International Women’s Day: Progress on gender equality is under threat – let’s protect it

For generations, the world has moved - often unevenly - towards greater gender equality. More girls are in school. Fewer women are dying in childbirth. Women are leading nations, shaping climate responses, and negotiating peace. None of this progress has been inevitable. Every advance has faced resistance, and history shows that it is political will, leadership, and investment that determine whether progress is sustained or reversed.

The Protect Progress coalition is a group of more than 20 organisations including CARE International UK, Save The Children, Plan International, ActionAid and MSI Reproductive Choices. Last week, the coalition held a reception in Westminster to mark International Women's Day, bringing together global women's rights leaders, community-based organisations, parliamentarians, influencers, international and domestic NGOs working collectively to celebrate progress and galvanise action to protect these hard-won gains. We heard directly from women leaders from Bangladesh, Malawi and Palestine about progress on women's rights globally, and how they're leading the way in the resistance against the rollback of these.

The evening was hosted by Waad al-Kateab, an award winning Syrian filmmaker, journalist and activist. She kicked off the event by telling the room:

Waad was joined by three women's rights activists, who shared powerful lessons and perspectives from their work.

Razia Sultana is a Rohingya feminist activist, human rights defender, researcher, and educator. She founded the RW Welfare Society, supporting the rights and leadership of Rohingya women and girls. Razia drew on her own experience as a member of the Rohingya community, her work documenting the systematic sexual violence faced by Rohingya women and the need for critical psychosocial support for survivors. She talked about the impact that funding cuts have on this support, saying: "Funding cuts are not abstract. They mean…reduced psychosocial support, safety, security."

Maggie Kathewera-Banda is executive director and founder of the women's rights organisation Women's Legal Resources Centre in Malawi. She also created the Malawian Women's Manifesto Movement, which brings women together to shape Malawi's political agenda. Maggie emphasised the progress that has been made on women's rights in Malawi, but echoed Razia's warnings of the impact of funding cuts on this progress. Women's rights organisations such as her own have been working to diversify, innovate and create change even when funds are being slashed, by: "Building coalitions, coming together, pulling resources together, so that we can still advocate for changes when it comes to issues of women's rights."

Riham Jafari is a Palestinian communication and advocacy specialist who works for ActionAid Palestine, focusing on human rights, humanitarian response and gender issues in the occupied Palestinian territory. She talked of how hard-won progress on women's rights can be reversed during times of crisis and emergency. In Gaza for instance: "We can see that women-led organisations were at the forefront, the first responders…of humanitarian response on the ground. But this emergency, reversed their rights, reversed their achievements, decreased their political participation. Women's rights, gender equality are not now a top priority. Protection, lifesaving, and life are priorities."

A critical time for women's rights

The event came at a critical time. New analysis from CARE International UK and Equal Measures shows that women's freedom to speak openly about politics has fallen to its lowest level since 1997. Today, more than 1.3 billion women and girls live in countries that restrict women's political expression. The data and history tells us that this number can, and will, continue to grow - unless we act.

But there is also reason for hope. As Maggie says: "My hope comes from the fact that we have seen change happening. So the gains that we have already made, that gives me hope to say we can show the world what we can do and what we can achieve. But also at the same time, it also means that the changes that we have seen can also be sustained."

Let's take action!

This is the moment to act. Failure to do so risks taking our hard-fought wins back by decades.

We are calling on the UK Government to Protect Progress by:

• Protecting funding for gender equality and women's rights
• Preventing backsliding on hard-won rights and language
• Pushing for systemic change to achieve true gender justice

Will you join us? Sign our open letter to the Foreign Secretary today asking them to Protect Progress for gender equality.

• Protect Progress

  Gender equality is under threat worldwide - the UK Government must act now to protect progress.

• New analysis: women's openness to speak about politics in public drops

  The global rollback on rights is having a chilling effect on women's ability to discuss political issues, in private homes and public spaces without fear of harassment.

• How women in Mozambique are rebuilding homes and reshaping gender roles

  During humanitarian crises, traditional expectations about men and women often become stronger. But in Mozambique, women are changing those expectations.