How and Why We Should Empower Women Worldwide

In the twenty-first century, the disparity between men and women has become more and more apparent. Particularly now, amid a global pandemic and economic uncertainty, supporting young women is crucial if we want to experience a brighter future.

Gender disparities around the world encompass the greater issue of human rights. UNESCO reports that between 1990 and 2009, over two million children under the age of five were “saved … because of improvements in girls’ education.” Simply enabling girls to receive an education can mean a world of difference for families. Studies by the Brookings Institution additionally determined that each additional year of schooling “increases a girls’ wages by an average of 12 percent,” and that “increasing the number of women completing secondary education by just 1 percent could increase a country’s economic growth by 0.3 percent.”

Around the world, girls and women still fight for all sorts of rights — the right to drive, the right to choose a husband and request a divorce, and the right to learn are among the most common. Global charities have implemented initiatives to ensure that women from different countries can live safe, fulfilled lives. Those initiatives have provided education, healthcare, and emotional support for women in developing countries or struggling with poverty.

It’s not just young girls who need empowering, though. Adult women hoping to start businesses and develop themselves professionally need support, too. Organizations such as the Women’s Global Empowerment Fund provide loans and training for female entrepreneurs in all different countries. These organizations do more than help start a business; they strive to improve lives through literacy, health programs, leadership development, and sustainable income creation.

How can the average person help? The easiest way to make a difference is by donating money, books, or other resources that a woman in need could use. But don’t let your patronage stop there — spread awareness for women’s plights and charitable initiatives. Get the message out there that women need our help!

Empowering one woman is what it takes to empower the world. Global efforts towards economic prosperity, freedom from discrimination, and increased literacy rates require us to help some of the most marginalized groups out there.

Women deserve more than food, water, and shelter — they deserve power, liberty, choice, and knowledge. They deserve as much success as they can get!

This article was originally published to AdefunkeSharonKasali.org.