Kigali, Rwanda — "Gender equality is under attack. But we cannot give up. We must unite and work together to push back against these headwinds."
Dr. Maliha Khan, President and CEO of Women Deliver, made the remarks at an opening press briefing on the importance of free and open democracies globally to achieving gender equality. Khan added that "gender equality cannot be achieved without free and open spaces. Spaces that are accessible, inviting, and inclusive. They are spaces where everyone, regardless of their identity, can feel safe and respected. The Women Deliver conference is one of those spaces."
Kigali is hosting the first-ever Women Deliver conference held in Africa. In a powerful show of solidarity, at least 6,300 women and men from diverse backgrounds and fields of expertise have flocked to Rwanda to fight for gender equality.
"I hope that this is something that will truly take forward gender equality in a quantum leap way," added Khan.
However, free and open spaces are not just limited to conferences.
Khan added that "other spaces that also have to be free, accessible, open and inclusive, are those spaces that we live in the context that girls and women live in and continue to try to achieve what they're trying to achieve in their lives. And those spaces are often controlled by, obviously, their families, their communities, but also by the national governments, and the policies that exist for them."
"So it's really important that if we want to achieve gender equality, these spaces remain open, they remain democratic," she said.
Khan also went on to say Women Deliver has women in the title but "we define a woman as anyone who identifies as a woman, has been identified by others as a girl or woman, or has had at some point in their lives the lived reality of what it means to be a girl or woman." "And to us, that is who we are including in our spaces," said Khan.
"In recent years, there has been a global trend of closing democratic spaces. This is a threat to gender equality, as it restricts women's ability to participate in public life. We must be strategic in our response to these forces, and continue to fight for free and open spaces so that everyone can have the opportunity to thrive," she added.
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Women Deliver Board chair and former Deputy President of South Africa added that democracy is a government by and for the people. "And by people, we mean men, women, and all other gender non-conforming people. So if we were to talk about democracy, all of these people have to be included, especially when it comes to decisions that affect their lives. Only in open democracies do women have a chance to have their rights addressed properly," she added.
The gathering comes at a critical time for gender equality.
Mlambo-Ngcuka said that we are in a sad situation where it could take us a century to reach gender equality. She explained that this is because the majority of countries in the world are not open democracies. In 2019, at a Women Deliver conference, there was a sense that progress was being made, albeit slowly. However, that path has now been cut off, and we are struggling to see our way forward.
She called for action on women's rights in the wake of the recent global summit on women's rights. She warned that the lack of proper democracies is a major problem for women's rights and that more progress needs to be made in areas such as access to healthcare, education, and economic opportunities. "We need to make sure that access to healthcare is not a privilege," Mlambo-Ngcuka said. "We need to make sure that access to education, which we are celebrating the fact that we have gone very far, as far as access to education is concerned. But nevertheless, nothing is taken for granted, we have to continue to protect it."
Mlambo-Ngcuka also called for the international community to work together to address the climate crisis, which she believes disproportionately affects women. "We feel that even the most skeptical person today, there is so much evidence to show that the whole world is in a crisis, but also that women are even hit harder than anyone else," she said. She also spoke about the importance of addressing intersecting issues, such as LGBTQ+ rights, affirmative action, and racism. She said that these issues are all major concerns for the Women Deliver agenda and that she hopes the international community will work with her to address them.
"When we hear that countries are democracies, but they're losing rights as far as LGBTQ+ is concerned when a country calls itself a democracy that takes away affirmative action when you hear that the country is a democracy, but is racist," she said.
Mlambo-Ngcuka also compared gender-based violence to a pandemic, saying that it is a serious problem that needs to be addressed with the same urgency as other pandemics. She called on governments and societies to raise awareness of this issue and to take action to end it.
Gender inequality is a problem that affects everyone, regardless of gender, race, age, sexuality, or background. It can have a negative impact on our lives in many ways, including our access to education, healthcare, and employment opportunities.
Helen Clark, Women Deliver Board member and former Prime Minister of New Zealand, also spoke at the press conference. She highlighted the systemic crises that have made it tougher for women, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and conflict. She also spoke about the rollback of women's rights, which is being driven by populists in both democracies and autocracies. Clark stressed the importance of getting women's voices heard in the fight for women's rights. She called for solidarity among women's movements, and for young people to join the fight. She also said that the fight for women's rights is also a fight for the integrity of democracies and their institutions.
The United Nations believes that gender equality is not only a basic human right, but also a key foundation for a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable world. Achieving equal rights, responsibilities, and opportunities for all people is a complex issue with no easy solutions, but it is a goal that the world should strive for.
Women and men still face a significant gap in access to opportunities and decision-making power. Globally, women have fewer opportunities for economic participation, less access to education, and greater health and safety risks. They also have less political representation. According to the World Bank, women still have only three-quarters of the legal rights afforded to men. This means that nearly 2.4 billion women of working age are not afforded equal economic opportunity.
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The situation has become even more dire due to the social and economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the UN.
Progress on gender equality has stalled in many areas, including unpaid care work, sexual and reproductive health, and gender-responsive budgeting. Women's health services, which were already underfunded, have experienced significant disruptions. The problem of violence against women continues to persist.
The world is not making enough progress toward gender equality, and we are at risk of not achieving it by 2030. It is important that we make sure that no one is left behind in the fight for gender equality.
Mary Robinson, Chair of The Elders and former President of Ireland spoke about the importance of protecting and building civic spaces for women and girls. She said that these spaces are essential for women to thrive and that they are under threat from polarization, gender policy backsliding, and shrinking civic space. She called on activists around the world to fight back against these threats and to uphold spaces where all voices can be heard. She also said that feminism is not about hashtags or cliches, but about listening to criticism and taking action to remedy problems. She concluded by encouraging women and girls to take leadership in protecting and extending open spaces for gender equality.
