Ambassador Rabab Fatima, Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations, was unanimously elected as the President of the UN Women Executive Board for the year 2022. 

The election of the 5-member bureau was held in New York, which also elected the Permanent Representatives of Argentina, Ukraine, Iceland and Sierra Leone as the vice presidents, says a press release on Wednesday (Jan 12).

With this election, Bangladesh takes up the Presidency of the UN Women Executive Board for the first time. The Executive Board provides strategic guidance to UN Women, the UN agency dedicated to gender equality and empowerment of women. 

As the President of the Board, Bangladesh will be able to contribute further to the work of the UN Women.

In her inaugural speech, Ambassador Rabab Fatima thanked the Board members for electing her, and for their confidence in Bangladesh’s leadership to address the challenges that continue to affect women and girls across the globe, especially during the time of the pandemic.

“There is no time to waste. We must ensure that all COVID recovery plans are gender-responsive, and that all stakeholders – public, private, NGOs – are mobilized to ensure that. We also need to provide UN Women with the necessary direction and resources so that it can continue to be at the forefront of all such efforts.”  Said Ambassador Fatima.

Ambassador Fatima assured UN Women that the new Executive Board will work hard to support UN Women in this challenging time. She applauded UN Women’s remarkable contributions in advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women worldwide. She also paid tribute all staff and colleagues of UN Women globally, who have been carrying out their important work, with dedication and courage in the midst of the pandemic challenges

UN Women Executive Director Ambassador Sima Bahous welcomed the new President and said that UN Women looked forward to benefiting from her experience and wisdom. She expressed optimism that Ambassador Fatima would spearhead the bureau’s guidance to the work of UN Women.

Ambassador Fatima earlier served as the President of the UNICEF Executive Board in 2020 and as Vice President of the UNDP/UNFPA/UNOPS Executive Board in 2021.