Chapter IV PRIORITY THEMES 1. The Commission considered item 5 of its agenda at its 9th to 17th meetings, on 11 and 14 to 18 March 1994. It had before it the following reports: (a) Report of the Secretary-General on equal pay for work of equal value, including methodologies for measurement of pay inequities and work in the informal sector (E/CN.6/1994/2); (b) Report of the Secretary-General on women in urban areas: population, nutrition and health factors for women in development, including migration, drug consumption and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (E/CN.6/1994/3); (c) Report of the Secretary-General on measures to eradicate violence against women in the family and society (E/CN.6/1994/4). 2. The Secretary-General of the Fourth World Conference on Women introduced the item and emphasized the importance to the preparations for the Conference of the discussion by the Commission on the priority themes and the Platform for Action. Under the priority theme of "Equality: equal pay for work of equal value, including methodologies for measurement of pay inequities and work in the informal sector", she pointed to a number of policies and measures proposed in the report which could be taken to give effect to the principle of equal pay for work of equal value. Regarding the priority theme of "Development: women in urban areas: population, nutrition and health factors for women in development, including migration, drug consumption and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome", she emphasized that the analyses included in the report had been based on the findings of a seminar on the subject held at the International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW) at Santo Domingo in November 1993 and had focused on the specific problems faced by women living in the rapidly expanding urban environment. The report on the theme of "Peace: measures to eradicate violence against women in the family and society" had made detailed and pointed recommendations on the matter. Some of those recommendations could help the Commission determine steps to take to give effect to the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, adopted by the General Assembly in its resolution 48/104. Some of them had already been included under the item on domestic violence on the agenda of the Commission on Crime Prevention and criminal justice. She further noted that the Commission on Human Rights was proceeding to appoint a Special Rapporteur on violence against women and that the General Assembly would discuss the issue of violence against migrant women under the terms of resolution 48/110 at its forty-ninth session. A. Equality: equal pay for work of equal value, including methodologies for measurement of pay inequities and work in the informal sector 3. Many representatives emphasized their interest in the issue and noted that, in spite of certain achievements, the pattern of unequal remuneration was universal, though the level of inequality varied from country to country. Despite existing national and international provisions and legislative and constitutional guarantees, women everywhere, on average, were paid less than men. Several representatives underlined the fact that the unequal remuneration in most countries was the result of the persistent undervaluation of female- -70-