UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N.’s premiere international physique combating for gender equality on Saturday referred to as for wide-ranging efforts to shut the hole between women and men in as we speak’s technology-driven world and urged zero tolerance for gender-based violence and harassment on-line.

In a doc authorized by consensus after all-night negotiations on the finish of a two-week assembly, the Fee on the Standing of Ladies expressed grave concern on the interrelation between offline and on-line violence, harassment and discrimination towards ladies and ladies — and it condemned the rise in these acts.

It referred to as for a big improve in investments by the private and non-private sector to bridge the gender digital divide. It additionally referred to as for the elimination of boundaries to equal entry to digital know-how for all ladies and ladies, and new insurance policies and applications to attain gender parity in rising scientific and technological fields.

Sima Bahous, govt director of UN Ladies, an entity of the United Nations specializing in gender equality and the empowerment, referred to as the doc “game-changing” in selling a blueprint for a extra equal and related world for girls and ladies. The problem now, she stated, is for governments, the non-public sector, civil society and younger folks to show the blueprint “into actuality for all ladies and ladies.”

Initially of the fee’s two-week assembly, U.N. Secretary-Basic Antonio Guterres stated its focus was very well timed as a result of ladies and ladies are being left behind as know-how races forward.

“Three billion individuals are nonetheless unconnected to the web, nearly all of them ladies and ladies in creating nations, (and) in least developed nations simply 19% of ladies are on-line,” Guterres stated. “Globally, women and girls make up simply one-third of scholars in science, know-how, engineering and arithmetic” and males outnumber ladies two to 1 within the tech business.

Bahous advised the opening assembly that “the digital divide has change into the brand new face of gender inequality,” with 259 million extra males than ladies on-line final yr. She additionally cited a survey of feminine journalists from 125 nations that discovered three-quarters had skilled on-line harassment in the middle of their work and a 3rd had engaged in self-censorship in response.

The “agreed conclusions” doc adopted Saturday by the 45-member fee requires equal high quality training for girls and ladies in science, know-how, engineering, arithmetic, info and communications know-how, and digital literacy to allow them to thrive within the quickly altering world.

Throughout prolonged negotiations on the doc, which has 93 paragraphs, U.N. diplomats stated language on ladies’s rights was challenged by Russia, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Holy See and human rights language was additionally challenged by these nations in addition to Cuba and China. There have been additionally intense debates over language on gender-based violence facilitated by know-how, they stated, talking on situation of anonymity as a result of negotiations had been closed.

The ultimate doc reaffirms the 1995 Beijing platform adopted by 189 nations which stated for the primary time in a U.N. doc, that ladies’s human rights embrace the fitting to regulate and determine “on issues regarding their sexuality, together with their sexual and reproductive well being, freed from discrimination, coercion and violence.”

The ultimate subject blocking consensus was Pakistan’s insistence on including a reference to “overseas occupation” to the doc, and Israel’s robust opposition, diplomats stated. The reference was not included and earlier than the doc’s adoption Pakistan’s consultant expressed remorse that the wants and priorities of ladies belonging to creating nations and dealing with humanitarian disaster together with overseas occupation weren’t included.