In 2020, the international community’s plan was to embark on its decade of action for the Sustainable Development Goals, honour major declarations such as Beijing and determine how to accelerate sustainable solutions to the world’s biggest challenges including gender related goals. But things did not go as planned. Instead, today’s world is facing a “global crisis unlike any other in the 75 year history the United Nations.” While consensus differs among States as they make fragmented attempts to deal with this challenge, the COVID 19 pandemic continues to exacerbate existing gender inequalities.
The world is home to more than 1.1 billion girls under the age of 18 who are poised to become the largest generation of female leaders, entrepreneurs and change-makers the world has ever seen. Yet, discrimination, harmful gender norms and practices, existing laws, insecurity and poverty still support child marriage thereby enabling girls to continue to be married off in both times of stability and crisis because they are still viewed as being less valuable than boys.
As the COVID-19 pandemic surges through our countries, our communities, and our lives, Barbara Rochman, and Wanda Price share their thoughts with us, and we are reminded that for today we stand together, yet apart, and face a 'new normal'.
