Strong Women – Strong Economies

In 1995, the Beijing Platform for Action resulted in a visionary and groundbreaking agenda on how to remove systemic barriers that hold women back from equal participation across all areas of life. Twenty-five years later, however, no country is even close to delivering on the commitments made and the COVID-19 pandemic is threatening to halt or reverse decades of collective effort with its disproportionate impact on women. Without the equal participation of women in politics, business and society it will be impossible to achieve the SDGs by 2030. Thus, elevating the global public discourse around gender equality remains ever so important.

The Generation Equality Forum, a global civil society event, is using this notable anniversary as an opportunity to mobilize for equality and provoke transformative change around the globe. Advancing women’s economic equality and rights is one of the Forum’s core topics that we aim to further explore in a series of discussions next year.

At our launch event this November, we discussed with four outstanding women from Germany and Africa the unparalleled opportunities that the empowerment and strengthening of women as entrepreneurs and business leaders entail. Where do we stand today in our strive for gender equality in Europe and Africa? What challenges lie still ahead of us to ensure equal participation of women in the economy across the world – specifically considering the long-term effects of the pandemic – and how should we respond to them? How can business women from Europe and Africa cooperate closer and how can we support each other best?

Short biographies of our speakers can be downloaded here.