Category CDWD News

16 Jul

Erased Twice Over: UN Paper Highlights Urgent Reforms for Women Facing Descent-Based Discrimination

Erased Twice Over: UN Paper Highlights Urgent Reforms for Women Facing Descent-Based Discrimination A landmark policy paper released in July 2025 by UN Women, in collaboration with the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (GFoD), casts a spotlight on the urgent need for intersectional rights-based approaches to combat structural discrimination faced by […]

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16 Jul

The ECOSOC President just congratulated us on our work: Will you help us continue it?

The ECOSOC President just congratulated us on our Global work: Will you help us continue it? At the 4th meeting of the 2025 United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development, held on 15th June, Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD) youth leader Naveen Gautam delivered a powerful and deeply moving intervention as […]

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16 Jul

Want to know more about Africa CDWD? Use this factsheet!

Want to know more about discriminated communities of Africa? Download this factsheet A comprehensive new report titled CDWD in Africa Factsheet highlights the continued exclusion and marginalisation of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD) across five African nations—The Gambia, Mauritania, Niger, Cameroon, and Nigeria. Drawing on data compiled by researchers affiliated with the Global […]

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14 Jul

2024 was a seminal year for discriminated communities across the world: Now, we need your help to sustain the momentum

2024 was a seminal year for discriminated communities across the world: Now, we need your help to sustain the momentum In October 2024, something historic happened. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) passed a landmark resolution that explicitly recognised and condemned discrimination based on descent and work. For Communities Discriminated on Work […]

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10 Jul

“Caste Exists Only in South Asia” is a Myth

“Caste Exists Only in South Asia” is a Myth The belief that caste exists only in South Asia is a myth—one that erases the lived realities of millions across the globe. While the word “caste” may be most commonly associated with India or Nepal, its logic—the division of people by birth, labor, and inherited stigma—is […]

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10 Jul

Your support can empower 50 global CDWD youth leaders: Here’s how 

Your support can empower 50 global CDWD youth leaders: Here’s how  Across South Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Latin America, millions still carry the burden of caste, inherited status, and work-based discrimination. For many—especially young people—these systems aren’t history. They are daily reality. They deny education. They block employment. They degrade lives by branding entire […]

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9 Jul

Why Global Forum on Discrimination on Work and Descent matters

Why Global Forum on Discrimination on Work and Descent matters Over 270 million people around the world continue to face discrimination—not for what they’ve done, but for who they were born as. Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD)—including Dalits, Burakumin, Haratine, Osu, Roma, Quilombola, and others—have been historically treated as “impure.” Entire generations have […]

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12 Sep

Climate change impact CDWD extensively, says UN Special Rapporteur Dr Surya Deva 

Climate change impact CDWD extensively, says UN Special Rapporteur Dr Surya Deva  A report by Dr Surya Deva, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development, highlighted the severe impacts of climate change on Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (CDWD), linking these challenges directly to the broader context of climate justice.  The report, which referred to the work done […]

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12 Sep

UN Special Rapporteur Dr Surya Deva cites status of CDWD in his report on Right to Development

UN Special Rapporteur Dr Surya Deva cites status of CDWD in his report on Right to Development Paul Diwakar, Convener of the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (GFoD), welcomed a recent report, presented by the UN Special Rapporteur Dr Surya Deva, that extensively cited the Collective for Discrimination Based on Work and Descent (CDWD). […]

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12 Sep

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR): A Catalyst for Roma Rights in Albania

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR): A Catalyst for Roma Rights in Albania By Siljana Hyseni, Roma Rights Expert, GFoD As a marginalized group, the Roma minority, estimated to be between 8,301 and 120,000 people, continues to experience systemic discrimination, social exclusion, and poverty. These challenges have significantly impacted their access to education, healthcare, employment, and housing. On Friday, August 30, […]

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