UNITED NATIONS Nike Air VaporMax Moc Men's Cool Grey White , Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- A senior United Nations official on Friday called on Member States, regional organizations and civil society for greater partnership to boost women's participation at all levels.


"We will strengthen the collection and analysis of gender statistics and encourage Member States to monitor gender equality indicators as part of their work to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)," Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, the Chef de Cabinet, speaking on behalf of the Secretary-General, told a day-long debate in the Security Council, underlining the need for more action on the "women, peace and security agenda."


In her briefing, the Chef de Cabinet spoke of the need to ensure adequate representation of women in the security sector both to reduce their exposure to harm as well as to realize their potential in conflict prevention.


Noting that only 3 percent of peacekeepers are women, she informed the Security Council of the Secretary-General's efforts with troop- and police-contributing countries to increase the number of female uniformed personnel.


Viotti also noted that 17 years after its adoption, Security Council resolution 1325 on women and peace and security was too often being implemented "in an ad hoc fashion," and called on UN Member States to share evidence and examples in order to examine gaps and successes.


Also briefing the meeting, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, the Executive Director of the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), said that while atrocities against women and girls in armed conflict are now the focus of attention and documentation, it is critical that perpetrators are brought to justice, and that survivors are accorded dignity and support.


"This impunity cannot be allowed to continue," she noted.


Further, informing the Security Council of an overall decline in women's participation in UN-led peace processes, inclusion of gender-sensitive provisions in peace agreements and consultation with women's civil society organizations, in comparison with one year ago, Mlambo-Ngcuka said that the political marginalization was not only limited to peace talks.


Only 17 countries have an elected woman Head of State or Government and the proportion of women parliamentarians in conflict and post-conflict countries has stagnated at 16 percent in the last two years.


"The use of quotas and temporary special measures would help," she said, noting examples from Somalia and Mali, and called on donors to continue supporting efforts targeted at women's empowerment and highlighted the importance of ensuring gender-conscious funding for policies and programmes.


Also speaking at the meeting were Charo Mina-Rojas of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace and Security, and Michaelle Jean, Secretary-General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, who underscored the need to effectively combat sexual and gender-based violence and end impunity.




SYDNEY, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- An Australian-led international study has pinpointed more than 100 genetic risk factors that explain why some people suffer from asthma, hay fever and eczema.


The study is touted as the first of its kind "designed specifically to find genetic risk factors that are shared among the three most common allergic conditions", according to a media release on science news portal Scimex on Tuesday.


"Asthma, hay fever and eczema are allergic diseases that affect different parts of the body: the lungs, the nose and the skin," the Brisbane-based QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute's Dr Manuel Ferreira, who led the study, was quoted as saying.


"This is important to know because it tells us which specific genes, when not working properly, cause allergic conditions. This knowledge helps us understand why allergies develop in the first place and, potentially, gives us new clues on how they could be prevented or treated."


The researchers analyzed the genomes of 360,838 people and pinpointed 136 separate genome positions considered to be risk factors for developing the conditions.


"If you are unlucky and inherit these genetic risk factors from your parents, it will predispose you to all three allergic conditions," said Ferreira.