From law to equality: the progress that today supports women’s rights in Colombia

^{In Colombia, women's rights are also written into law. The study “Legislative actions to transform women's lives,” conducted by UN Women in collaboration with national and international partners, analyzed 117 laws across four key areas and confirmed significant progress. Photo: UN Women/Paula Orozco} 

In Colombia, the struggle for women’s rights has also been written into the law. Over recent decades, the country has built a regulatory framework that recognizes equality, political participation, and women’s right to live a life free from violence. ‘Legislative actions to transform women’s lives’ is a legislative analysis that invites reflection on this path, its progress, and the challenges that still persist. 

The study, carried out in 24 countries by UN Women, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, and the Embassy of Sweden, in collaboration with the Ombudsperson’s Office, the Congress of the Republic, civil society, and academia, examined 117 laws currently in force across four key areas: political participation, labor rights and social security, land rights, and a life free from violence. The assessment is clear: Colombia has made significant progress in consolidating a legal framework that protects women’s rights. However, the research warns that formal equality does not always translate into real equality.

Regulations with discriminatory approaches, legal gaps, and obstacles in implementation persist, limiting the impact of these laws on the daily lives of women and girls. In this context, the report stresses that amending and repealing discriminatory provisions, strengthening political oversight, and ensuring sufficient budgetary resources are essential steps toward a more equal democracy. 

^{Knowing your rights allows you to exercise them. That is why DIME Mujer was created, a digital platform that brings the law closer to the daily lives of Colombian women. At https://dimemujer.com, you can find clear and accessible information on economic autonomy, work, land, participation, family environment, and sexual and reproductive rights, among other topics. Photo: UN Women/Paula Orozco.} 

The laws that still need to change 

Looking ahead also means reviewing what has not yet changed. The report proposes updating Colombian legislation in line with international standards and recommends reviewing or modifying at least 12 norms that remain in force.

In political participation, the call is to move toward 50 percent parity, strengthen financing for women candidates, and implement alternation and parity mechanisms in appointed positions. In the areas of labor rights and social security, it proposes eliminating unjustified restrictions on women’s work, expanding paternity leave, and guaranteeing protection against workplace harassment across all forms of employment.

Regarding land rights, the study highlights the urgency of removing barriers to joint ownership, recognizing care work, and ensuring that women can hold independent title to land and property. In the area of a life free from violence, it proposes raising the minimum age of sexual consent to 16, removing voluntary interruption of pregnancy as a criminal offense, and making visible all forms of violence, including digital, institutional, vicarious, and obstetric violence.

The message is clear: only by eradicating discrimination against women and girls will it be possible to guarantee the full exercise of their rights and equal citizenship.

^{Every legislative breakthrough in Colombia in favor of women is the result of decades of hard work. Today, Colombian women have a stronger legal framework, but there are still challenges that need to be addressed: eliminating discriminatory laws, securing funding, and strengthening political oversight. Photo: UN Women/Paula Orozco.} 

DIME Mujer: When the law becomes accessible 

In a country with multiple laws, institutions, and care pathways, access to information remains a major challenge. To address this need, UN Women and the Extituto de Política Abierta, with the support of the Embassy of Sweden in Colombia, joined efforts to use new information technologies to design and create DIME Mujer (Rights and Information for Women and Equality), a digital platform intended to bring the law closer to women.

The platform gathers in one place clear, educational, and accessible information on women’s rights across six key areas: women workers, economic autonomy, relationship with land, family environment, participation in public affairs, and sexual and reproductive rights, the latter developed with technical support from UNFPA Colombia. 

^{The Dime Mujer platform has been promoted since 2024 as part of the strategic alliance between UN Women and Sweden in various departments of Colombia, such as Chocó, Cauca, Nariño, Villavicencio, and Bogotá.   Photo: UN Women/Paula Orozco.} 

To access the platform, people can use electronic devices such as mobile phones, tablets, or computers at https://dimemujer.com. There, through videos, audio materials, and narrative examples voiced by diverse women, DIME Mujer translates legal language and helps break down the barriers that have historically limited women’s access to information. It also provides a directory of public institutions, social organizations, and women’s groups that support processes of rights defense, guidance, and accountability.

This March 8, International Women’s Day, both the analysis and the platform converge on the same message: laws are a starting point, but equality is built when women know their rights and can fully exercise them. DIME Mujer thus joins ongoing efforts to transform the regulatory framework into real, lived, and guaranteed rights for all.