By Anastasia Moloney

Cities must move to the front line of efforts to fight gender inequality that has grown worse in the coronavirus pandemic, said six mayors from three continents on Monday as they joined forces in a new network to advance women's rights.

Around the world, women's jobs, unpaid labor, health, and safety have been upended by the impacts of COVID-19 and need critical attention, said the organizers of City Hub and Network for Gender Equity (CHANGE).

The network aims to promote and share among city mayors around the world innovative projects focused on combating gender inequality.

"Local governments can and should lead," said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, the network's first chair, who joined the mayors of Barcelona, Freetown, Mexico City, London, and Tokyo in an online webinar with the media.

Data from the World Economic Forum shows that at the current pace, the gender pay gap will not close for 257 years, he said.

"We must act with urgency," Garcetti said. "We can't allow this pandemic to set us back further."

In Los Angeles, every city department must have a gender action plan and measure and show progress on tackling gender inequality, such as appointing women to boards and top positions, closing the gender pay gap, and ensuring more girls use public spaces like sports fields, Garcetti said.

Ada Colau, the first female mayor of Barcelona who called her administration a "feminist government," singled out unpaid care work of children and aging relatives.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who called himself as a "proud feminist," said a report found in England, mothers were 47% more likely than fathers to have lost or left their jobs in the pandemic.

With women accounting for 8 out of 10 people in low-paid jobs, London's city government has invested 3 million pounds to "re-skill" and "up-skill" women for better-paying jobs, he said.

Read the full article about mayors tackling gender inequality by Anastasia Moloney at Global Citizen.