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The struggle for women’s rights over the past 50 years is a story of progress.
Photo courtesy: istockphoto.com
Women and girls have broken down barriers, dismantled stereotypes and driven progress towards a more just and equal world. Women’s rights were finally recognized as fundamental and universal human rights. Hundreds of millions more girls are in classrooms around the world. And pioneering leaders have broken glass ceilings around the world.
But progress is under threat. And full equality is still light years away.
Antonio Guterres
Billions of women and girls face exclusion, injustice, and discrimination as millennia of male dominance continues to shape society. The prevalence of gender-based violence shames humanity. It is estimated that more than 4 million girls are at risk of female genital mutilation each year. Discrimination against women and girls remains fully legal in many parts of the world. In some areas it makes it difficult for women to own property, and in others it allows men to rape their wives with impunity.
Meanwhile, the global crisis is hitting women and girls hardest. Wherever there is conflict, climate disaster, poverty or hunger, women and girls suffer the most. More women than men suffer from hunger in every region of the world. In both developed and developing countries, the backlash against women’s rights, including sexual and reproductive rights, is stalling and even reversing progress.
New technologies that have the potential to eliminate inequality too often end up making the problem worse. This could be due to unequal access, biased algorithms, or misogynistic violence, from deepfakes to targeted harassment of certain women.
At current speeds, full legal equality for women is about 300 years away. So is the end of child marriage. This rate of change is frankly insulting. Half of humanity cannot wait centuries for their rights. We need equality now. It means accelerating the pace of progress. And it all comes down to political ambition and investment, the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day.
We will increase public funding for programs to end violence against women, ensure decent work, and promote women’s inclusion and leadership in digital technologies, peacebuilding, climate action, and all sectors of the economy. and requires private investment. We must also urgently support women’s rights organizations who are fighting stereotypes, fighting to make women’s and girls’ voices heard, and challenging traditions and cultural norms. Currently, they receive just 0.1% of international development spending. That has to change.
Investing may seem far removed from a woman’s daily life. But giving girls the same opportunities as boys requires investment. Providing digital education and developing skills requires investment. Investment is required to provide child care that allows caregivers, primarily mothers, to take up paid work outside the home. And it takes investment to build inclusive communities and societies that include the full participation of women and girls from all backgrounds.
Prioritizing equality is the right thing to do, but it also makes economic sense. Supporting women’s entry into the formal labor market grows the economy, increases tax revenues and expands opportunities for all.
To secure the investments women and girls need, three things need to happen. The first is to increase the availability of affordable long-term finance for sustainable development and tackle the debt crisis that strangles many developing countries. Otherwise, countries will not have the resources to invest in women and girls. Immediate action is needed to give countries facing intolerable debt repayments some breathing room and to encourage multilateral development banks to tap far more private finance at affordable costs. In the long term, we must reform the international financial system to make it more responsive to the needs of developing countries.
Second, countries must prioritize equality for women and girls. We recognize that equality is not just a matter of rights, but the basis of a peaceful and prosperous society. It means governments proactively tackling discrimination, spending on programs that support women and girls, and ensuring that policies, budgets and investments respond to the needs of women and girls.
Third, we need to increase the number of women in leadership positions. Having women in positions of power helps foster investment in policies and programs that respond to the realities of women and girls. I am particularly proud that since the beginning of my tenure, and for the first time in history, there are equal numbers of women and men in senior management positions across the United Nations system.
Equality is outdated. Ending patriarchy requires money. Now is the time to cough.
The author is Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations.
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