Background Information on UNIFEM

So, what is UNIFEM? And what do they do?

UNIFEM (United Nations Development Funds for Women) was created by a UN General Assembly resolution in 1976, following a call from women's organisations attending the 1975 UN First World Conference on Women in Mexico City.

UNIFEM promotes women's empowerment, rights and gender equality globally, and through 15 regional offices and two country programme offices that support programmes within and among 

individual countries.

UNIFEM is the women's fund at the United Nations. It provides financial and technical assistance to innovative programmes and strategies to foster women's empowerment and gender equality. Placing the advancement of women's human rights at the centre of all of its efforts, UNIFEM focuses its activities on four strategic areas:

1)      1)  Reducing feminized poverty

2)      2) Ending violence against women

3)      3)  Reversing the spread of HIV/AIDS among women and girls

4)      4)  Achieving gender equality in democratic governance in times of peace as well as war

UNIFEM’s Mission:

We support the general mission of UNIFEM in developing nations throughout the region by 

providing funds and support for:

Economic Empowerment Programmes - to enable women to develop business and entrepreneurial skills to access local, national and global markets. Projects also assist women in gaining access to finance, technology and information.

Governance and Leadership Programmes – to give women a voice and visibility by encouraging their leadership in decision making processes that shape their lives.

Conflict Area Programmes - to provide services for women violated during war and armed conflict. These projects also promote the role of women in peace building.

UNIFEM Trust Fund - which helps to support actions to eliminate violence against women, including projects in the areas of: HIV/AIDS, female infanticide, trafficking, forced prostitution, domestic violence, sexual abuse and rape.

In order to achieve this mission, we undertake a wide range of fundraising activities, membership drives and public education programs and events.

For more information, you may visit the UNIFEM website at www.unifem.org.sg