Kigali, Rwanda — As the saying goes, all good things come to an end. But the end of Women Deliver 2023 is not a time for sadness, but celebration.
We were filled with empowerment, inspiration, and hope as we came together to discuss the most pressing issues facing girls and women around the world. We heard from some of the most amazing leaders and change-makers, who shared their stories and insights on how we can make progress on gender equality. We learned about the latest innovations and best practices, and we came away with a renewed sense of urgency to take action.
The conference brought together more than 6,300 people from around the world to share ideas, build partnerships, and take action on a range of critical issues, including maternal health, sexual and reproductive rights, gender-based violence, economic empowerment, and leadership opportunities for women.
Dr. Maliha Khan, President and CEO of Women Deliver said that "When women and girls are supported with funding and the right resources, they have the potential to challenge harmful norms, push for institutional and legislative reforms, and transform their communities."
"Over the last five days, we have had a meaningful discourse on what we need to do for women and girls globally. We must now act to secure their bodily autonomy and sexual and reproductive health and rights," she added. "WD2023 has reminded us not only of the barriers but also the achievements that have been made. I hope everyone walks away from the conference carrying this sense of achievement and hope based on the commitments that have been made."
The Women Deliver 2023 conference resulted in key outcomes and commitments, including:
- A new funding facility with Open Society Foundations to counter the anti-rights movement and provide financial investment into the most neglected sexual health and reproductive areas.
- A campaign launched by over 40 organizations to close the gender nutrition gap, alongside a co-created Action Agenda that calls for transformative actions from governments to improve women's and girls' nutrition.
- The RESPECT Women website, an online platform that aims to drive concrete actions to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls, launched by The World Health Organization (WHO), together with UN Women, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the United Nations Development Programme.
- The Kigali Call to Action: United for Women and Girls' Bodily Autonomy announced by the UNFPA to accelerate investments and actions, with women-led organizations and the feminist movement at the center.
- A new Women Deliver Emerging Leaders Program that will put more trust-based funding into the hands of young people and ensure that they have the knowledge, resources, supportive ecosystem, and leadership opportunities to achieve their gender equality and sexual health, and reproductive advocacy goals.
In closing, Dr. Khan emphasized: "There is still so much work to do, there are so many issues to address, and there are so many barriers still in the way of women and girls achieving their full potential. The only way to achieve our objectives is through collective efforts. We hope that Women Deliver has planted the seed to strengthen our solidarity and unity now, and long into the future."
The theme of the conference was "Spaces, Solidarity, and Solutions," and it focused on the need to create safe and inclusive spaces for women to thrive. The conference also highlighted the importance of solidarity among women and girls, and it provided a platform for them to share their stories and experiences.
allAfrica's Melody Chironda had the opportunity to interview Samson Tesfaye, the co-Head of Women Deliver 2023.
As a highly experienced and committed advocate for gender equality, Tesfaye shared his insights on how they organized and achieved success with the event. Tesfaye described the overall outcome of the conference, saying that it was a hard two years of work, but it was "worth it". He says he was emotional to see his vision come to life and to see people from all over the world enjoying the conference.
"I think one of our key successes was bringing in over 6,000 delegates from 170 countries. Seeing all the sessions happening simultaneously and hearing the positive feedback from our delegates made us very happy. We believe that the happiness of our delegates is a measure of our success."
Tesfaye added that they received some great feedback, but also some areas where we can improve.
"We take this feedback very seriously because we want everyone to have the best possible experience at our conferences. For example, some people said that the diversity of conversations was difficult to keep up with and that some sessions were too early in the morning. We're taking this feedback into account and will make changes to improve the conference in the future," he said. "We also received positive feedback about our accessibility efforts. We have worked hard to make our conferences accessible to everyone, and we've received very positive feedback from participants about how we've integrated the needs of all attendees. This includes things like providing signs in multiple languages, choosing accessible venues, and waiving registration fees for attendees who need companions."
"We're committed to continuing to make our conferences inclusive and accessible to all, and we're happy to share our experiences with other organizations. We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to participate in conferences and learn from each other, regardless of their abilities," he added.
He also talked about some challenges they faced.
"Yes, there are challenges in any conference, especially one of this magnitude. However, the challenges we faced were solvable. For example, someone might not have the right type of identity document (ID) or a procession might be delayed. These are logistical problems, but they were not major issues. We made sure to inform delegates of any problems and to work to resolve them."
Highlights
"For me, the standout moments of the conference were the social media promotion and the diverse speakers," he said. "The evening sessions with former heads of state were a highlight, especially for young women. It was inspiring to see these women who we have seen on TV sharing their experiences. We always try to have youth represented in our panels because 70% of the African continent's population is under the age of 30. We need to hear from the youth, or we are losing the majority of our population."
Tesfaye also explained why the conference is held every three years. He says that it takes more than two years to prepare for the conference and that Women Deliver is a small NGO that doesn't have the capacity to do it every year. He also says that it's good to have something to look forward to and that people are more likely to attend a conference if it's only held every three years. He explains that Women Deliver puts out a request for proposals from countries that want to host the conference. The proposals are assessed based on the country's infrastructure, its commitment to gender equality, and its visa policies. Rwanda was chosen to host the 2023 conference because it has a strong infrastructure, a commitment to gender equality, and a visa policy that makes it easy for delegates to attend.
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Tesfaye says that there have been no problems with visas for delegates attending the 2023 conference. "This is a major accomplishment, as it makes it easier for people from all over the world to attend the conference," he said.
Looking ahead, Tesfaye says that Women Deliver has been doing these conferences since 2007, and they want to continue to do them every three years. They want to learn from this conference and improve it, as well as share their experiences with other organizations. They will submit a final report of the conference to all stakeholders, and they will also engage with the media and other stakeholders to get feedback. They will also have a conference survey after the event to get feedback from delegates. This feedback will help them shape what they can improve for future conferences.
Tesfaye shared the experience of organizing the conference. "For me, yes it was a success," he said.
He said that it is a tough job, but also satisfying. The key is having the right team and the right mindset. When everyone understands the goal and is focused on achieving it, the conference can be a success.
Tesfaye said that he had a fantastic team to work with and that the Women Deliver team is resilient. They were able to make the conference happen, even though they are a small team.
