Kofi Atta Annan · "Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meetin..."

Statement at the UN Commission on the Status of Women, 2005 · Gecheckt op 3 maart 2026

Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development, and building good governance.

Analyse

The quoted statement matches Annan’s recorded remarks at the **2005 UN Commission on the Status of Women** (CSW), where he emphasized gender equality as foundational to poverty reduction, sustainability, and governance. The UN’s *Beijing Platform for Action* (1995) and *Millennium Development Goals* (2000)—both championed during Annan’s tenure as Secretary-General—explicitly link gender equity to these outcomes. Independent reports from UN Women and the World Bank corroborate the claim’s substantive accuracy, citing gender equality as a multiplier for economic and social progress. No credible evidence contradicts the attribution or the statement’s core argument.

Achtergrond

Kofi Annan served as UN Secretary-General from 1997–2006 and prioritized gender mainstreaming across UN agencies. The 2005 CSW session marked the 10-year review of the Beijing Platform, where Annan’s leadership reinforced gender equality as a cross-cutting priority. His statement reflects longstanding UN policy, later echoed in the **Sustainable Development Goals (2015)**, particularly Goal 5 (Gender Equality).

Samenvatting verdict

Kofi Annan did make this statement in 2005, and it aligns with widely documented UN positions on gender equality as a catalyst for broader development goals.

Geraadpleegde bronnen

— UN Women. (2005). *Report of the 49th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women*. [E/2005/27](https://undocs.org/en/E/2005/27)

— United Nations. (2000). *Millennium Development Goals: Goal 3 – Promote Gender Equality*. [UN MDG Report](https://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/gender.shtml)

— World Bank. (2012). *World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development*. [DOI:10.1596/978-0-8213-8810-5](https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/4392)

— Annan, K. (2005). *Secretary-General’s Address to the Commission on the Status of Women* (Transcript). [UN Press Release SG/SM/9750](https://www.un.org/press/en/2005/sgsm9750.doc.htm)

— UN Department of Global Communications. (2015). *The Role of Gender Equality in the 2030 Agenda*. [UN SDG Knowledge Platform](https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics/genderequality)