Welcome to the United Nations
The Global Goals
The Global Goals, also known as the
Sustainable Development Goals, are a
universal call to action to end poverty,
protect the planet and ensure that all
people enjoy peace and prosperity
by 2030. The Goals represent an
opportunity for the international
community to implement catalytic
changes for those who need them most,
making the specific commitment to
‘leave no one behind’. This means that
the Goals cannot be considered a success
unless they are met for everyone.
The Global Goals came into force on
1 January 2016 and the clock is ticking
to reach them by 2030. Their realisation
requires prioritising two key issues:
Women’s rights: Women overwhelmingly
bear the brunt of poverty and are often
denied economic opportunities. Where
women are employed in developing
countries, they are more likely than men to
be in vulnerable, informal sector, or lowpaid
jobs where they enjoy little protection
from labour laws or policies.
Regardless of paid work, women (and
girls) continue to bear overwhelming
responsibility for household care. With
this dual demand on their time, (paid
and unpaid work), women have less time
for education, political participation or
other opportunities and their work and
contributions are undervalued. Women’s
participation must be at the heart of the
implementation of the Goals.
Conflict-affected countries: These
countries consistently fall behind in
development. The World Bank estimates
that, by 2030 (the deadline for the Goals),
the majority of people living in extreme
poverty will be living in conflict-affected
countries. The Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development estimates
this could increase to 62% (or half a billion
people), with women disproportionately
and overwhelmingly affected.
In conflict-affected countries, “genderbased
discrimination and poverty are
exacerbated. We have witnessed how
conflict drives women into poverty and
isolation, exposes them to various forms
of gender-based violence, and worsens
discriminatory social attitudes. Both
directly and indirectly, conflict erodes
women’s health and wellbeing, access
to educational opportunities for
themselves and their children and fosters
extreme poverty.
Women for Women International
works with women who live in extreme
poverty in fragile contexts and who work
their hardest to put food on the table and
their children in school. They do so in the
toughest of situations. In Afghanistan,
women in some communities are not
allowed to leave their house without an
escort because they are women. In eastern
Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC),
women are prohibited from owning or
making decisions about the land upon
which they work because they are women.
In Northern Iraq, Yezidi women have been
forced to flee their homes. During ISIS’
reign of abuse and terror, they have been
specifically targeted for sexual violence
because they are women.
Despite this discrimination, and when
supported, women can be effective
agents of change in building stronger
households and stronger nations. The
Global Goals provide us all with the
opportunity to do more to support
women affected by poverty and conflict,
to enable them to determine the courses
of their lives and reach their full potential.
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