Rebecca Tavares on the G20
In December 2023, Brazil assumed the presidency of the G20, which brings together the world's largest economies with the purpose of sealing economic cooperation agreements and promoting initiatives focused on issues such as the environment, labor, health, and climate change. Under the slogan "Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet," the Brazilian government defined combating hunger, poverty, and inequality as the central focus of its mandate. However, for these goals to be achieved, the G20 summit resolutions on the issues at hand must necessarily take into account and understand the context of those most affected by these problems, who represent more than half of the world's population, including them in the debate.
We can, for example, look at the latest Global Gender Gap Report, released in June 2023 by the World Economic Forum, which points out that the disparity between men and women has stagnated, decreasing by only 0.03% compared to the previous year's edition. At this rate, the world will reach gender equality only in 2154, that is, 130 years from now. The report also reveals that in the ranking of 146 countries with the greatest gender parity, Brazil jumped from 94th to 57th position.
Despite this progress, in a country where women make up 51% of the population, there is still a long way to go, as shown by the latest study, Gender Statistics: Social Indicators of Women in Brazil, from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). According to the survey, women’s participation in the labor market in 2022 was 53.3%, compared to 73.2% for men. During the same period, women’s wages were only 78.9% of the amount earned by men.
Beyond the numbers, gender inequality is reflected in socioeconomic disparities, making women and their dependents the primary victims of poverty, hunger, and violence. The report They Live, produced by the Security Observatory Network, reveals that in 2023, at least eight women were victims of violence every day, and 586 femicides were recorded during the period—this data coming only from the states involved in the study: Bahia, Ceará, Maranhão, Pará, Pernambuco, Piauí, Rio de Janeiro, and São Paulo.
As leader of the G20, Brazil has the opportunity to guide discussions that could spark real global transformation, enabling women and girls to take control of their own narratives. This is why W20 Brazil plays a critical mobilizing role in proposing state policies aimed at women’s rights.,
Created in 2014, Women 20 (W20) is one of the G20’s independent engagement groups, focusing on gender equality and women's economic empowerment. The W20 delegations bring together female experts from various fields and operate through thematic working groups, in addition to participating in debates with government sectors and civil society. At the end of each cycle, the W20 produces a document, called the Communiqué, which contains a set of recommendations to be included in the final declaration of the G20, whose summit in Brazil will take place in November, in Rio de Janeiro.
The social sector can significantly contribute to the work of the W20. We have several examples of successful initiatives led by civil society organizations (CSOs), created by and for women, that are aligned with the core themes of G20 Brazil. These initiatives can serve as models for the development of proposals to be included in the Communiqué.
Women, particularly Black and Indigenous women, are the most affected by extreme poverty. However, they are also the ones who organize, through CSOs, cooperatives, and support groups, to promote the right to education, health—including sexual and reproductive health—, employment, and other urgent needs, with innovative solutions focused on female empowerment and combating gender-based violence.
Climate change also disproportionately impacts women living in rural areas, as documented by the Unfair Climate report produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). In middle- and low-income countries, female-headed households lose, on average, 8% more of their income when facing heat stress and 3% more due to floods, compared to male-headed households.
As one of the priorities of the G20 Brazil agenda, the climate and environmental issue can also find a voice in women's initiatives to mitigate the effects of global warming through the creation of alternative sustainable production models, policies for energy transition, and practices of regenerative and circular economies.
For more women's voices to be amplified, in line with Sustainable Development Goal 5—"achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls"—, it is essential to restructure international organizations, and the W20 is a promising platform to begin this process, exercising its influence with G20 member states to ensure the full participation of women in decision-making spheres, establishing a more just and effective global governance system.
Comments