Women’s Rights Issues Pt. 4-Women’s Transformative Leadership

Did You Know?

• Worldwide, less than 21% of national legislators are women

• During peace talks, women make up just 10% of negotiators at the table

• Women represent only 9% of police and 27% of judges worldwide

The fourth pillar of eliminating poverty through women’s rights includes Women’s Transformative Leadership to increase how many women are in decision-making roles. This is a crucial pillar because when women are given the opportunity to be in powerful positions, the world is led to a more equal, peaceful, and prosperous place. However, transformative leadership begins with girls going to school, and too many young girls are deprived of the right to an education. Providing girls access to education can decrease gender-based violence and improve a country’s economy. Supporting women to be leaders is the key to ending poverty, but the reasons women are not given decision-making positions are due to:

• Discrimination and gender inequality

• A broken system that rewards wealth and power

• Deeply rooted social norms, attitudes and behaviours

Featured Project

One of the featured projects Oxfam is working on to address these barriers is Amplify Change through changing attitudes, strengthening policies, and supporting women in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has been destroyed by poverty and violence during the past few decades, and thus it’s essential to amplify women’s voices in peace talks. With this project, Oxfam is advocating for women’s future development by:

• Empowering girls/women to understand and use their legal rights

• Supporting girls/women in Afghanistan to participate more effectively in political decision-making

• Working with community and religious leaders to secure support for women’s rights

Check out more information about Women’s Transformative Leadership and their work on clearing the path to bring more women to leadership positions at https://www.oxfam.ca/what-we-do/issues-we-work-on/womens-transformative-leadership/.

Stay tuned for our next biweekly post on Gender in Emergencies!