Governance

Executive Board | Governing Documents

Executive Board

UN Women is governed by an Executive Board that oversees the organization’s operational activities based on policy directions set by the UN General Assembly, ECOSOC and the Commission on the Status of Women. The Board engages with the executive boards of other UN development agencies to coordinate work on gender across the UN system.

The UN Women Executive Board is made up of representatives from 41 countries around the world who serve on a rotating basis. The 41 board members are selected on the following basis: 10 from Africa, 10 from Asia, 4 from Eastern Europe, 6 from Latin America and the Caribbean, 5 from Western Europe and 6 from contributing countries.

The current Executive Board, elected on 10 November 2010, consists of:

Africa: Angola, Cape Verde, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Lesotho, Libya, Nigeria and Tanzania

Asia: Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Republic of Korea and Timor-Leste

Eastern Europe: Estonia, Hungary, Russian Federation and Ukraine

Latin America and the Caribbean: Argentina, Brazil, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada and Peru

Western Europe: Denmark, France, Italy, Luxembourg and Sweden

Contributing Countries: Mexico, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Spain, United Kingdom and United States

Bureau of the Executive Board

The election of the first Bureau of the Executive Board took place at the resumed Organizational Session of the Executive Board on 22 December 2010. The following Board members will serve as the Bureau during 2011.

President: H. E. Mrs. U. Joy Ogwu, Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations (biographical note)

Vice Presidents:

Asia Group: Mr. Zahid Rastam, Counsellor, Permanent Mission of Malaysia to the United Nations

Eastern European Group: Ms. Olha Kavun, Second Secretary, Permanent Mission of Ukraine to the United Nations

Latin America and Caribbean Group: Ms. Carmen Arias, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of Peru to the United Nations

Western European and Others Group: Mr. Magnus Lennartsson, Minister (Economic and Social Affairs), Permanent Mission of Sweden to the United Nations

First Regular Session 2011

The First Regular Session of the UN Women Executive Board will be held in New York on 24–26 January 2011. Documents for the session are available here:

• Tentative Workplan
• Decision: Size and composition of the Bureau and selection of the President (UNW/2011/1)
• Overview of decisions adopted by the Executive Board at its organizational session, 2010 (UNW/2011/2)
• Report of the Executive Director on Proposals for the use of voluntary resources for the support budget for the biennium 2010–2011 (UNW/2011/3, advance copy)
• Report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) on the UN-Women proposals for the use of voluntary resources for the support budget for the biennium 2010–2011 (UNW/2011/4, advance copy)
• Proposed UN-Women Financial Regulations and Rules (UNW/2011/5, advance documentation)
• Proposed UN-Women Financial Regulations and Rules: Comparison with corresponding Financial Regulations and Rules of the United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Population Fund (UNW/2011/5/Add.1, advance documentation)

Governing Documents

• UN General Assembly resolution 64/289 on system-wide coherence (A/RES/64/289). Paragraphs 49–90 relate to the establishment of UN Women.
• UN General Assembly resolution 63/311 on system-wide coherence (A/RES/63/311)
• Comprehensive proposal for the composite entity for gender equality and the empowerment of women: Report of the Secretary-General (A/64/588)