Symposium by GQUAL on CEDAW’s GR40: Roadmap to Parity 50/50

[Nicole Ameline is a former Member of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), Chair of the GR40 Drafting Group and former Minister of Parity and Equality at Work (2002-2005), France.]

We extend our gratitude to GQUAL for its critical, high-quality, and innovative contribution to the development of CEDAW General Recommendation No. 40 (GR 40) on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems. This collaboration should continue to thrive through the implementation and global application of GR 40. 

GR 40 represents a collective effort within the United Nations system, driven by the full mobilization of the CEDAW Committee, the strong support of OHCHR, the exemplary participation of UN Women, and powerful declarations by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Member States played a key role, with 76 countries actively participating in the official launch. The Inter-Parliamentary Union, along with UN Women, has been a crucial partner from the outset. Civil society organizations, including the Open Society Foundation and the Generation Equality Forum, were also integral to this achievement. 

GR 40 establishes a transformative model to accelerate progress toward parity in leadership and decision-making. It defines how a critical mass of progressive women can drive a paradigm shift toward gender-equal systems of governance. 

The equal and inclusive representation of women in all decision-making systems is not only a fundamental human right, but also a vital global response to the disruptive challenges the world is facing today, including in relation to peace and security; a sustainable, inclusive, and human rights-based economy; climate change and environmental crises; technological advancements, including the rise of AI; and the transformation and sustainability of the multilateral system. 

Only a radical paradigm shift grounded in a surge in 50/50 parity can prevent a historical pushback on women’s rights. 

GR 40 offers a comprehensive global response for achieving parity in all decision-making processes and serves as a critical precondition to ensure equality everywhere. 

Legal Anchoring and Legitimacy 

GR 40 is firmly grounded in international law, drawing on the universal principles and obligations outlined in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Among others, it builds on the Preamble, which affirms women’s right to participate in decision-making as a fundamental principle for peace, and on Articles 7 and 8, which articulate specific obligations regarding women’s representation in political and diplomatic roles. 

It aligns with international and regional commitments, including those articulated in the 1975 Mexico Conference, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and UN Security Council Resolution 1325. GR 40 is also anchored in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly Goal 5, which enshrines equality as a core objective. 

The persistently low representation of women in decision-making—whether in parliaments, conflict prevention and resolution, financial systems, multilateral organizations, or other sectors—constitutes both a violation of their rights and a structural barrier to the realization of equality. 

GR 40 underscores that the discrimination and violence faced by women and girls are rooted in a patriarchal system of exclusion. This de facto and de jure exclusion, which is taking a particularly extreme form today in Afghanistan with the deliberate erasure of women from the public arena, calls for a new radical anchoring of equality principles in decision-making systems. 

Thirty years after the Beijing Declaration, GR 40 takes a more radical – and the only fair – stance on parity, advocating for 50/50 representation as the norm. It questions the frequently applied 30% target as a potential justification for ongoing inequality, asserting instead that parity must mean equal and inclusive representation of women and men in all their diversity. 

Legal Innovation 

GR 40 introduces a groundbreaking normative framework by making 50/50 parity a fundamental principle of inclusive and fair governance. Its seven core pillars outline a comprehensive approach to achieving this paradigm shift: 

1. 50/50 Parity as a Starting Point: The principle of equal representation in decision-making must be legally embedded in constitutional and legislative frameworks to drive systemic and sustainable transformation. 
2. Empowering the Younger Generations: Young people should be seen as active partners in driving change, not just as beneficiaries. 
3. Intersectionality as Governance: States are obligated to ensure inclusivity for women in all their diversity, embedding intersectionality as a guiding principle. 
4. Coverage of All Sectors: Parity must extend across public, economic, and private sectors. 
5. Redefining Power-Sharing: The concept of power-sharing must be updated to include equal access to decision-making systems and the dismantling of stereotypes. 
6. Balancing Professional and Family Responsibilities: A systemic approach is needed to harmonize career trajectories with family life. 
7. Enhancing Civil Society’s Role: Civil society, including human rights defenders and organizations advocating for women’s rights, must have equal footing in decision-making processes. 

GR 40 defines general and specific obligations for achieving parity across all sectors. A key focus is on education, universities, and academic institutions as central to fostering empowerment and leadership. 

Education for Empowerment and Leadership 

GR 40 highlights the responsibility of States and the crucial role of education stakeholders in adapting educational and university systems to promote parity. It underscores that it is a key task of an education system to integrate education to empowerment, ensuring that girls and boys, women and men are given the necessary tools to achieve parity and exercise leadership in an equal responsible and ethical manner. 

GR 40 emphasizes dismantling gender stereotypes in education, which often prevent women and girls from entering fields like artificial intelligence or envisioning themselves as leaders. Equal access to quality education at all levels is a fundamental precondition for parity. 

GR 40 calls for integrating gender equality, women’s rights, and ethical leadership into school curricula. It also calls for the radical inclusion of girls in traditionally male-dominated fields, particularly STEM, to ensure gender equality in shaping the future. Early interventions are critical to creating environments where girls and boys, and later women and men, have equal opportunities to lead and influence across all decision-making spheres. 

This approach must also extend to higher education. GR 40, inter alia, recommends achieving parity among university professors and introducing “Women, Law, and Leadership” as an academic discipline. 

Legal Urgency 

In a world facing existential challenges—conflicts, crises, migration, digital transformation, climate change, and poverty—the stagnation of women’s representation in decision-making is both unacceptable and unsuited to these global challenges. For example, women account for only 26% of parliamentarians, 18% of AI researchers, and less than 20% of decision-makers in technology sectors. Without bold action, gender inequality will deepen, with devastating consequences. 

The fast-paced technological transition, driven by the exponential rise of AI as a key force behind digital transformation, is reshaping the global landscape. However, the systemic underrepresentation of women and girls in these advancements poses significant challenges to the progress of women’s rights. 

GR 40 underscores the need for global momentum to drive the paradigm shift required to rectify this systemic injustice and build fair and inclusive governance. 

Legal Effectiveness 

To accelerate progress by 2030, GR 40 emphasizes the use of Permanent Measures and Temporary Special Measures under Article 4 of CEDAW. It recommends adopting parity as a constitutional principle and establishing National Action Plans on Parity to ensure effective, measurable progress. 

GR 40 provides an actionable roadmap that empowers both governments and civil society to drive change. Aligning with the SDGs, it aims to ensure that 50/50 parity is not only an aspiration but a reality by 2030—a critical turning point for women, girls, and for humanity as a whole. 

Accountability 

GR 40 addresses the chronic lack of accountability for failing to meet gender parity commitments. It calls for robust mechanisms to monitor and enforce its principles. 

GR 40 welcomes feminist foreign policy as an integral part of this vision, alongside the active engagement of civil society, academic networks, NGOs, human rights defenders, and international experts. 

GR 40 also advocates for integrating its principles into the reform of the multilateral system, particularly within the evolving peace and security architecture. 

The legal community’s commitment to implementing GR 40 is essential for realizing this global solution. 

Filling the accountability gap on parity is essential to preventing a historic rollback of women’s rights. Achieving this goal requires acceleration, innovation, and widespread mobilization.  

Civil society must receive targeted support to drive this necessary paradigm shift. The extent of mobilization will be a decisive factor in achieving progress.