COPENHAGEN, 6 March 2026 – Leading up to International Women’s Day, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s Special Representative on Gender Issues, the Hon. Dr. Hedy Fry (Canada), celebrated progress made in advancing gender equality, but expressed concerns over the persisting global gender gap, emphasizing the urgent need to act to safeguard and advance progress in gender parity.
Having marked the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action last year, Dr. Fry underscored: “The year 2026 anchors the Beijing+30 Action Agenda. We must seize the moment of this year’s International Women’s Day, and call for action to dismantle the structural barriers to equal justice that still exist. We must seize the opportunities to deliver without delay.”
The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day – “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls” – she pointed out, is clear. “This calls upon us to go beyond aspirational rhetoric to secure ‘women’s rights as human rights’,” Dr. Fry said.
The goal of achieving full equality for girls born today remains within reach. Special Representative Fry highlighted some key areas in which urgent progress must be made, in line with the Beijing+30 Action Agenda: a digital revolution, freedom from poverty, zero violence, full and equal decision-making power, a role in peace and security and climate justice.
Although globally, nearly 100 positive legal reforms were made between 2019 and 2024 to remove discriminatory laws and establish gender equality frameworks, with measures such as protecting girls from child marriage and establishing consent-based rape laws, persistent challenges remain. “Poverty, low political participation and representation, and the adverse impact of climate change and conflict on women, threaten to completely erode the hard-won progress made in the last decades,” Dr. Fry noted.
“On this day, the OSCE’s 56-nation Parliamentary Assembly reaffirm their commitment to advancing gender equality and inclusion, including in OSCE participating States where women’s full participation in public and political affairs is still blocked,” Dr. Fry stated. “Women comprise over 50 per cent of our population. Achieving full gender equality is not only essential for women’s dignity, economic growth, and political stability, but is also equally crucial for ensuring global prosperity and security for all.”
For more on the work of the Special Representative on Gender Issues, please click here.
