Partners of Zonta

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United Nations

Zonta International is part of the Liaison Committee in Official Partnership with UNESCO. There are 411 UNESCO official partner NGOs. 65 of which are in association status and 346 in consultation status as ZONTA international.

The goal is to continue our efforts to make ZONTA more active and representative with partners working alongside UNESCO to improve the delivery of our programs, but also in the opposite direction, to bring to Zonta the multitude of information collected at UNESCO that can be used largely for our advocacy activities.

The Zonta International United Nations (UN) Committee

The Zonta International United Nations (UN) Committee teams represent Zonta in New York at the UN Headquarters, Geneva (Human Rights, ILO, WHO), Vienna (UNODC), Bangkok (ESCAP), Nairobi and at UNESCO in Paris.

The teams ensure that Zonta’s priorities are presented and that the Zonta voice is clear in mission-related meetings at their respective sites. They meet and work with decision-makers from UN agencies and countries where Zonta has funded projects and/or where Zonta clubs reside.

Current priorities

The current priority area of focus is the Sustainable Development Goals, which set the UN agenda through 2030, concentrating on Goal 5 and areas that relate to women’s empowerment.

Ongoing issues

The teams also monitor and report on ongoing issues such as human trafficking, women’s employment, human rights, the gender pay gap, and much more.

Team members work in coalition with other like-minded organizations, especially via NGO committees, on issues of mutual concern, such as early, child and forced marriage.

Council of Europe (CoE)

The Council of Europe (CoE) is Europe’s leading inter-governmental human rights organization working with its 46 member states to strengthen human rights, democracy and the rule of law.

Zonta International has been represented at the Council of Europe since 1983 and is one of the 400 international nongovernmental organizations enjoying participatory status at the Conference of INGOs, the body representing civil society in the CoE.

Highlighted issues

The committee especially highlights the Istanbul Convention (CoE Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence) and the Anti-Trafficking Convention (CoE Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings), which are also accessible by non-European countries. It underlines the global dimension and relevance of the CoE and creates advocacy tools for the Zonta Says NO to Violence against Women campaign.”