On this International Women’s Day, let us collectively stand with women and girls fighting for their rights around the world. It’s a reminder that each of us, individually and collectively must continue standing in solidarity and claiming spaces for our voices to be heard.
France’s recent landmark decision, declaring a woman’s right to abortion as a constitutional right, is paving the way for more Governments to take action, because Governments, policymakers and representatives have that kind of power.
The power to rule and regulate.
The power to establish a system that guarantees women’s rights.
The power to act against the increasing challenges to women’s autonomy and choices globally.
We do hope that France will serve as an example to many other countries and will lead the way to ensure that basic rights are guaranteed or continue to be guaranteed for women. We need governments and public authorities from all countries around the world to take action and to create and implement legal systems that lead to gender equality in their respective countries. And we also need to ensure that the law is fully respected and applied.
But what we maybe need more than anything else, is to remember that we should individually and collectively stand and continue standing every single day with women fighting for their rights around the world. On this day, we must remember that as individuals, each of us has the power, to enforce gender equality and to take decisions or raise their voice, as France did on a governmental level.
As this years’ theme clearly points out, there is a pressing need to invest in women, ending the patriarchy requires indeed money, money to support women’s organizations, to support programs focused on gender equality, to educate, and to invest in every possible way to enable women becoming financially independent.
And although we applaud the efforts to highlight the need for investment in women, we are alarmed by the most recent data published by UN Women and UN DESA which estimate that there is an alarming $360 billion annual deficit spending in gender-equality measures.
However, the responsibility doesn’t solely rest on governments or supranational organisms. As individuals, each of us has the power to enforce gender equality and invest our effort to uphold women’s rights. We must challenge biases and work towards dismantling harmful gender norms that perpetuate inequality. Additionally, prioritizing the economic empowerment of women is crucial, including advocating for equal pay and increasing their representation in leadership roles.
As we reflect on the progress women have made and the challenges they still face, let’s draw inspiration from those who paved the way for us. Let’s heed the lessons of resilience and determination instilled in us by our predecessors, whether it be through family upbringing or societal influences. Together, let’s continue pushing towards a more equitable and prosperous future for all.
While more women in leadership positions in the public and the private sector will ensure that female voices are better and more often heard and will shape a more gender equal world, more women who are given the tools and means to become financially independent should also continue to be a central focus worldwide.
On this International Women’s Day, we reaffirm our commitment to standing with women and girls, today and every day, and pose a crucial question to our community:
What are you willing to do to contribute to achieving a more equal world and reduce the gender gap?
Personal message from the Chief Academic Officer (CAO) & Director of the Doctoral School, Dr. Dominique Bourqui, about women in Business:
“While more women in leadership positions in the public and the private sector will ensure that female voices are better and more often heard and listened to and will thus contribute to shaping a more gender equal world. More women who are given at a global level the tools and means to become financially independent has to become a central focus point to support a bottom-up transformation of societies towards a more gender equal world worldwide.
As a woman entrepreneur, from a privileged social and economic background in a privileged country and as an educator, this year’s theme particularly speaks to me”.
Dr. Dominique Bourqui
Chief Academic Officer & Director of the Doctoral School
Through education, we can support women all over the world in developing their own financial independence. At BSL and on a personal level, I try to support as many initiatives as possible that will contribute to empowering women to become financially independent through the development of their entrepreneurial activities. To find more about BSL’s impact on this: https://www.bsl-lausanne.ch/impact/
Reference: https://www.un.org/en/observances/womens-day
