Coming on the heels of the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit and the adoption of Agenda 2030 by 193 governments, the international community will once again commemorate the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17th. We know that women are often the face of poverty due to circumstances which perpetuate generational poverty for women. Be it lack of access to resources, assets, training and decent paid employment and social protection, there are many barriers to ensure women’s economic empowerment. The recent economic and financial crises have shown how the current macro-economic model contributes to inequality and vulnerability among women. Furthermore, social and economic inequalities have exacerbated the feminization of poverty across the globe.

Currently, only 27% of the world’s population enjoy full access to social protection, whereas 73 % are covered partially or not at all. Women are often over-represented among those who lack such access. — Progress of the World’s Women 2015-2016 Report, UN Women

Facts:

The number of people living in poverty worldwide has been estimated as exceeding 1.3 billion (UNDP).

It is estimated that 70% of the worlds’ poor are women (UNDP)

Women and girls represent 75 per cent of household water collectors.
In sub-Saharan Africa, rural women collectively spend about 40 billion hours a year fetching water – equivalent to a year’s labour for the entire workforce of France (UNICEF and WHO).

Join us October 17th as we call attention to #EndPoverty for women and girls. We cannot eradicate poverty unless we first tackle gender inequality.