By Pio Smith, UNFPA Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific

On International Women’s Day, Asia-Pacific Regional Director for UNFPA, Mr. Pio Smith calls for urgent action to protect hard-won gains in gender equality, expand access to sexual and reproductive health services, end gender-based violence, and promote women’s leadership, ensuring that progress is not reversed but accelerated for future generations.

Thirty years ago, the world made a promise: gender equality for all. The Beijing Declaration set an ambitious agenda, urging governments to accelerate progress. Nowhere was this more crucial than in the Asia-Pacific region, home to over half the world’s women and girls. Decades of advocacy and investment led to tangible gains – more women in leadership, stronger legal protections and improved access to healthcare and education. But today, those hard-won gains are unravelling. 

Gender equality is not just stalling – it is reversing. Reproductive rights are rolling back. Gender-based violence is rising. Women’s political representation is stagnating and, in some cases, regressing. Economic instability, conflict, and climate disasters are deepening inequalities, pushing women and girls into greater vulnerability. 

Asia and the Pacific stands at a crossroads. Do we drive forward to ensure equality and opportunity for all women and girls? Or do we allow decades of hard-won progress to slip away?

The direction we choose now will steer the future of generations.

Maternal mortality, once declining, has stagnated. In some countries, fewer than 30 percent of women have access to contraception. In the Pacific, one in two women has experienced intimate partner violence. Climate change is exacerbating inequalities, uprooting families, and exposing women to exploitation and abuse. Women and children in the region are 14 times more likely to die in disasters. 

In Afghanistan, a woman dies from preventable pregnancy complications every two hours, making it one of the deadliest countries in the world to give birth. Less than one in four sexually active unmarried youth in the region uses contraception, leaving many vulnerable to unintended pregnancies, early marriage, and limited life choices. 

Take Maya, a 16-year-old girl in rural Nepal. She dreams of becoming a doctor but her future is slipping away. Forced to leave school to help at home and pressured into an early marriage, her choices are stolen. Maya’s story reflects the reality of millions of girls across the region, where poverty, discrimination, and harmful norms rob them of opportunities. South Asia is home to around 290 million child brides - 45 per cent of the global total. For girls like Maya, the promise of Beijing remains unfulfilled.

With a rapidly ageing population in Asia-Pacific, older women—many of whom spent their lives caring for others without financial security—face heightened risks of poverty, neglect, and abuse. A gender-equal future must ensure dignity, security, and healthcare for women at every stage of life.

As we approach the 68th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, the stakes could not be higher. This year’s theme—accelerating gender equality by addressing poverty and strengthening institutions and financing—demands action. In Asia-Pacific, where deep inequalities persist, governments must match political will with sustainable, strategic funding to drive real change.

Governments must prioritize universal access to sexual and reproductive health services. Every woman and girl deserves the right to make informed choices about her body and her future. No woman should die giving life - preventable maternal deaths must end.

We must enforce stronger laws and build support systems to end gender-based violence. This means enforcing legislation, providing survivor-centred services and addressing harmful norms that enable violence.

We must actively promote women’s leadership in politics and decision-making. The Pacific has some of the lowest rates of women’s political representation in the world. In Fiji, for example, women’s representation in parliament dropped from almost 20 per cent to just over 10 percent in the last election. Addressing these gaps is not only about fairness and equity — it’s about building stronger, more inclusive societies.

The economic case for gender equality is clear. Closing gender gaps in employment would boost GDP by up to 20 percent globally. Investing in midwives alone would prevent 40 percent of maternal and newborn deaths, saving 4.3 million lives by 2035. Countries that invest in gender equality see stronger economies, healthier populations, and greater resilience in the face of crises. Yet, despite overwhelming evidence, funding for women’s health and rights remains woefully inadequate. This is not just a policy failure — it is a human rights failure.

With only five years left to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 5 on gender equality, we need to get back on track. If we continue at the current pace, it will take centuries to close the gender gap. Rights can be lost as quickly as they are gained. Progress is not inevitable; however, hope is not lost either. History reassures us that when a woman is given the opportunity to thrive, she does not just transform her own life — she sparks change for her community and her entire nation.

At a time when politics and disinformation threaten the rights of women and girls - we must not falter. This International Women’s Day, we must recommit to the promise we made 30 years ago  — for Maya, for the millions still denied their rights, for future generations. 

The future we want - where every woman and girl can live free from violence, make her own choices, and access opportunities — truly is within reach. But only if we refuse to step back. Only if we push forward, together. The time is now.

Let’s ensure we are on the right side of history