A resolution supporting the goals of International Women's Day.

III ★(Star Print) Calendar No. 54 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 99 Supporting the goals of International Women’s Day. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 8, 2023 Mrs. SHAHEEN (for herself, Ms. COLLINS, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. KAINE, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. COONS) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations MAY 4, 2023 Reported by Mr. MENENDEZ, without amendment and an amendment to the preamble [Strike the preamble and insert the part printed in italic] RESOLUTION Supporting the goals of International Women’s Day. Whereas, as of March 2023, there are approximately 3,990,000,000 women and girls in the world, making up 1⁄2 of the world’s population; Whereas women and girls around the world— (1) have fundamental human rights; (2) play a critical role in providing and caring for their families and driving positive change in their com- munities; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:32 May 11, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 2 SRES 99 RS1S (3) contribute substantially to food security, eco- nomic growth, the prevention and resolution of conflict, and the sustainability of peace and stability; (4) are affected in different and often dispropor- tionate ways by global, country, and community cir- cumstances, including economic downturns, global health concerns, conflict, and migration; and (5) must have meaningful protections and opportuni- ties to more fully participate in and lead the political, so- cial, and economic lives of their communities and coun- tries; Whereas the advancement and empowerment of women and girls around the world is a foreign policy priority for the United States and is critical to the achievement of global peace, prosperity, and sustainability; Whereas, on October 6, 2017, the Women, Peace, and Secu- rity Act of 2017 (22 U.S.C. 2152j et seq.) was enacted into law, which includes requirements for a government- wide ‘‘Women, Peace, and Security Strategy’’ to promote and strengthen the participation of women in peace nego- tiations and conflict prevention overseas, enhanced train- ing for relevant United States Government personnel, and follow-up evaluations of the effectiveness of the strat- egy; Whereas the United States Strategy on Women, Peace, and Security, dated June 2019, recognizes that— (1) the ‘‘[s]ocial and political marginalization of women strongly correlates with the likelihood that a country will experience conflict’’; (2) there is a ‘‘tremendous amount of untapped po- tential among the world’s women and girls to identify, recommend, and implement effective solutions to con- VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 3 SRES 99 RS1S flict’’, and there are ‘‘benefits derived from creating op- portunities for women and girls to serve as agents of peace via political, economic, and social empowerment’’; and (3) barriers to the meaningful participation of women and girls in conflict prevention and resolution ef- forts ‘‘include under-representation in political leadership, pervasive violence against women and girls, and per- sistent inequality in many societies’’; Whereas, according to the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (commonly re- ferred to as ‘‘UN Women’’), peace negotiations are more likely to end in a peace agreement when women and women’s groups play a meaningful role in the negotiation process; Whereas, according to a study by the International Peace In- stitute, a peace agreement is 35 percent more likely to last at least 15 years if women participate in the develop- ment of the peace agreement; Whereas, according to the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs of the Department of State, the full and meaningful participation of women in criminal justice professions and security forces vastly en- hances the effectiveness of the resulting workforces; Whereas, despite the contributions of women to society, hun- dreds of millions of women and girls around the world continue to be denied the right to participate freely in civic and economic life, lack fundamental legal protec- tions, and remain vulnerable to exploitation and abuse; Whereas, every year, approximately 12,000,000 girls are mar- ried before they reach the age of 18, which means that— VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 4 SRES 99 RS1S (1) nearly 33,000 girls are married every day; or (2) nearly 23 girls are married every minute; Whereas, despite global progress, it is predicted that by 2030 more than 150,000,000 more girls will marry before reaching the age of 18, and approximately 2,400,000 girls who are married before reaching the age of 18 are under the age of 15; Whereas girls living in countries affected by conflict or other humanitarian crises are often the most vulnerable to child marriage, and 9 of the 10 countries with the high- est rates of child marriage are considered fragile or ex- tremely fragile; Whereas, on August 15, 2021, the Taliban entered Kabul, Afghanistan, and toppled the elected government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, resulting in de facto Taliban rule over the people of Afghanistan; Whereas the Taliban continues to restrict the ability of women and girls to exist in Afghan society, including by— (1) prohibiting girls from going to school past sixth grade, including banning women from attending univer- sity; (2) limiting the employment that women can pursue outside of their households; (3) mandating that women cover their heads and faces in public and punishing those who wear brightly colored clothing; (4) restricting the independent movement of women and girls; (5) closing domestic abuse shelters, sometimes forc- ing residents to return to their abusive families; VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 5 SRES 99 RS1S (6) preventing women aid workers from operating in Afghanistan, thus restricting operations in support of hu- manitarian assistance for all Afghans; (7) jailing women human rights defenders; and (8) limiting access to women’s healthcare, including preventative and emergency services, and requiring a male chaperone at most clinics and hospitals; Whereas, according to the United Nation’s Children’s Fund (commonly referred to as ‘‘UNICEF’’)— (1) approximately 1⁄4 of girls between the ages of 15 and 19 have been victims of some form of physical vio- lence; (2) approximately 120,000,000 girls worldwide, about 1 in 10, have experienced forced sexual acts; and (3) an estimated 1 in 3 women around the world has experienced some form of physical or sexual violence; Whereas the overall level of violence against women is a bet- ter predictor of the peacefulness of a country, the compli- ance of a country with international treaty obligations, and the relations of a country with neighboring countries than indicators measuring the level of democracy, level of wealth, or level of institutionalization of the country; Whereas women around the world remain vastly underrep- resented in government positions, as women account for only 25.6 percent of national parliamentarians and 21 percent of government ministers; Whereas the ability of women and girls to realize their full potential is critical to the ability of a country to achieve strong and lasting economic growth, self-reliance, and po- litical and social stability; VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 6 SRES 99 RS1S Whereas, although the United Nations Millennium Project reached the goal of achieving gender parity in primary education in most countries in 2015, the COVID–19 global pandemic has deepened gender inequality in edu- cation and more work remains to be done to achieve gen- der equality in primary and secondary education, particu- larly in secondary education worldwide as gender gaps persist and widen, by addressing— (1) discriminatory practices; (2) harmful cultural and social norms; (3) inadequate sanitation facilities, including facili- ties to manage menstruation; (4) child, early, and forced marriage; (5) poverty; (6) food insecurity and malnutrition; (7) early pregnancy and motherhood; (8) conflict and insecurity; and (9) other factors that favor boys or devalue girls’ education; Whereas, according to the United Nations Educational, Sci- entific and Cultural Organization— (1) approximately 118,500,000 girls between the ages of 6 and 17 remain out of school; (2) girls living in countries affected by conflict are 2.5 times more likely to be out of primary school than boys; (3) girls are twice as likely as boys to never set foot in a classroom; and (4) up to 30 percent of girls who drop out of school do so because of adolescent pregnancy or child marriage; Whereas women around the world face a variety of con- straints that severely limit their economic participation VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 7 SRES 99 RS1S and productivity and remain underrepresented in the labor force; Whereas, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations— (1) agriculture and food systems are a major source of livelihoods, particularly for rural women; (2) wage and productivity gaps persist in agriculture and food systems, despite the crucial role that women play in those sectors; (3) the work of women in agriculture and food sys- tems is more likely than that of men to be part-time, ir- regular, informal, vulnerable, labor-intensive, and low- skilled; (4) in countries reporting on Sustainable Develop- ment Goal 5.a.1, more men than women are owners or have rights to agricultural land; (5) the gender gap in food insecurity is growing and has reached 4.3 percentage points, with more women ex- periencing severe and moderate food insecurity in all re- gions than men; and (6) the empowerment of women can have important benefits for agricultural productivity, nutrition, and food security; Whereas the economic empowerment of women is inextricably linked to a myriad of other internationally recognized human rights that are essential to the ability of women to thrive as economic actors, including— (1) living lives free of violence and exploitation; (2) achieving the highest possible standard of health and well-being; VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 8 SRES 99 RS1S (3) enjoying full legal and human rights, such as ac- cess to registration, identification, and citizenship docu- ments, and freedom of movement; (4) access to formal and informal education; (5) access to, and equal protection under, land and property rights; (6) access to fundamental labor rights; (7) the implementation of policies to address dis- proportionate care burdens; and (8) receiving business and management skills and leadership opportunities; Whereas the Millennium Challenge Corporation (commonly referred to as the ‘‘MCC’’), an independent United States foreign assistance agency, recognizes that inequality and the exclusion of women from economic opportunities can inhibit efforts to promote economic growth and reduce poverty and decrease a country’s economic growth trajec- tory, which is why the gender policy of the MCC requires gender inequalities to be identified and considered in every stage of agreements with participating countries; Whereas, according to the World Health Organization, global maternal mortality decreased by approximately 38 per- cent from 2000 to 2017, yet approximately 810 women and girls continue to die from preventable causes relating to pregnancy or childbirth each day, and 94 percent of all maternal deaths occur in developing countries, putting the global community off-track to meeting Sustainable Development Goal 3.1 for reducing maternal deaths; Whereas the Office of the United Nations High Commis- sioner for Refugees reports that women and girls com- prise approximately 1⁄2 of the 78,900,000 refugees and internally displaced or stateless individuals in the world; VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 9 SRES 99 RS1S Whereas the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began on Feb- ruary 24, 2022, has resulted in a disproportionate num- ber of women and children seeking safety outside of Ukraine; Whereas those women and girls, like women and girls in all humanitarian emergencies, including those subject to forced displacement, face increased and exacerbated vulnerabilities to— (1) gender-based violence, including rape, child mar- riage, domestic violence, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation and assault; (2) disruptions in education and livelihood; (3) lack of access to health services; and (4) food insecurity and malnutrition; Whereas malnutrition poses a variety of threats to women and girls specifically, as malnutrition can weaken their immune systems, making them more susceptible to infec- tions, and affects their capacity to survive childbirth, and children born of malnourished women and girls are more likely to have cognitive impairments and higher risk of disease throughout their lives; Whereas it is imperative— (1) to alleviate violence and discrimination against women and girls; and (2) to afford women and girls every opportunity to be equal members of their communities; and Whereas, March 8, 2023, is recognized as International Women’s Day, a global day— (1) to celebrate the economic, political, and social achievements of women in the past, present, and future; and VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:59 May 10, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR99.RS SR99 SSpencer on DSK126QN23PROD with BILLS 10 SRES 99 RS1S (2) to recognize the obstacles that women face in the struggle for equal rights and opportunities: Now, there- fore, be it Whereas, as of March 2023, there are approximately 3,990,000,000 women and girls in the world, making up 1⁄2 of the world’s population; Whereas women and girls around the world— (1) have fundamental human rights; (2) play a critical role in providing and caring for their families and driving positive change in their commu- nities; (3) contribute substantially to food security, ec [Text truncated for display. 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