The International Association for Community Development welcomes the opportunity that International Women’s Day and the Committee on the Status of Women afford annually for organisations like ours, and groups globally to focus collectively on the empowerment and participation of all women and girls.
Since March 2022, we have been saddened by the number of arenas globally within which women’s rights have been neither acknowledged nor respected and have, in many contexts, been diminished. We are particularly conscious of the differential consequences of wars, famine and the associated impacts that climate injustice and migrations have for women and girls.
This year’s IWD/CSW-67 thematic focus on digital Innovation and technological change for gender equality and empowerment raises particular social and economic challenges globally for women and girls, which must be recognised and acknowledged alongside the potential opportunities that the digital age also offers.
We know that there is a gender digital divide (1) , which limits women and girls in their access to, usage, adoption and ownership of technology, and therefore their opportunities in the digital world. Furthermore, this divide is experienced differentially due to multiple intersecting barriers such as racism, sexual harassment, gender based and cyber violence, lack of autonomous economic independence, social and cultural biases.
We value the opportunities that digital technology and innovation presents for all women and girls and in particular the collective efforts to ensure that existing patterns of gender inequality are not replicated, so that no woman or girl is left behind. We fully support the call for digital inclusion, supporting women and girls, and other marginalised groups to fully engage and benefit from all the digital world has to offer through creative and collective solutions. We also call for renewed efforts to ensure that the digital space is a safe and secure place for all women and girls, free from harassment, violence and oppression.
This International Women’s Day, we want to appreciate and salute the valuable work of women in community development globally, who, through their leadership are supporting, facilitating and advocating for the full empowerment of all women and girls in all their diversity, and in all aspects of life.
As a global organisation, IACD commits to strengthening the digital spaces through which we can organizationally support women involved in community development to connect, network, share best practices and learn from and with each other, in support of our common purpose and values.
IACD calls on its members and all community development practitioners to intensify their support for women’s equality and empowerment and to join with others in pressing for continued action by governments at all levels for the same.
The United Nations Observance of International Women’s Day 2023 will be marked by a high-level event on Wednesday, 8 March 2023, 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. EST.
The event will also spotlight the importance of protecting the rights of women and girls in digital spaces and addressing online and ICT-facilitated gender-based violence. Follow live here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8jP3kEWess&ab_channel=UnitedNations
