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President Goodluck
Jonathan and Liberian President, Ellen Sirleaf-Johnson yesterday
unveiled the United Nations Women’s logo, at the 16th ordinary session
of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union,
holding at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Mr. Jonathan who was represented by the former
ambassador to Ethiopia, Nkoyo Toyo expressed his hope that African
women will find their voice through the new organization. He said that
his administration would join other African leaders to support the new
organization even as he congratulated the executive director of the UN
Women and former president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet for a successful
ceremony.

In her remarks, Ms.
Sirleaf-Johnson expressed her happiness that women now have a platform
to voice their preferences on issues that concern them, adding that the
logo conveying the message of women’s equality and empowerment
worldwide was in capable hands with Mrs. Bachelet as head.

“We applaud this
new entity, and you can be rest assured that all of us will support the
contribution to the success of women’s empowerment and gender equality.
You can count on us to be a great partner,” she said.

The UN Secretary
General, Ban Ki-Moon in his remarks also said: “We need to empower
African women who produce food, raise children and drive the economy.
When women take their rightful place at the negotiating table, in the
parliament and in leadership positions across society, we can unleash
Africa’s enormous potential. UN Women is here to help reach this goal.”

Mrs. Bachelet, in
her remarks, added that, “A vision of how much more is possible when
men and women have equal rights and opportunities will drive UN Women.
We will be bold and ambitious in our aspirations. We will also be
practical in building an organization that can make a lasting
difference in women’s lives.”

The UN Women will
also work globally with all UN member states to forge international
standards and goals for gender equality. The agreement to create the UN
Women came from a UN General Assembly’s resolution in July 2010.

On the January 1, 2011, the new agency became operational under the
leadership of Mrs. Bachelet. Her attendance at the AU summit marks her
first official visit outside the UN headquarters in New York. The AU
has enshrined gender equality in its constituency act, and adopted the
Protocol to the African Charter of human and People’s rights on the
rights of Women in Africa. In 2010, it further declared the Decade for
Women in Africa.