Report on the XVI Regional Conference on Women and its Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals

Conference Overview and Core Objectives

In August 2025, the XVI Regional Conference on Women (CRM), organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and UN Women, will convene in Mexico City. The conference will bring together government representatives, civil society organizations, feminist leaders, and UN agencies. The central theme is focused on “political, economic, social, cultural and environmental transformations as a means of advancing the care society and gender equality,” a mission that directly supports the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Civil society organizations, including Equality Now, view the conference as a critical platform to advocate for state commitments toward legal equality and the eradication of gender-based violence, framing these as prerequisites for achieving a sustainable “care society.”

Alignment with Sustainable Development Goal 5: Gender Equality

The conference agenda and the advocacy efforts of participating organizations are fundamentally aligned with the targets of SDG 5. The central argument is that a true care society cannot be realized while structural barriers to gender equality persist. Key areas of focus include:

• Target 5.1 (End discrimination against women and girls): A primary objective is to urge states to dismantle discriminatory legal frameworks, particularly in family law, that perpetuate women’s subordination and restrict their rights.
• Target 5.2 (Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls): The conference will emphasize the need to end impunity for sexual and gender-based violence as a foundational step toward societal progress.
• Target 5.3 (Eliminate all harmful practices): Advocacy will specifically target the elimination of child, early, and forced marriage and unions, a significant barrier to the well-being of girls and adolescents.
• Target 5.4 (Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work): The theme of a “care society” directly addresses the unequal distribution of unpaid care work, advocating for its recognition and redistribution as essential for economic justice and gender equality.

Addressing Systemic Barriers through SDG 16 and SDG 8

The conference seeks to address the interconnected nature of legal, economic, and social inequalities, which aligns with broader sustainable development objectives.

• SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions): By demanding legal reforms and improved access to justice, stakeholders are working toward Target 16.b, which calls for the promotion and enforcement of non-discriminatory laws and policies for sustainable development. The focus on ending impunity for violence supports the goal of building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.
• SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth): The call for economic justice is linked to the understanding that the unequal burden of unpaid care work and legal discrimination restricts women’s access to fundamental rights and full economic participation, thereby hindering progress toward inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Strategic Priorities and Advocacy for SDG Targets

The Equality Now delegation and its regional allies have outlined a set of strategic priorities designed to translate advocacy into concrete commitments that advance the SDGs.

1. Influence the final conference declaration to secure state commitments on ending sexual violence, eliminating legal discrimination, and eradicating child, early, and forced marriage and unions, in line with SDG 5 targets.
2. Elevate the expertise and proposals of diverse civil society actors, including young activists and legal experts, in political dialogues to ensure an intersectional approach to achieving the SDGs.
3. Link local struggles concerning family law, access to justice, and the distribution of care to regional policy agendas, creating unified demands for structural change.
4. Reinforce the role of civil society alliances in promoting feminist legal reforms as a critical tool for achieving sustainable development in the Latin America and Caribbean region.

Collaborative Actions and Stakeholder Engagement in Support of SDG 17

In line with SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals), extensive preparatory activities have been undertaken to foster collaboration and build a unified civil society platform.

• Pre-Conference Dialogue: A June discussion was held for feminist networks to analyze the intersections between unpaid care work, economic injustice, and gender-based violence.
• Virtual Strategy Sessions: Virtual gatherings in July and August facilitated the exchange of political tools and the refinement of shared strategies among regional allies.
• Feminist Forum: Since January, Equality Now has participated in a regional coordination space with over 200 diverse organizations. This collective has worked to prepare a civil society declaration with concrete proposals to address structural violence and inequality, ensuring that the voices of women, youth, and marginalized communities are central to the official conference proceedings.

Analysis of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 5: Gender Equality

  This is the central theme of the article. The text repeatedly mentions the goal of achieving “gender equality,” ending “violence against women, girls, and adolescents,” promoting “legal equality,” and tackling “economic injustice” for women. The entire purpose of the XVI Regional Conference on Women is to advance women’s rights in the region.

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  The article emphasizes the need for “legal reforms,” ensuring “access to justice,” and ending “impunity for violence.” These are core components of SDG 16, which aims to build effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels.

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

  The article calls to “dismantle the structural barriers” that cause inequality, such as “women’s subordination in laws” and “economic injustice.” This directly relates to SDG 10’s objective of reducing inequality within and among countries.

• SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

  The article describes a multi-stakeholder collaboration involving “government representatives, feminist leaders, UN agencies, and civil society organisations.” It highlights the formation of alliances and the collective work of over 200 organizations in the “Feminist Forum,” which exemplifies the partnership model promoted by SDG 17.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

1. SDG 5: Gender Equality

   • Target 5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere.

     The article explicitly calls for an end to “discrimination in the law” and the dismantling of “women’s subordination in laws,” which are direct barriers to legal equality.

   • Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls.

     A primary goal stated in the article is to achieve “an end to sexual violence” and address the persistence of “violence against women, girls, and adolescents.”

   • Target 5.3: Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage.

     The article mentions that Equality Now aims to secure “concrete commitments on… child, early, and forced marriage and unions.”

   • Target 5.4: Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work.

     The article highlights the “unequal distribution of unpaid care work” as a structural barrier and discusses the need for a “care society,” which involves the “redistribution of care.”

   • Target 5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership.

     The conference itself, bringing together “feminist leaders” and advocating for the “active participation of women and girls in all their diversity,” supports this target. The goal is to “elevate our allies as key actors” in “political dialogue spaces.”

2. SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

   • Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence.

     The focus on ending “sexual violence” and “structural violence” against women and girls directly aligns with this target.

   • Target 16.3: Promote the rule of law and ensure equal access to justice.

     The article’s call to end “impunity for violence” and improve “access to justice” for women and girls is a direct reference to this target.

   • Target 16.b: Promote and enforce non-discriminatory laws and policies.

     The demand for “legal reforms” to end “women’s subordination in laws” and “discrimination in the law” is a clear articulation of this target.

3. SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

   • Target 10.3: Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws.

     The article’s objective to “dismantle the structural barriers that prevent the guarantee of the right to care,” such as discriminatory laws and economic injustice, directly supports this target.

4. SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

   • Target 17.17: Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships.

     The entire event described is a partnership. The article mentions the collaboration of “government representatives, feminist leaders, UN agencies, and civil society organisations” and a “Feminist Forum” led by “more than 200… organisations” working collectively.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

1. For Target 5.1 (End Discrimination)

   • Indicator 5.1.1: Whether or not legal frameworks are in place to promote, enforce and monitor equality and non-discrimination on the basis of sex.

     This is implied by the article’s focus on achieving “legal equality” and “feminist legal reforms” to eliminate “women’s subordination in laws.” Progress would be measured by the number of discriminatory laws repealed and new equitable laws enacted.

2. For Target 5.2 (Eliminate Violence)

   • Indicators 5.2.1 and 5.2.2: Proportion of women and girls subjected to physical, sexual or psychological violence.

     The article’s call for an “end to sexual violence” and the fight against “violence against women, girls, and adolescents” implies that a key measure of success would be a reduction in the prevalence of such violence.

3. For Target 5.3 (Eliminate Harmful Practices)

   • Indicator 5.3.1: Proportion of women who were married or in a union before age 18.

     The specific mention of securing commitments on “child, early, and forced marriage and unions” implies that the rate of these unions is a key metric for measuring progress.

4. For Target 5.4 (Value Unpaid Care Work)

   • Indicator 5.4.1: Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex.

     The article’s focus on the “unequal distribution of unpaid care work” and the need for “redistribution of care” suggests that measuring the time women spend on this work compared to men is a relevant indicator of change.

5. For Target 16.3 (Access to Justice)

   • Implied Indicator: Rates of reporting, prosecution, and conviction for gender-based violence.

     The demand to end “impunity for violence” implies that an indicator of progress would be an increase in the accountability of perpetrators through the justice system, thus improving “access to justice” for survivors.

4. Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: equalitynow.org