Although progress towards gender equality has been made, the road ahead remains long, and even longer now, that two years of coronavirus has pushed back progress by 36 years, panelists speaking at Expo 2020 Women’s World Majlis panel on Gender Equality, the Mother of All Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agreed.
“While there is more of a collation nowadays, and we are far from where we used to be, we are still not anywhere near where we need to be. In fact, it would take us 36 years to catch up with the gains we lost in the last two years with Covid-19,” said Sonja Hyland, deputy secretary general global issues, department of foreign affairs, Ireland.
“Girls’ education has been pushed back as has women’s participation in the workforce. We need to work extra hard to be where we need to be in 2030,” she added.
SDG five asserts that women and girls, everywhere, must have equal rights and opportunity, and be able to live free of violence and discrimination. It is seen as integral to the achievement of the 16 other goals towards a sustainable future with Hyland describing it as “catalytic.”
“We cannot meet any of the other goals without it, without gender equality. What is frustrating is that we have to keep repeating this,” said Hyland.
“When people ask why we are focusing on women, I almost think we have to turn the question around to highlight that we are the majority and ask them what they hope to achieve without 50 percent of the population,” she continued.

Multiple organisations have been working tirelessly to realise SDG five, and yet tangible results remain out of reach, said Stella Ronner-Grubacic, European Union ambassador for gender and diversity.
“Gender equality needs to cease being a separate agenda item. We have not achieved gender equality yet and we have come to see that it not something that will change by itself or in a voluntary way,” said Ronner-Grubacic.
“But we have to remember that we are looking to bring about a huge organisational, structural and societal change and as we know, every change meets resistance. This is where we are at this point and what we need to overcome. This is where it becomes difficult ,and this is why I feel we need deliberate instruments,” she continued.

In alignment with Ronner-Grubacic, EpsyCampbell Barr, vice president of Costa Rica, spoke about the need for quotas, even in the private sector, and the role men must play in advancing gender equality.
“Most male leaders see SDG five as a goal for women only, and they focus on the other goals. The new way is to have men work together with women on goal number five because they see it as the way to achieve the global agenda and all the other goals,” said Barr.
“Education through storytelling, schools, the private sector workforce etc. is the only way to combat stereotypes and change minds. We need to have quotas not only in the government, but also in the private sector as we have seen what happens when women are in leadership roles in corporates. It is also important that men talk more about women’s issues because that helps combat stereotypes,” she continued.

“Experiences such as Expo open people’s minds to speak differently about stereotypes and what it means to be a man or a woman in society,” added Barr.
Running from 15-22 January, Expo 2020’s Global Goals Week, in association with the United Nations, serves as a platform for world and thought leaders from around the globe to connect and work towards achieving the Global Goals at a critical time of uncertainty in the midst of the continuing Covid-19 pandemic.
Global Goals Week is the seventh of ten theme weeks under Expo 2020’s Programme for People and Planet, offering an exchange of inspiring new perspectives to address the greatest challenges and opportunities of our time.