International Women's Day backgrounder
On March 8th, people around the world will honour International Women’s Day and recognize the struggles and achievements of women.
CUSO-VSO will join in the tribute and take the opportunity to raise awareness across North America of women and development issues. These are usually one and the same, because the face of poverty in the developing world is most often a female one.
Women comprise more than half the world's population, yet, despite momentous strides towards empowerment, it is still an unequal world. “The doors to economic opportunity [for women] are barely ajar," notes the UNDP, the United Nation’s Development Program.
Women bear the brunt of poverty’s burden, especially in rural areas, where women's access to health, education and economic necessities such as capital, technology and land is severely limited. As a result, women account for a vast percentage of the world’s absolute poor. In rural areas alone, more than 550 million women (over 50 per cent of the world's rural population) live below the poverty line.
The Development Challenge
So important is gender in terms of development that two of the eight Millennium Development Goals are focused on women – goal three (promote gender equality and empower women) and goal five (reduce by three-quarters the maternal mortality rate). And since women are crucial for agriculture, gender must be a central to both the environment and food security.
The recent global economic crisis has also affected women. In many parts of Africa, for example, the downturn has dramatically reduced the average woman’s already meager income as well as the budget she manages on behalf of her household.
CUSO-VSO believes that you cannot tackle poverty without putting women at the centre of development strategies. Development is about changing the world – but changing the world requires understanding it, and "the world" is a different place for women and girls than it is for men and boys.
Men and women typically do not have the same access to opportunities, resources and influence. Therefore, poverty alleviation for women means not just an increase in their income, but an increase in opportunities, including their access to productive resources, such as land, capital and technology skills, training and participation in decision-making.
Women are Key to Effective Development
Fortunately the face of possibility and potential is also a female one. If we can engage the energies and abilities of all people, including poor women, lasting progress can be made. We know that women tend to suffer higher levels of poverty in many parts of the world. But we also know that when women have a voice, when they are involved in the economic decisions of their families and communities, different priorities are set. For example, children’s education and health become a focus.
And when children are healthy, when children – especially girls – have school doors opened to them, the creativity, energy and economic potential of the entire population is added to the development equation. Help the women, and you help the child. Help the child, and you create better futures for all.
CUSO-VSO, as part of the VSO International Federation, sends volunteers to work in many areas that impact women. And our volunteers are contributing to a world of solutions for women living with poverty. CUSO-VSO volunteers work on programs that empower girls and women and raise awareness amongst boys and men about gender issues, particularly in areas including health and education.
