While the status of women and girls around the world has been improving, the COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to undo years of advancements made in the fight for gender equity.

It has been 25 years since the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing developed a roadmap to achieve gender equality. After two weeks of political conferences in September 1995, 189 countries developed the Beijing Platform for Action with 12 critical areas to address women’s and girls' rights.

The Platform for Action sought to imagine a world where every woman and girl is treated equally and her rights and protected.

Here are five ways that the world has become a safer and better place for women and girls in the past 25 years.

  1. There are more women in government.
  2. More countries are creating laws to support gender equality.
  3. More girls are in school than ever before.
  4. Giving birth is safer than ever.
  5. There are fewer child brides.

In 2020, there is not a single country that has achieved gender equality. Here are some of the problems that women and girls still face today.

  1. There are still not enough women in leadership positions.
  2. Women are still underpaid and responsible for domestic work.
  3. Gender-based violence is still widespread.
  4. Women are still more likely to be illiterate compared to men.
  5. Women are still most affected by crises.

Read the full article about women and girls by Sophie Partridge-Hicks at Global Citizen.