By Wallace Mawire
The United Nations Human Rights Working Group on discrimination against women and girls will conduct a country visit to Zimbabwe from 28 July to 8 August 2025.
According to a statement by the United Nations Information Centre (UNIC) in Zimbabwe, the independent experts will assess progress and challenges in achieving gender equality and eliminating discrimination.
UNIC said experts will examine various aspects of the lives of women and girls, particularly those who encounter multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination.
They said the Working Group will visit the country at the invitation of the Government and will hold discussions in Harare, Mutare, Masvingo and Bulawayo cities of the country.
UNIC said the experts will meet with national and local authorities, women and girls, civil society organisations, UN entities and other relevant stakeholders.
They added that the visiting delegation will include Working Group Chair Laura Nyirinkindi and Vice-Chair Claudia Flores.
The Working Group is also expected to present its full report to the UN Human Rights Council in June 2026.
The experts include Laura Nyirinkindi (Chair), Claudia Flores (Vice-Chair), Dorothy Estrada Tanck, Ivana Krstić, and Haina Lu, Working group on discrimination against women and girls.
According to UNIC, Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council.
The UN Information Agency said together, the experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council.
They said Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis and are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work.
UNIC said while the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including OHCHR and UNITED NATIONS INFORMATION CENTRE (UNIC).
According to United Nations Human Rights, women and girls everywhere are still subject to significant disadvantage as the result of discriminatory laws and practices.
They say that equality has not been achieved in any country in the world, and pledges to eliminate discriminatory laws have not been fulfilled.
They add that the mandate was created to intensify efforts to eliminate all forms of discrimination against women and girls throughout the world.
At its fifteenth session in 2010, the Human Rights Council adopted by consensus resolution 15/23 to establish a working group on the issue of discrimination against women in law and in practice.
When renewed in June 2019 through resolution 41/6, the mandate name was changed from the Working Group on discrimination against women in law and practice to the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls. The mandate was renewed in June 2022 through resolution 50/18.