United Nations Decade for Women. Why Are So Many Koreans Named Kim? United Nations Decade for Women, United Nations program that began on January 1, 1976, the goal of which was the promotion of equal rights and opportunities for women around the world. Included in this decade were three major meetings for women. The first UN women’s conference, held in Mexico City in 1975, designated 1975–85 as the UN Decade for Women, and five months later the UN General Assembly launched that program.