“Women’s Human Rights”: the application in Swiss version

In partnership with the Interdisciplinary Center for Gender Studies at the University of Bern, the Confederation adapted the App launched in New York

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, the FDFA presented the new version of the Women’s Human Rights App (W’sHR App).
The new version of the app was launched in New York in the presence of the Secretary-General and the President of the UN General Assembly.
The free app is a special digital database on women’s rights and gender equality. This tool facilitates negotiations and contributes to the effectiveness of multilateral processes by putting digitization at the service of human rights.

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The promotion of women’s rights and gender equality is a priority of Swiss foreign policy. At the bilateral and multilateral level, Switzerland is committed, among other things, to the protection of women and girls from violence and discrimination and to their economic and political empowerment.
To this end, the FDFA, in collaboration with the Interdisciplinary Centre for Gender Studies (IZFG) at the University of Bern, has created, updated and refined the W’sHR App.
The app provides quick and easy access to all relevant UN legal texts in the field of women’s rights and gender equality.

New launch on International Women’s Day

The launch of the new version of the Women’s Human Rights App took place in New York on March 8, on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
In the presence of the Secretary-General and the President of the 75th UN General Assembly, the Head of the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations, Pascale Baeriswyl, presented the app to a high-level audience of diplomats.

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The new launch of the application also coincides with the negotiations on the outcome document of the 65th United Nations Conference on the Status of Women (CSW).
The new version of the Women’s Human Rights App will be used for the first time as part of these negotiations, making it easier for delegates to work on this multifaceted document.

We need to build bridges from incontrovertible facts

Joint drafting of texts and consensus building are key elements of a functioning multilateralism. This is where Switzerland comes into play with the W’sHR App which, by simplifying access to relevant texts for the negotiating parties, helps to improve the effectiveness of negotiations.
The app contains 147 keywords and is constantly being expanded with new terms. For each keyword, the App shows a summary, the relevant legal basis and the text jointly adopted by consensus at the UN.

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This makes it a unique database and an innovative tool that reinforces regulatory standards in the field of women’s rights and gender equality.
The app can also be used in other work contexts: researchers, civil society representatives, lawyers, but also media practitioners and UN officials can tap into this digital database to research women’s rights and gender issues and easily access relevant documents.