2nd October 2026
UNGA 2026 Reflections: Legal equality, feminist multilateralism, and the road ahead
12 min read
EN
Observing the world during the UN General Assembly (UNGA) 2026, one could be forgiven for having a pessimistic outlook: since UNGA last year, conflicts and humanitarian crises are rampant, and concerns about weakening multilateral institutions have grown, while anti-rights movements continue to target gender equality and human rights across regions. But such a dark view of the state of things can mean we lose sight of the actual progress and positive change that is happening, despite such forces.
Throughout this UNGA, again and again we saw evidence of political will for advancing gender equality among many Member States. They not only proudly announced laws they had reformed, but also actively shared best practices and emphasised the importance of going beyond legal frameworks to ensure implementation.
For possibly the first time, we heard the phrase “feminist multilateralism” used by governments, and saw how discussions surrounding multilateralism are evolving beyond individual national foreign policies into collective commitments, underscored by the historic UN Secretary-General race featuring more female candidates than male candidates – meaning there is a real possibility that the next Secretary-General of the UN could be the first woman to lead it since its founding in 1945.
From equality in family law and nationality rights, to economic justice, digital rights and safety and the power of intergenerational leadership, the conversations Equality Now took part in and witnessed in and around UNGA were informative and energising.
Multiple events provided opportunities to learn about positive law reforms, why they benefit all of society and how they were achieved. At the Equality in Law for Women and Girls by 2030: Renewing Global Leadership event we co-sponsored with UN Women, the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights, we heard from representatives of Azerbaijan, Malaysia, Serbia, Sierra Leone and Uganda about how they’ve made their laws more gender equal. Speakers emphasised the importance of cooperation between legislators and civil society, as well as affected people. As H.E. Mr. Sofian Akmal Abd Karim, Deputy Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the United Nations, said of the constitutional reform related to nationality law in his country, “We must also acknowledge the central and important role played by Malaysian mothers themselves. Their voices, experiences, and sustained engagement contributed significantly to the national conversation on this issue, and helped build momentum for change.” We look forward to answering the event’s Call to Action from the Presidents of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights, as well as Nyaradzayi Gumbonzvanda, Deputy Executive Director of UN Women, to make legal equality a reality for everyone.
At another event, together with the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law (WBL) division, we reiterated the connection between family law reform and economic equality – and how family law reforms benefit all of society. This joint event hosted at APCO focused on our recent policy brief, coauthored by WBL, Equality Now and the Global Campaign for Equality in Family Law, which draws on case studies from Chile, Kenya, Malaysia, Morocco and Nepal to show the impact of discriminatory family law on women’s economic opportunities, and makes the case for accelerating family law reform efforts to improve women and girls’ ability to participate fully in economic and social life.
Throughout this week of high-level meetings and engagements, we attended or spoke at events focusing on the growing impact of emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), with a particular focus on how digital governance decisions impact women and girls.
Tsitsi Matekaire, Director, Regions at Equality Now, spoke as a panellist at “From Advocacy to Accountability: Human Rights Practice in Action”, organised by the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University. The event explored how human rights practitioners can translate rights into power, evidence into accountability, and advocacy into lasting change in an increasingly challenging global environment. Tsisti’s intervention focused on how we approach access to justice, strategic litigation, movement-building and the intersections between different forms of gender-based violence.
Tsisti also attended the launch of Safer Tech, Safer World: Courageous Government Action to Prevent Tech-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence, the inaugural thematic report from All In: Global Leaders for Ending Gender-Based Violence. The event brought together a high-profile group of global leaders and advocates, including Gabriela Ramos, Dr Denis Mukwege and Harriet Harman, alongside representatives from government, civil society and the technology and GBV prevention sectors. The breadth and profile of the speakers reflected All In’s ambition to place TFGBV firmly on the global policy agenda.
The report’s findings and conclusions are broadly consistent with the recommendations we have been making through our own work on TFGBV. In particular, the emphasis on government accountability, appropriate national legal and regulatory frameworks, prevention, coordination and education aligns closely with both our earlier OSEA work and our more recent work through The Alliance for Universal Digital Rights (AUDRi). It echoes our recent thematic paper which emphasises safety by design principles, where technology companies are required to identify and mitigate foreseeable risks rather than responding only after harm has occurred.
The fourth week of September 2026 was significant for Equality Now for reasons beyond UNGA, too. On September 24th, Equality Now’s Chief Executive Officer Mona Sinha was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in New York State. Honoured by this well-known national institution in recognition of her many years of dedication to women’s equality, Mona’s induction highlighted the intersection of grassroots, national, and global feminist leadership
While the halls of the UN Headquarters have quieted for now, the momentum to convert high-level commitments into concrete global progress is accelerating. Over the coming months, the UN will vote on the next Secretary-General to take office in January 2027. With an unprecedented field of qualified female candidates, this election is a crucial opportunity not just for historic representation, but to anchor true “feminist multilateralism” at the highest level of global governance.
Looking ahead to the next Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in March 2027, Equality Now will focus on driving action to accelerate the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Backed by insights from UN Women’s forthcoming CSW71 Expert Group Meeting (EGM) report, including from the participation of Esther Waweru, Associate Director, Legal Equality at Equality Now, we will continue pushing governments to dismantle discriminatory legal bottlenecks. As we build toward next year’s SDG Summit at UNGA, which should jumpstart discussions on what comes after the SDGs and a new post-2030 Agenda, we remain dedicated to holding world leaders accountable to their commitments and ensuring that legal equality, digital safety, and bodily autonomy remain non-negotiable priorities on the global stage.
It has been a tumultuous year in many ways, but our experience at UNGA 2026 made clear that while anti-rights backlash and global crises persist, feminist law reform and multilateral solidarity remain unstoppable forces, to the benefit of everyone.
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