A JERSEY charity chief executive will be one of two women from the Channel Islands to join a UN delegation at the “biggest gathering of gender-equality advocates in the world” next month.
Claire Mulcahy, who heads Jersey Citizens Advice, has been selected to represent UN Women UK at the 68th UN Commission on the Status of Women, or CSW68.
Ms Mulcahy will join campaigner Poppy Murray, from Guernsey, at the event, which takes place over two weeks in March.
Ms Mulcahy said she had applied to be a delegate on a whim and was surprised to find herself selected. The conference, she said, would be “a platform and a really good opportunity to understand how we can connect”.
To prepare, she said she had reached out to Kate Wright, the chair of the Taskforce on Violence Against Women and Girls, along with charities to find out what their concerns were. Ms Mulcahy said this was particularly important in relation to the CSW68 topic on “accelerating the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing with a gender perspective”.
She said she was looking forward to “hearing the experts and world leaders and considering what they’re bringing to the table”.
She would also like to clarify Jersey’s position relative to the UN – as the Island is not a member state but a territory for which the UK is responsible.
“That’s what I’m interested in,” she said. “How does Jersey put a voice to the UN?”
Jersey Citizens Advice was named charity of 2023 at the recent Difera Awards, which recognise people and organisations for their commitment to equality and diversity. Ms Mulcahy added that she was keen to highlight the charity’s work through her appointment.
Mrs Mulcahy said in a statement: “I am joining the biggest gathering of gender-equality advocates in the world, documenting the reality of women’s lives around the world, sharing space with world leaders, governments, experts, advocates, and activists from the gender-equality space who are all working towards a more equitable world and will be in a position to discuss progress, identify challenges, setting policies and shaping global standards.
“Taking the learnings and awareness from the two weeks of 11 to 22 March to deepen contributions, momentum and vision within our community through the positive opportunity our charity position holds on the Island to support the delivery of outcomes.”
