Progress of the World's Women 2008/2009. Who Answers to Women? Gender and Accountability

Open Access

Abstract

The UNIFEM's biennial report "Progress of the World's Women 2008/2009" demonstrates that one of the most powerful constraints on realizing women's rights and achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) is a deficit of accountability to women. It, therefore, puts forth a framework to understanding accountability from a gender perspective and outlines innovative measures States and international institutions are taking to increase accountability. It focuses particularly on five areas where the need to strengthen accountability to women is urgent: politics and governance, access to public services, economic opportunities, justice, and the distribution of international assistance for development and security.