Women’s
rights are human rights. But in these troubled times, as our world becomes more
unpredictable and chaotic, the rights of women and girls are being reduced,
restricted and reversed.
Empowering
women and girls is the only way to protect their rights and make sure they can
realize their full potential.
Historic
imbalances in power relations between men and women, exacerbated by growing
inequalities within and between societies and countries, are leading to greater
discrimination against women and girls. Around the world, tradition, cultural
values and religion are being misused to curtail women’s rights, to entrench
sexism and defend misogynistic practices.
Women’s
legal rights, which have never been equal to men’s on any continent, are being
eroded further. Women’s rights over their own bodies are questioned and
undermined. Women are routinely targeted
for intimidation and harassment in cyberspace and in real life. In the worst
cases, extremists and terrorists build their ideologies around the subjugation
of women and girls and single them out for sexual and gender-based violence,
forced marriage and virtual enslavement.
Despite
some improvements, leadership positions across the board are still held by men,
and the economic gender gap is widening, thanks to outdated attitudes and
entrenched male chauvinism. We must change this, by empowering women at all
levels, enabling their voices to be heard and giving them control over their
own lives and over the future of our world.
Denying
the rights of women and girls is not only wrong in itself; it has a serious
social and economic impact that holds us all back. Gender equality has a
transformative effect that is essential to fully functioning communities,
societies and economies.
Women’s
access to education and health services has benefits for their families and
communities that extend to future generations. An extra year in school can add
up to 25 per cent to a girl’s future income.
When
women participate fully in the labour force, it creates opportunities and
generates growth. Closing the gender gap in employment could add $12 trillion
to global GDP by 2025. Increasing the proportion of women in public
institutions makes them more representative, increases innovation, improves
decision-making and benefits whole societies.
Gender
equality is central to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the global
plan agreed by leaders of all countries to meet the challenges we face.
Sustainable Development Goal 5 calls specifically for gender equality and the
empowerment of all women and girls, and this is central to the achievement of
all the 17 SDGs.
I
am committed to increasing women’s participation in our peace and security
work. Women negotiators increase the chances of sustainable peace, and women
peacekeepers decrease the chances of sexual exploitation and abuse.
Within
the UN, I am establishing a clear road map with benchmarks to achieve gender
parity across the system, so that our Organization truly represents the people
we serve. Previous targets have not been
met. Now we must move from ambition to action.
On
International Women’s Day, let us all pledge to do everything we can to
overcome entrenched prejudice, support engagement and activism, and promote
gender equality and women’s empowerment.
