Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
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UN Gender Inequality
Source: Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancment of WomenGender Distribution in the
Professional and Higher Staff Categories in UN OrganizationsDecember 31, 2003
In spite of initiatives designed to promote gender balance, most the overall representation of women in the UN system still falls short of a 50/50 gender balance says the 2004 Secretary General Report on the Improvement of the Status of Women in the United Nations System. The representation of women in the Professional and higher categories in the entities of the United Nations system have increased from 35 per cent, as at 31 December 2002 to 36.4 per cent, as at December 2003.As at December 31, 2003 only two organizations in the United Nations System have achieved the goal of an equal gender representation in the category of Professional and higher staff: the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Women remain noticeably under-represented, constituting less that 30 per cent of the staff in nine organizations including the International Atomic Energy Agency (18.6%), the Food and Agriculture Organization (27%), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (25.1%) and at the United Nations University (21.4%). Data also show that the higher up in the staff level the worse the representation of women.
Graph Showing UN Gender Distribution According to Agencies, Programmes and Funds
Graph Showing Gender Distribution According to Employment Level in the Organizations of the UN System
(Created by Joanna Olsson, December 2004)
*Staff LevelUG stands for "ungraded," e.g. Secretary General, Under Secretary General, Assistant Secretary General, Deputy Director General, Director General and Assistant Director General. The Secretary General names all persons occupying top positions at the level of Under Secretary General (USG) and Assistant Secretary General (ASG).
The tenured International Civil Service ranges from D-2 (the upper-level "Director") and D-1 (the lower-level "Director") through the “Professional” levels of P-5 to P-1. D-2 ranks as the highest level within the International Civil Service, while P-1 is the lowest.
The tables above do not include UN non-professional (“General”) staff.
**UN Organizations, Programmes, Agencies and Funds
FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization
IAEA - International Atomic Energy Agency
ICAO - International Civil Aviation Organization
ICAT - International Training Center of the International Labor Organization
ICJ - International Court of Justice
ICSC - International Civil Service Comission
IFAD - International Fund for Agricultural Development
ILO - International Labour Organization
IMO - International Maritime Organization
ITC - International Trade Center
ITU - International Telecommunication Union
JSPF - United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund
PAHO - Pan American Health Organization
UN - United Nations Secretariat
UNAIDS - Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS
UNDP - United Nations Develpment Programme
UNESCO - United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
UNFPA - United Nations Population Fund
UNHCR - Office of the United Nations High Comissioner for Refugees
UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund
UNIDO - United Nations Industrial Development Organization
UNITAR - United Nations Institute for Training and Research
UNOPS - United Nations Office for Project Services
UNRWA - United Nations Relief and Works Agency for palestine Refugees in the Near East
UNU - United Nations University
UPU - Universal Postal Union
WFP - World Food Programme
WHO - World Health Organization
WIPO - World Intellectual Property Organization
WMO - World Meteorological Organization
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