Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. New U.N. Women Agency Needs Strong Leader, Committed Funding Joe DeCapua 07 July 2010 On July 2^nd, the U.N. General Assembly voted unanimously to create a new agency dedicated to promoting the rights and needs of women and girls around the world. The U.N. Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women is more commonly known as UN Women. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon called it a âmajor step forward.â Itâs got potential Among those supporting the creation of UN Women is Paula Donovan, co-director of AIDS Free World, who says creation of the agency is just a first step. âSo far it doesnât really differ from what weâve had in the past. It has more potential. But it is at present, at its very beginnings, an amalgamation of what existed in the past,â she says. One major difference, she says, is that governments have informally agreed it should have a budget of $500 million. Thatâs about double what U.N. agencies dealing with women combined have had before. Another difference is that the head of UN Women will be an undersecretary-general â a much higher rank than the head of UNIFEM, the current, smaller entity for women. âAn undersecretary-general is at the same level as the heads of UNICEF and the United Nations Development Program. And itâs on a par now with the other heads of agencies,â says Donovan. Whatâs expected âOur great hope is that around the world women will be able to rely on UN Women, not just for advice and not just for sort of representation at meetings, but for real programs that can make effective changes in their livesâ¦. Weâre hoping that UN Women will be able to do with women what an agency like UNICEF is able to do for children.â She says itâs âcritically importantâ that the new agency recognize that âwomen â¦have been operating with very few resources and very little power, but excellent ideas, for all the decades when the U.N. wasnât working on womenâs issues.â The success of UN Womenâs will depend in part on partnering with long-time womenâs advocates around the world, says Donovan. Whoâs in charge? The head of UN Women is expected to be named by September, and the agency is due to begin operations by next January. Donovan says a strong leader is vital to fulfilling its mission and having an equal say at the bargaining table. She says she assumes a woman will be picked for the undersecretary-generalâs job, but that person must have proven leadership skills to lead the United Nations âout of the 20^th Century and into the 21^st Centuryâ on womenâs issues. âIf a terrific, dynamic leader, who can really bring in all the womenâs organizations and womenâs advocates, whoâve been struggling from outside the U.N. for decades, and can also rein in the funds and support that are required, is appointed, then we have a really good shot,â she says. Asked if there are any leading candidates, Donovan says, âYour guess is as good as mine.â However, sheâs concerned about the selection process. She says the secretary-general and others have promised the process will be fair, open and transparent. âTheyâve now changed that to open, rigorous and transparent. And somehow fairness has slipped off of the agenda. But so far itâs the same old business as usual,â she says. Governments can nominate candidates, but Donovan says many qualified women may be passed over for consideration. She says women outside of the U.N. structure or not a favored choice of a head of state âhave absolutely no information about how they can apply, what the qualifications are. And I havenât seen anything that resembles fairness or openness and certainly not transparency.â Funding The co-founder of AIDS Free World says thereâs much work to be done after UN Women begins operations. âWe have now the shell of a U.N. womenâs agency that can truly be effective for women. We have the legal premise,â she says. But the amount of funding she believes will reflect donor commitment. âCertainly the governments have made almost embarrassing financial commitments -- $500 million for all the worldâs women is mortifying. And those arenât commitments. Those are simply suggestions,â she says. The United Nations calls the creation of UN Women âhistoric.â The secretary-general says the agency âwill significantly boost U.N. efforts to promote gender equality, expand opportunity and tackle discrimination around the globe.â .