The world is not on track to achieve gender equality by 2030. Full stop. According to the World Economic Forum, it will take 131 years at our current rate to reach full parity. That may feel like a daunting figure – an end we will not see in our lifetimes – but this should be a cause for further determination, not despair. GlobalWA’s members are doing incredible work to accelerate the pace of change, which can be done.

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, Gender Equality, acts as a keystone for the rest of the SDGs, i.e. it is incredibly complex and intrinsically linked to the success of every other SDG. Without gender equality, we cannot fully eradicate poverty. Without gender equality, we cannot completely achieve food security. Without gender equality, we cannot truly enhance global security. And the list continues. This makes the work of gender equality even more important as we approach 2030, and it means we need to look at all the causes of gender inequality across society. As a result, we see GlobalWA’s partners tackling gender equality from a multitude of angles from data disaggregation to food and financial security to rule of law and advocacy. Each etching away at the problem to create a collective, centrifugal force against gender inequality.

Data Disaggregation

One of the most important building blocks of gender equality is disaggregated data. Gender qualifiers reveal patterns with an outsized effect on women and children that could be missed when looking only at the general population. Better data is essential for creating effective, gender-informed policy, and more effective policy produces better gender results. However, according to APCO (the world’s largest majority woman-owned communications firm), and their partner Data2X, only 13% of UN member states are collecting data for half or more of the SDG gender indicators. They key, they say, is not only collecting the data but financing and publishing it to make it more accessible to wider audiences who can further leverage the data.

Education for All – Men and Women, Boys and Girls

CARE is working to reach 50 million people with greater gender equality by 2030 through a comprehensive Gender Equality Framework. This means not only empowering women, but addressing issues like gender norms, toxic masculinity, homophobia, and transphobia for women and men. This approach is intended to transform societal structures.

Read the full article about gender equality by Cady Susswein at Global Washington.