5 Reasons to Empower Women and Girls
1.
If women participated in the job market the same way as men do, erasing current gaps in labour-force, hours worked and representation within each sector, then US$ 28 trillion could be added to the global GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in the next decade.
2.
When girls are educated and empowered, families are healthier. UNESCO estimates that 2.1 million children under age 5 were saved between 1990 and 2009 because of improvements in the education of women of reproductive age. The author Isabel Allende once said “If a woman is empowered, her children and her family will be better off. If families prosper, the village prospers, and eventually so does the whole country.” Isn’t she right?
3.
Every additional year of education increases a girl's wages by an average of 12%, earnings she invests back into her family, creating a healthy cycle.
4.
A study using data from 219 countries from 1970 to 2009 found that, for every additional year of education women have during the reproductive age, child mortality decreased by 9.5%.
5.
Companies with more women in leadership positions perform better. A study analyzed results from almost 22,000 global, publicly traded companies showed that having at least 30% of women in leadership positions (CEO, COO, CPO, CMO, etc), adds 6% to the net profit margin.
Source: UN Women / Brookings Institution / Peterson Institute for International Economics and EY / UNESCO
PS: In case it’s not clear enough yet, we’ll reinforce the idea featured here. Nobody loses with women’s empowerment and gender equality. Actually, we all win with it. So what are you waiting for? Let’s empower women and girls! If you don’t know how to do it, take a look at our blog 7 Women’s Empowerment Principles. The most important, remember that ending violence against women is the first step to really achieving gender equality.