Iran has won a four-year term on the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, an influential body explicitly dedicated to promoting gender equality.

A press release on the filling of vacancies in subsidiary UN bodies announced on Thursday that Iran, along with representatives from 10 other nations, has been elected to the high-profile women’s rights commission.

Other countries joining Iran for the term beginning in 2011 include, Belgium, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Estonia, Georgia, Jamaica, Liberia, the Netherlands, Spain, Thailand and Zimbabwe.

The United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) is devoted to ensuring the protection of women’s rights by investigating nations that violate women’s rights, monitoring their efforts in improving women’s equality and detailing their shortcomings.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast announced Monday that the country has dropped its bid for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council and has instead turned its sights on a position in the reputable UNCSW.

“Iran has reconsidered its application for candidacy in the Human Rights Council and will instead run for a seat in the influential and legitimate Women’s Right Commission,” Mehmanparast explained.