Five Breakthroughs Advance Women’s Rights Amid Crises

Even as their rights are under attack, women across the world are leading the charge to expand access to justice.

Even as their rights face growing threats, women across the globe are driving progress. From courtrooms to communities, women’s leadership is shaping peace, justice and development—often against the odds. Despite conflict, exclusion and inequality, powerful stories of hope, resilience and change continue to emerge. These women mediate local disputes, push for new laws and champion the rights of survivors, holding communities together.

These stories remind us that the best results come through collective action, especially when tackling deeply rooted and widespread barriers. The UNDP and UN Women Gender Justice Platform—made possible through support from Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom—continues to strengthen access to justice and women’s leadership in rule of law institutions in over 45 countries, showing how cross-border solidarity can dismantle entrenched inequality.

1. Women Lead Transitional Justice in South Sudan

Following the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) and the 2022 Roadmap Agreement, peacebuilding efforts continue, including transitional justice and community reconciliation.

To ensure women’s participation in decision-making, the Gender Justice Platform supported key legal reforms. In 2024, South Sudan’s parliament adopted two laws guaranteeing women representation in the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation and Healing, and the Compensation and Reparations Authority.

These laws recognise the distinct impacts of conflict on women and provide special protections for victims and witnesses, including women, children and persons with disabilities.

They were informed by recommendations from South Sudanese women during a 2023 consultation on gender-responsive, survivor-centred transitional justice, co-hosted by the Gender Justice Platform.

This marks a major step in ensuring that women, including survivors of conflict-related sexual violence, shape truth-telling, reparations and the country’s journey toward justice and peace.

Through the Gender Justice Platform, UNDP and UN Women have supported women’s participation in transitional justice in over 20 countries, including Colombia, Ethiopia, Liberia and Mali.

2. Expanding Access to Justice in Tanzania

In Tanzania, women and underrepresented groups—including women with disabilities—often face significant barriers to justice.

To address this, UN Women worked with the Ministry of Constitution and Legal Affairs to expand its legal aid and awareness campaign, reaching more than 56,000 people, half of them women and girls. Key issues included land and property disputes, inheritance, family matters and gender-based violence.

The Gender Justice Platform trained local champions—paralegals, aid providers and community social workers—to deliver legal aid and raise awareness of women’s rights.

Judges also received training on gender-responsive sentencing to ensure women’s needs are considered in court. Together, these efforts reinforce that sustainable justice must integrate both formal and informal systems.

3. Women Mediators in Yemen Resolve Local Disputes

Women’s rights remain restricted in Yemen, where around 80 per cent of disputes are resolved through community-based mechanisms.

UNDP supported women mediators and paralegals to deliver services through these customary networks.

In 2024 alone, women mediators resolved more than 1,200 local disputes—mainly family-related—in partnership with civil society organisations such as the Youth Horizon Foundation.

Through the Gender Justice Platform, UNDP also supported about 300 women held in prison, many detained with their children. With UNICEF and civil society, UNDP advocated for the release and reintegration of wrongfully detained women.

One woman, for example, remained in prison for seven years after completing her sentence because no family member came for her. With support from UNDP, the Yemen Women Union reconciled her with her family and secured her release.

4. Championing Women’s Leadership in Southeast Asia

Across Southeast Asia, women judges are reshaping justice systems. In Indonesia, Lao PDR and Thailand, they are building mentoring networks to ensure laws reflect women’s lived realities.

Their leadership helped launch the Women’s Leadership in the Judiciary initiative and a storytelling campaign featuring women judges.

“To ensure gender justice,” says Sapana Pradhan Malla of Nepal, “our first step was ensuring that the law reflects women’s experiences and perspectives, without exclusion or discrimination.”

By amplifying women’s voices, the Gender Justice Platform is fostering a new generation of women leaders transforming the judiciary from within.

5. Civil Society Drives Gender Justice in Colombia

The Gender Justice Platform supports civil society organisations that translate global commitments into local, feminist action.

In Colombia, the Alliance Initiative of Women for Peace unites 248 organisations of survivors, activists and lawyers.

In 2024, with support from the Platform, the Alliance worked with survivors of sexual violence and the Special Jurisdiction for Peace—Colombia’s transitional justice tribunal—to ensure meaningful participation.

Alliance Director Angela Cerón Lasprilla explains: “Knowing I was not the only survivor, that what happened was not my fault and that I matter—this is only possible when you have support.”

Advancing women’s rights benefits everyone. Evidence shows that women’s empowerment drives equality, economic growth and peace. When women have full access to justice and security, societies are more likely to prosper.

For more achievements, the 2024 annual report of the Gender Justice Platform highlights progress made globally. With partners, UNDP and UN Women will continue to foster change and strengthen women’s participation in justice, guided by the Women, Peace and Security agenda.

Revai Makanje Aalbaek is Senior Advisor on Justice and Security, UNDP Crisis Bureau;

Sarah Douglas is Deputy Chief, Peace, Security and Resilience Section, UN Women.

The Gender Justice Platform is implemented under UNDP’s Global Programme for Strengthening the Rule of Law, Human Rights, Justice and Security for Sustainable Peace and Development.