The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) monitors the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. CEDAW examines periodic reports by the states' parties and elaborates international human rights law by issuing general comments and recommendations on its implementation. CEDAW submits reports on its activities to ECOSOC, the General Assembly and the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).

Commission on the Status of Women

The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is a functional commission of ECOSOC. It examines progress towards women's equality worldwide, and makes recommendations for promoting women's rights and drafts treaties.

UN conferences om women

The Commission has prepared the global conferences on women:

• Mexico City in 1975
• Copenhagen in 1980
• Nairobi in 1985
• Beijing in 1995

After the Beijing conference, the Commission's mandate was expanded to integrate into its programme the follow-up and reviewing of the outcome document the United Nations Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action.

Special rapporteur on violence against women

In 1994, in resolution E/CN.4/RES/1994/45, the Commission on Human Rights established a Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences. This mechanism is, since 2006, assumed by the Human Rights Council.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) works to promote and integrate women's rights in all fields of human rights and coordinates the UN programs, agencies and offices involved.

UN Women

UN Women focuses on strengthen the role of the UN in advancing the situation for women and to give a powerful voice for women within the UN system and at the global, regional and local level.

Other UN bodies, programmes and funds in the field of women's rights

More on UN and women's rights

Since 1950, around 50 conventions relating to women's status have been drawn up, several by the Commission on the status of women:

• ​United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in Swedish and in English.
• International Instruments and Treaty Bodies. Information on legal instruments and other relevant international standards of particular importance to women's human rights and gender equality, including CEDAW and other treaty bodies.

The official documents from the UN Conferences on women

1. World Conference on the International Women's Year (1975 : Mexico City). The report is issued as document E/CONF.66/34.
2. World Conference of the United Nations Decade for Women (1980 : Copenhagen) The report is issued as document A/CONF.94/35. and Corrigendum.
3. World Conference to Review and Appraise the Achievements of the United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace (1985 : Nairobi) and the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women. The report is issued as document A/CONF.116/28/Rev.1.
4. United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women : Action for Equality, Development and Peace (1995 : Beijing). The report is issued as document A/CONF.177/20/Rev.1.

The General Assembly organized a special session to appraise and review the results of the Fourth World Conference on Women in June 2000:

• Beijing +5. Women 2000: Gender, Equality, Development and Peace for the 21st Century - 23rd Special Session of the General Assembly, 5-9 June 2000.

The Swedish Foreign Ministry has after each conference published summaries of information about the positions of Sweden, as well as translations of the final documents in the series Aktstycken, published by the Swedish Foreign Ministry.

• Special Rapporteur's reports on violence against women
• The United Nations and the Advancement of Women, 1945-1996 documents the UN's substantial work on women's issues during 50 years. Included are more than 150 documents on women's rights.