This week, the Saskatchewan Council for International Cooperation, an organization focused on building momentum towards a just, equitable, and sustainable world, announced its event line up for the upcoming Gender Equality Week 2020, happening from September 21st - 25th.
Women are more likely to be affected by poverty and inequality, including challenges related too limited access to affordable child care and housing, social support programs and gaps in access to health care. As with any discussion or effort to advance global gender equality, it is important to recognize that the social and economic challenges faced by women around the world disproportionately affect Indigenous, elderly, disabled, transgender women, individuals of minority gender identity and expression, visible minority and racialized women.
Additionally, women are more likely to be affected by gender-based violence including physical, verbal, emotional abuse, as well as sexual exploitation including trafficking, assault and intimate partner violence. Women face barriers to education, employment and equal pay, as well as a legal recourse, representation, and access to both resources and decision-making power, as women are underrepresented at all levels of government, in boardrooms and in executive positions.
Because of these structural and systemic factors, the Government of Canada has declared the fourth week in September as “Gender Equality Week”, and SCIC is taking this opportunity to celebrate the vital contributions of women and those who identify as women, not only because equality is a human right, but also because of #everyonebenefits!
About Saskatchewan Council International Cooperation
SCIC is a Canadian NGO that helps Saskatchewan people act on their desire to make the world a better place. We do this by educating Saskatchewan people about global issues like poverty, health, and human rights, and encouraging individuals to take meaningful action.
We are committed to the recognition of the dignity of all people and their right to self-determination, to the protection of the world’s fragile environment, to the equitable distribution of power, and to the promotion of global understanding, cooperation, peace and justice through mutual learning, partnership, transparency and solidarity.
Media Contact: Thom Gallet, Saskatchewan Council International Cooperation, (306) 757-4669, [email protected]