Investing in Women Benefits Us All

We cannot and we will not stop until all girls and women are #EqualEverywhere and every day. As a human, and in my case also a man, I’m equally as accountable and responsible for advocating for girls and women for a gender equitable society that benefits us all.

“Gender equality remains the greatest human rights challenge. Investing in women is a human rights imperative and cornerstone for building inclusive societies.” – UN Women (2023)

International Women’s Day, March 8th, 2024, is celebrated by the United Nations under the theme “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress”. Even though we are facing several crises in the world, we are not yet today addressing these with our full potential. Investing in women will not only help us reach greater potential in addressing crises, but also help us reinforce a society that is healthier, safer, and more equal for all.

In our first Courageous Conversations of the year this week at Essity, we have been speaking about differences in paid and unpaid care work in the society. Fact is, women spend approximately three times more time on unpaid work (ILO, 2018, UN Women, 2024). In realizing, recognizing, and valuing these contributions to economies worldwide both through policy making and a change in our collective behaviors, we can ensure decent care work and a future of decent work for both women and men. And the change is dependent on us, we are responsible for the change around us.

When it comes to a society that is healthier for all, I’m truly inspired by Sahil Tesfu in Essity to keep advocating for closing the global women’s health gap. In recent studies, you will find that a woman will spend an average of nine years in poor health, impacting her ability of presence and/or productivity and reducing her earning potential. Better health and well-being for women benefits us all, in all our different contexts (McKinsey’s Health Institute, 2024). I can’t say it any better than Sahil and will just echo her words – “It’s time to act now. No excuses. No hesitations”.

I believe that one of first steps we all can take before turning to more concrete and tangible actions is to keep learning of different inequities and the different experiences that we all bring – my suggestions included below. Also, there is so much we can all learn from each other if we are curious enough. I greatly appreciate the many learnings and insights that I get daily from leaders, colleagues, friends and family in driving change in my context.

For more resources:

Women are burning out doing invisible 'office housework' | World Economic Forum (weforum.org) – WEF on invisible “office housework”.

“Office Housework” Gets in Women’s Way (hbr.org) - HBR article on negotiation strategies to distribute office housework.

1. Why DEI Matter: Practicing DEI Personally and Professionally - Courageous Conversations at Essity | Podcast on Spotify – Sahil Tesfu and Tuomas Yrj?l? sharing their “Why for DEI” both personally and professionally.

2. Gender Inclusion in Society and in the Workplace - Courageous Conversations at Essity | Podcast on Spotify – Pia H??k giving insights to the systematic and structural work and change needed for a gender equitable society.

#EqualEverywhere | We won’t stop until girls and women are equal everywhere - UN Foundation #EqualEverywhere, committing to together drive greater and faster action on gender equality in every place and every part of life.