Public Policy, UN Foundation
at
Preston Auditorium
World Bank Main Complex
1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC
The event will explore the critical role that the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women CEDAW) has played in promoting the empowerment of women and girls in developing countries, resulting in concrete advances for societies worldwide. International policymakers, country representatives, and NGO leaders will come together to share experiences on how CEDAW has paved the way for significant advances in women’s rights, and to discuss the way forward in tackling gaps in women's voice, agency, participation, and access to justice—key dimensions identified in the 2012 World Development Report on Gender Equality and Development.
