Recommitting to achieving gender equality only became more necessary in 2021 as progress continued to stall in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The global public health crisis has added 36 years to the amount of time it will take to close the gender gap, which means it will now take approximately 13.5 years for women and men to reach parity. Poor economic growth across countries is mostly to blame.

As women and girls continue to carry the weight of unpaid care and domestic work and continue to be passed up for leadership roles, gender inequality persists. Women’s employment rates have plummeted and domestic violence rates and legal discrimination steadily climb in countries from Afghanistan to Nigeria.

But that hasn’t stopped global citizens, activists, and lawmakers from persevering to ensure women and girls’ rights are defended and improved. Governments still banned harmful practices like child marriage, leaders eliminated the discriminatory tampon tax, and women leaders won historic elections.

Here’s a list of 12 celebratory moments for women and girls in 2021 that serve as a reminder to keep up the fight to achieve gender equality worldwide.

  1. The Tokyo Olympics Became the Most Gender Equal Games in History
  2. Two US States Banned Child Marriage 
  3. New Zealand Passed a Bill Guaranteeing Paid Leave for Miscarriages and Stillbirths 
  4. Two Countries Eliminated the Tampon Tax
  5. France’s Universities Started Requiring Free Period Products 
  6. Estonia Elected Its First Woman Prime Minister 
  7. Air India Made History With an All-Woman Pilot Crew Flying Across the World
  8. The Dominican Republic Banned Child Marriage
  9. The German Government Passed a Bill Requiring Companies to Hire More Women on Boards 
  10. Samoa Elected Its First Female Prime Minister 
  11. France Passed a Measure to Offer Free Contraception to Women Under 25  
  12. The World’s Richest Countries Agreed to Send 4 Million Girls to School Within 5 Years

Read the full article about victories for women's rights by Leah Rodriguez at Global Citizen.