President Michael D Higgins and his wife, Sabina, marked International Women's Day with a reception for over 100 Irish sportswomen at Áras an Uachtaráin.
The President said women athletes still struggle to gain the same levels of recognition as men.
He said: "The world of sport is still considered, by many, including sections of the media, to be chiefly the domain of men; a world in which women's sport is regarded as playing a secondary role, their achievements being lauded momentarily but often failing to sustain long term public interest or receive the appropriate support."
Tánaiste Joan Burton marked the day by reaffirming her commitment to tackling gender-based violence against women.
She said: "As Cosc, the National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence, point out, an estimated 13 million women in the EU experience physical violence over any 12-month period.
"This is a huge problem for women in Ireland and across the world and as Tánaiste and Labour Party leader tackling and eradicating this appalling abuse remains one of my highest priorities," she said.
Ms Burton also highlighted the Government's track-record on narrowing the gender pay gap.
Events were held around the world to honour and celebrate the achievements of women.
Women in Hong Kong and Bangladesh marked the day with rallies against violence, discrimination and for the protection of their rights.
In Hong Kong, dozens of migrant domestic workers gathered outside government headquarters to demand better rights.
The plight of domestic workers has been brought into sharp focus in recent months following the case of an Indonesian maid who was abused by her employer.
Erwiana Sulistyaningsih and other maids were punched and beaten with mops.
The case has sparked calls for Hong Kong to revise its policies on migrant workers, with those at the rally saying the type of abuse Ms Sulistyaningsih experienced is a consequence of deeper systemic problems.
In Pictures: International Women's Day
Hong Kong has about 330,000 foreign domestic helpers, most of them from the Philippines and Indonesia and nearly all women, who can earn more in Hong Kong to send back to their families than they can at home.
They earn a small fraction of the minimum wage and are forced to live with their employers, often in tiny apartments.
Human rights groups say they often suffer physical and emotional abuse, including sexual assault.
In Bangladesh several women's groups including the ministry of women's and children's affairs held events in the capital, Dhaka, to mark the day.
Top of their list of concerns were violence against women, equal pay for equal work, job security, social security and political and democratic rights.
