Originally published by Ray Chambers on LinkedIn: The Incredible Benefits of True Gender Equality
I have committed the last fifteen years of my life joining forces with leading global health partners to tackle some of the world’s most pressing health issues. Under the United Nations’ previous Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and now under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), there have been many valuable lessons learned on how best to achieve substantive change. One of the most valuable lessons I have learned is that those most vulnerable are often key to achieving transformative progress. Among the most catalytic for driving positive change are women and girls.
According to the World Health Organization, women tend to spend more on the health, education and welfare of the household, and to save more. In sub-Saharan Africa, which bears the highest burden of malaria, we have seen how the leadership of women is key to prevention and treatment interventions. Women, specifically mothers, are often the primary caregivers in their families and communities. They ensure that children sleep under insecticide-treated mosquito nets to prevent infection, and when those do fall ill, ensure that a proper diagnosis and treatment regimen are obtained. The amazing progress made in the fight against malaria, particularly the reduction of malaria deaths in African children by 70%, could not have been possible without the leadership of women and mothers.
Beyond the individual-level, progress in global health is also being driven by women at the leadership level. The work of women leading the world’s development agencies and governments, such as UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed; Oby Ezekwesili, and Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala of Nigeria; Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia; Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka of UN Women; Joy Phumaphi of the African Leader’s Malaria Alliance; and Melinda Gates of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has made all the difference. I would also like to applaud Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, for recognizing the need for increased levels of female representation at the highest levels of global health leadership, and for appointing a majority female leadership team last year.
In conflict resolution and peace building efforts, themes highly correlated with public health outcomes, women are also key to catalyzing change. Women community leaders have been central to mobilizing many of the world’s most successful peace efforts, and evidence indicates that peace settlements with female involvement tend to be more durable than those negotiated solely by men. The 2003 Rwandan Constitution included a quota providing for 30% reserved seats for women in all decision making bodies. In 2008, the 30% quota was met, and women currently hold 56% of the legislative seats. Now, a country previously in crisis is presiding over more peaceful prosperity. Imagine how fundamentally different the world would be if we had more female leaders, from local community leaders to the highest levels of government?