A series of International Women’s Day marches are being held in several cities of Nepal, calling for women’s place in society to be rewritten. In Nepal, women are using the day to end discrimination against women in distribution of citizenship certificate demanding to issue citizenship certificate in the name of mother.

Although Nepal has made many progress, the discrimination against women continue to exist. “We still have to go a long way before completely ensuring equal rights to women,” said Dr. Bimala Rai Paudyal, member of Upper House of Parliament.

Speakers at Kathmandu march range from a woman fighting to reform in citizenship laws to the women who worked on the landmark work to end women trafficking – activists calling to outlaws child marriage and child labour in homes and provides maternity benefits to workers.

“Despite the transformation of political system and society, Nepali mindset tends to be patriarchal. The system is yet to grant rights to issue citizenship on the basis of mother. We are discriminated by our laws and constitution,” said Rekha Sharma, leader of NCP-NCP, who has been pleading the rights of women.

History Of International Women’s Day

International Women's Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. International Women's Day first emerged from the activities of labour movements at the turn of the twentieth century in North America and across Europe.

Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike. The growing international women's movement, which has been strengthened by four global United Nations women's conferences, has helped make the commemoration a rallying point to build support for women's rights and participation in the political and economic arenas.

The UN and Gender Equality

The Charter of the United Nations, signed in 1945, was the first international agreement to affirm the principle of equality between women and men. Since then, the UN has helped create a historic legacy of internationally-agreed strategies, standards, programmes and goals to advance the status of women worldwide.

Over the years, the UN and its technical agencies have promoted the participation of women as equal partners with men in achieving sustainable development, peace, security, and full respect for human rights. The empowerment of women continues to be a central feature of the UN's efforts to address social, economic and political challenges across the globe.