4 Billion Solutions for a More Sustainable and Peaceful World

If we want more social inclusion, equality, equity, protection, security, stability, cohesion and justice, we need to invest in and leverage the suppressed potential and oppressed intrinsic self-empowerment of women.

I know this is a typical statement made by someone responsible for Gender and Social Equity in an organization. But I have also made statements including: (i.) without men, we cannot achieve gender equality; (ii.) men should also be trained in inclusive leadership; (iii.) not all women are gender sensitive; (iv.) women can self-sabotage; and (v.) some men are disadvantaged more than some women. 

I am not pro-poor, pro-disadvantaged, pro-women, or pro nor against men. That would be too simple. I am pro equality, self-determination, self-empowerment, self-advocacy, rights, dignity and mutual respect and responsibility. Over the past few years, I have become convinced that we need to shift from talking about alleviating poverty to talking about and addressing inequality. We also need to stop labelling people or groups as disadvantaged or poor and instead acknowledge that they are discriminated, underserved, marginalized and at risk. 

The problem is not with these people or groups. The problem is the systems and societies that fail them, discriminate against them, underserve them, abuse them and isolate them. Unfortunately for them, but also for all of us, most of these people are women. Why is this unfortunate for us? Read on.

Recognizing women as part of the solution

We need to stop talking about women as part of a problem. We should instead talk about women, and talk with women and men, about being part of the solutions we all need—now more than ever.

Did you know that women account for 70% of the global health and social care workforce? It is estimated that women provide essential health services for around 5 billion people worldwide. The financial value of women’s input into health systems is estimated to be over $3 trillion annually. At the same time, the very same women who dedicate their personal and professional lives to taking care of all of us—in our homes, schools, clinics, hospitals and on the frontlines of conflicts and wars—are subjected to and affected disproportionately by mental, physical and sexual health issues and violence. This is due to many factors, including the tendency to compromise their own wellbeing for others, a lack of specific and specialized medical research and health care by and for women, and generally poorer access to services (including protection from abuse and violence, which increase during a crisis).

Did you know that women own less than 10% of the global land supply? Consequently, their potential for acquiring, using, investing in and producing key resources is low. This also has a direct impact on combatting food, income, social insecurity and climate resilience. Sixty percent of undernourished people in the world are women (girls); however, if women in the agriculture sector were more valued and resourced, productivity could increase by 30%, domestic agriculture output would increase by 4%, and 100 million fewer people would go hungry. Land ownership ultimately influences decisions over the management and distribution of income from existing or potential resources, and the adoption of more sustainable and climate-smart practices and technologies. In the latter case, studies show that women tend to more readily make more sustainable choices.

Did you know that over 170 armed conflicts were recorded in 2023? At the same time, women’s representation in decision making and peace negotiations remains persistently lower than 25%—if they are present at all. However, studies by UN Women and others show that policies shaped by women tend to be more socially inclusive, resources are better governed, and peace agreements with women’s participation have higher rates of implementation and last longer by 30% or more.

Did you know that economic inequality is closely linked to political inequalities, reinforcing division in society? Extensive evidence shows that women’s participation in decision making leads to more equitable policies and outcomes. Yet it cannot be a coincidence that while inequality persists, so does the largest gender gap, which is at 70% in women’s political empowerment and leadership, be it in the public, political or business spheres. 

Did you know that women's unemployment rates run from 50 to 100% greater than for men, and 65 to 90% of part-time workers are women? This is compounded by persistent pay gaps, resulting in global GDP losses of approximately $160 trillion. Add to that at least 3.7% of GDP losses due to gender-based violence, and we cannot deny that gender bias, gender gaps and violence equate to losses that no government or society can afford. And these losses can be more, depending on the country, especially where fragility is more prevalent. At the same time, when shocks, crisis or disaster strike, women are often the first to spend their income or lose their income to take care of their family and community. Meanwhile, in these circumstances gender-based violence increases, sometimes by 50% or more. Unpaid care work also contributes 9% or more to GDP gains, according to APEC, and companies with more gender inclusion and diversity in their leadership report better decision making by as much as 87%, increased productivity and profitability by as much as 63%, and improved climate performance by these companies.

And the list goes on.

The contradicting cycles of cause, effect and sabotaged opportunities not only for women but for all of us are quite evident. These are compounded when we add a lack of education, ethnicity, religion, minority, disability, gender identity and/or sexual orientation, language, civil and social status, mobility, displacement and more—all of which can be amplified by gender bias, cultural norms, social rules, and discriminatory policies and practices.

And if that was not enough, let’s turn our attention to why we need gender parity now. The world we live and work in is more fragile than ever socially, economically, environmentally and politically. Inequality, insecurity and instability are raging in and between countries, regions and continents.

According to the 2024 Fragile States Index, 100+ countries out of 179 are ranked fragile (warning) to most fragile (alert), when considering cohesion, economic, political, social and other external factors. This fragility only exacerbates violence against women and the suppression of women’s potential and intrinsic self-empowerment—not only to mitigate conflict, but to also contribute to more equality, equity, cohesion, security, justice and sustainability for all.

What we can do more of and do better

Studies and experience provide clear pathways to explore, adapt, innovate, scale and advocate for the following programs, policies and interventions.

Women and girls’ health and well-being

Poor health, whether it’s mental, physical, reproductive and/or sexual, costs women, their families, their communities and ultimately society a lot in time, money and missed opportunities.  Health outcomes can be improved by:

• Ensuring inclusive access to and informed use of clean water, sanitation, hygiene and health services—all of which are essential and a fundamental right.
• Addressing gender-based violence in all its forms, on and offline, whether through mainstreaming mitigation in projects across different sectors or focusing specific projects on it. Gender-based violence against men and boys should also be considered in increasingly fragile and conflict contexts, since trauma and violence begets more of the same if ignored, and this can compound violence against women.
• Value and address unpaid care work with women, their family and their community so that women have a real choice in how to spend their time in and outside of the home.

Women’s access to services and resources for food and livelihood security

When considering women’s traditional role and expected responsibility to ensure their family and community’s health, care, food and nutrition, it is essential that women can access the services and resources they require to do so as efficiently, effectively and safely possible. This includes:

• Land and agriculture asset security: Ensure that where laws allow women to own land, such laws are leveraged and implemented in projects, including home ownership and/or inheritance rights. Where laws do not enable this, advocate for it and integrate local alternatives in the interim.  Ensure women can access agriculture extension services and market information and can self-organize for agency and purchasing power.
• Economic empowerment: Women's economic empowerment, including responsible and informed financial literacy and inclusion, are a powerful driver of local development. When women have equal access to education, employment and financial resources and services, including digital, they help themselves, their families and their communities step out of survival mode and step up and into economic productivity and livelihood security.  
• Environmental sustainability: Women play a crucial role in environmental management and the conservation of water, land and forest resources. We should recognize and leverage their indigenous knowledge. Advocating for and promoting women’s safe and meaningful representation in decision-making processes related to natural resources will lead to more sustainable practices and less natural resource-related conflicts.  
• Crisis risk and social protection: Knowing that women are heavily relied on and, at the same time, are most at risk during a crisis, integrate contingency plans into all projects that are women-centered and community led.

Women’s public and political participation

Representation is key for more inclusive and sustainable decision making, policies, budgets and strategies, whether at the local or highest national level, in social, economic, environmental, political and/or business spheres. Ways to increase representation include:

• Support women across the 5 Cs: Confidence, culture, care, capital and constituency.
• Stop homogenizing women. Women may share many similar practical and strategic needs, but the differences between women’s needs must be valued and considered to ensure we do not create imbalances in power. Rather, we should reinforce their solidarity so that together women have more cohesion and agency to influence changes for themselves and others. This was optimally exemplified in Bangladesh, where a Helvetas-implemented project working with over 9,000 women in local governance brought together the women who call themselves Aparajitas (Undefeated), coining the slogan: Together we stand, divided we fall.
• Strengthen women’s leadership, public relations (including mass and social/digital media), public speaking, negotiation and mediation skills.
• Promote inclusive leadership among men and women.
• Promote exchange between generations and genders.
• Ensure women’s meaningful representation in consultations, committees, forums, special events, round tables, elections and the media.
• Promote and support good governance, including gender-responsive budgeting, participatory public reviews and audits (of both the project and public finances).
• Network women and connect networks of women’s groups and associations across sectors (from community-based and producer groups to business, legal, consumers, teachers, women mayors’ associations, etc.)

Social justice

Where inequality and breaches of rights are common, conflict, violence and displacement are often part of the cause and/or effect. To both mitigate and hold to account breaches, the promotion of women’s, indigenous, migrant, refugee, disability and minority rights and access to justice is key. This includes:

• Raising awareness among duty bearers and rights holders of their fundamental rights and obligations, and the means of exercising these.
• Promoting civic engagement in schools, communities and societies.
• Promoting gender and social equality and equity in schools and community decision making.
• Linking women and women’s groups, youth and socially focused civil society organizations with legal advice and legal aid services.
• Cooperating with others or investing in projects focusing on access to justice.
• Contributing to and supporting others to participate in international or national gender and social policy and strategy processes, including Universal Periodic Reviews, the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, and Women Peace & Security monitoring and reporting.

Solutions are plentiful and in plain sight

While fragility and inequality are more prevalent than ever, opportunities and solutions remain in plain sight—all 4 billion of them.  By addressing gender disparities and investing in women, we can realistically aim for more just, equitable and sustainable societies, economies, policies and environments. It is time to fully recognize and harness the suppressed and oppressed potential of women for a better future, for all of us.