Archive for category: Gender Equality

, , , ,

Reproductive Health App for Youth in Rwanda

Health App for Youth in Rwanda

Tantine is an app that has been developed for youth in Rwanda. It was created by Sylvie and Sylvain Muzungu Uhirwa to tackle the issue of lack of reproductive and sexual health information. A barrier to sexual and reproductive health information has teens in Rwanda vulnerable to unintended pregnancies and diseases, which can hinder their ability to complete their education as well as find stable employment in the future.

Sylvie and Sylvain Uhirwa are twin medical students at the University of Rwanda who originally won the Youth Spark Innovation Grant in 2015. This grant is an initiative from the Resilient Africa Network in Partnership with USAID and the Makerere University School. It has helped them to build a website containing reproductive health information as well as youth mentorship opportunities.

As one of four initiatives chosen at the iAccelerator challenge 2017, the pair received $10,000 to further develop Tantine. Half of the funds went to developing the Android app and website content, as well as to continue to advance and develop the platform.

The app was recently shared in the Mahama camp of 50,000 Burundian refugees. The app for youth in Rwanda, specifically in the camp, gives reproductive health information via the web. Tantine works with a medical professional and psychological team to deliver this education, mentorship and counseling services.

Sylvie has stated that members in the camp do not have consistent access to wi-fi and do not own smartphones, so “…that’s why we thought of bringing those tablets and establishing a centre where they come and then access the internet in the camp. So we are going to equip them with those tablets and then a router with wi-fi.”

Therese Karugwiza, a gender and human rights program specialist at UNFPA, has stressed the importance of Tantine also targeting youth who may not be in school, as it is crucial that they also have access to this information. By taking Karugwiza’s account into consideration, the Uhirwa twins are putting Rwandan youth on a multimodal track to better reproductive health.

– Gabriella Paez

Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Conflict in Myanmar and Gender Equality

Conflict in MyanmarSince winning independence from colonial rule in 1948, ethnic conflict in Myanmar has plagued the country. Myanmar endured the world’s longest ongoing civil war, in which the ethnic Bamar Buddhist majority living in the central valley has tried to control other groups living in the mountainous outskirts of the country.

An impressively free election in 2015 gave power to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi of the National League for Democracy (NLD). The foremost goal of the administration is to end the decades of ethnic conflict, but the complexity of these issues does not allow for easy solutions.

The Alliance for Gender Inclusion in the Peace Process works to promote women’s rights and gender equality as a method to end Myanmar’s ethnic conflict.

Obstacles to women entering decision-making roles include the prevalence of gender violence and entrenched societal expectations that women must play supporting roles in society. Myanmar’s constitution condones discrimination, with section 352 stating “nothing…shall prevent the appointment of men to the positions that are suitable for men only.” Women are frequently characterized as “decorative.”

The conflict affects women, men and children differently since they occupy different roles in society. Men are susceptible to combat-related injuries, while women bear the burden of sexual violence, damage to property, and mental trauma. Despite these obstacles, women take an active role in mitigating the damage done by the conflict in Myanmar.

Women have convinced conflicting groups to fight in locations farther from villages. They have also protected men and children by sending them away or hiding them and stepped up to keep the village functioning as their men fled for safety. Excluding women from the peace process prevents the perspective and experiences of 52 percent of the population.

Women better understand the impact of conflict on women, children, the disabled and the elderly. The role of men in these conflicts effectively prevents them from being able to effectively represent large portions of society in negotiating solutions.

International research has shown that women tend to best represent marginalized groups. According to a study by the United Nations, women participating in the decision-making process is a crucial element for achieving sustainable peace.

Involving women in political processes is also an effective strategy for countering extremism. Extreme religions tend to restrict women’s rights, but funding and supporting women weakens the influence of extremists.

In Myanmar, women have crucial roles in dealing with and responding to conflict, and the efforts supported by the Alliance for Gender Inclusion in the Peace Process are a promising step in the right direction to ending decades of conflict in Myanmar.

– Kristen Nixon

Photo: Google

, ,

Menstrual Hygiene and Girls’ Education in Uganda

Education in UgandaEducation, especially for girls, is one of the best ways to increase a developing country’s welfare. A nation’s GDP can rise by three percent when the number of girls in school increases by 10 percent. On an individual level, every year a girl stays in school, her potential income increases by about 15 to 25 percent. These numbers show that education in Uganda is, just like everywhere else, an ever-important issue.

In Uganda, girls have a low track record of completing their education. Studies show that only 22 percent of Ugandan girls are enrolled in secondary school, contrasting the 91 percent enrolled in in primary school.

Analysts have often pointed out that early marriages and social stigmas keep girls from receiving a complete education in Uganda. But there’s a simpler, more intimate reason behind those causes: menstruation.

This topic remains uncomfortable and awkward in developed countries, but Ugandan girls face this problem on an entirely different level. Many developed countries, including Uganda, have myths and stigmas surrounding periods that shame girls when they menstruate. As a result, most girls have no understanding of what is happening to their bodies or how to take care of themselves.

Adding to this difficulty is the lack of availability of feminine hygiene products. Drugstores that carry disposable pads, tampons and other products can be more than 40 minutes away. Even then, these products are usually imported and are too expensive for most Ugandan women to afford.

Desperate to stop the monthly flow, Ugandan women often resort to using pieces of cloth, shreds of foam mattresses, toilet paper, newspapers, banana plant fibers and even leaves. Not only are these options ineffective and uncomfortable, but are also extremely unhygienic, putting girls at risk for diseases.

About half of Ugandan girls skip three days of school every month because they do not have any feminine hygiene products and do not want to stain their clothes. As the absences stack up, many girls find it too hard to continue their education and eventually drop out. Social stigmas also place pressure on girls to marry once they get their periods and not remain in school.

However, despite the struggle, many girls want to stay in school and complete their education in Uganda, and they’re getting help from several international organizations to do so. Wateraid, a nongovernmental organization that seeks to provide clean water and sanitation efforts to developing countries around the world, started hygiene clubs in Ugandan schools. At these clubs, girls learn about menstruation and how to make their own pads and products.

One of these clubs, located at St. Mary’s School in northeastern Uganda, has taken things a step further. This hygiene club travels to other skills singing, dancing, and even rapping about their periods. This group of girls wants to raise awareness about the stigmas surrounding menstruation and promote education in Uganda.

Despite the work of Wateraid and other groups, many girls in Uganda are still skipping school because they don’t have feminine hygiene products. Wateraid ambitiously plans to supply the necessary sanitation products, from tampons to toilets, for every child and every school in every part of the world by 2030.

On an entrepreneurial level, start-up AFRIpads donates reusable pads to women in Uganda and other areas where women do not have easy access to menstrual products. These organizations hope that soon every girl in Uganda will be able to attend school every day of the school year, whether she has her period or not—and no one will shame her if she does.

– Sydney Cooney

Photo: Google

[hr]

Learn about the Protecting Girls Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act.

[hr]

,

Gender Inequality and Causes of Poverty in Swaziland

Causes of Poverty in SwazilandAs 63 percent of Swazis continue to live below the national poverty line, it is clear that there is an urgent call for change. While the causes of poverty in Swaziland are many, gender inequality serves as one of the primary factors — an issue that needs to be addressed in order to aid in poverty reduction efforts throughout the nation.

Among the many causes of poverty in Swaziland, a lack of effective health care is one of the largest concerns. The nation holds the highest rate of HIV prevalence in the world, with 28.8 percent of the adult population living with this life-threatening disease.

As the key driving factors of Swaziland’s HIV epidemic include low and inconsistent condom use, transactional sex, gender inequalities and gender based violence, it is clear that the cycle of poverty supported by this disease disproportionately affects women.

With 120,000 of the 220,000 people living with HIV in Swaziland being women, studies reveal that 31 percent of all women within the country live with HIV, while only 20 percent of men are affected.

Many driving factors contribute to women’s increased risk of contracting HIV, including a lack of access to proper reproductive education and health care. While 14 percent of women between the ages of 15 and 24 have been involved in intergenerational sex with older men, their adolescent age and lack of reproductive education cause them to be at more of a risk to the spread of the disease, often without their knowledge.

According to AVERT, one in three women in Swaziland also report experiencing some form of sexual abuse by the time they were 18. These and other significant gender disparities have ranked Swaziland 137 out of 159 countries in the Gender Inequality Index.

The inequalities women face in Swaziland not only leave them in a more vulnerable position to disease but also serve as the major causes of poverty in Swaziland. As women are the primary caretakers and providers for children worldwide, those disadvantages that women face create a ripple effect of a detriment for the next generation as well.

For every 100,000 live births in Swaziland, 389 women die from pregnancy-related causes, leaving 24 percent of children aged zero to 17 as orphans and 45 percent as either orphans or vulnerable.

These high maternal mortality rates reveal the reality that women’s disproportionate access to health care in Swaziland serves as one of the direct causes of poverty in Swaziland, as it not only affects the mother but also leaves almost half of Swaziland’s adolescent population at an increased risk for poverty.

Through analyzing the direct effects of gender inequality on the next generation’s vulnerability to the cycle of poverty, it is clear that a greater focus needs to be placed on addressing gender disparities within the nation — especially those of female’s access to education and reproductive health care — so as to encourage a significant drop in the poverty rates in Swaziland.

– Kendra Richardson

Photo: Flickr

, , ,

Human Rights in Croatia

Human Rights in CroatiaAs a newly elected member of the United Nations Human Rights Council, Croatia is promising to protect human rights and fight against discrimination. Considering the unfair treatment of minorities and hate crimes that were written of in the Human Rights Practices report for 2016, the country has a great deal of work to do.

Out of the 24 reported hate crimes in 2015, 15 were related to racism and xenophobia. A recent example of xenophobia in the nation can be seen through the way policemen have been treating asylum-seekers from Serbia. Out of the 10 Afghani asylum seekers who were interviewed, nine reported that the Croatian police were physical with them. Not only did they punch them, but they also seized some of their possessions. After doing all of this, the Croatian police officers forced them out of the country and back to Serbia.

Another large issue in Croatia is the segregation of people with disabilities. People with disabilities in Croatia tend to lack control in their lives because they are placed into institutions rather than communities.

Although human rights in Croatia still need to improve greatly, the people are still making a conscious effort to fix the problems they are faced with. For example, the Humans Rights House Zagreb addresses the country’s issues and introduces solutions to help them. In 2016, they partnered with Gong to explain both the importance of and how to combat hate speech.

To combat segregation of people with disabilities, de-institutionalization has begun in Croatia, in an attempt to legally give those with disabilities their rights. So far, 24 percent of institutions have begun de-institutionalization. While this number may be small, it is a start to a solution.

Croatia, like every other country in the world, is nowhere near perfect. However, with the help of citizens and activists who advocate for what they believe is morally right, human rights in Croatia will continue to progress.

– Raven Rentas

, ,

Successes Combating Common Diseases in Tanzania

Common Diseases in Tanzania
Gender inequality, limited access to safe water, lack of sanitation, poor hygiene and a recent drop in immunization are major issues Tanzanian citizens face in urban and rural areas of the country. These factors have contributed to the rampant spread of three common diseases in Tanzania: HIV and AIDS, cholera and malaria.

The most common disease affecting the Tanzanian populace is HIV and AIDS. HIV is a virus that attacks the immune system, the body’s natural defense against disease. The immune system is destroyed when left untreated and the person cannot recover from infections, big or small. At this stage, the person has AIDS.

According to the World Factbook, in 2015, almost 1.4 million people in Tanzania were living with AIDS. This is the most recent estimate. Also reported by the same source, Tanzania ranks sixth in comparison to the rest of the world with the number of its citizens living with the disease.

HIV is the main source of adult mortality in the country. The World Factbook states that in 2015 an estimated 35,700 Tanzanian adults died from the disease, placing the country in fourth place in comparison to the rest of the world.

According to the charity organization, AVERT, the populations most affected by HIV in Tanzania are people who inject drugs, men who have sex with men, mobile populations and sex workers. Of all HIV infections, 80% of them result from heterosexual sex. Tanzanian women are infected more than men due to having older partners, getting married earlier and neglecting negotiating skills for safer sex due to gender inequality.

The second of the most common diseases in the Tanzanian population is cholera. Cholera is a bacterial disease usually spread through contaminated water. Cholera causes severe diarrhea and dehydration. Cholera kills infected persons within hours when left untreated.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), by April 20, 2016, there was a total of 24,108 cases of cholera in Tanzania, including 378 deaths. The majority of the cases were reported from 23 regions in mainland Tanzania (20,961 cases, including 329 deaths). Neighboring Zanzibar islands reported 3,057 cases of the disease, including 51 deaths.

The disease spread quickly due to conducive conditions such as limited access to safe water in poor households, sanitary problems and poor hygiene found in both mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar. In addition, the nation’s water supply institutions lacked the capacity to disinfect water and conduct regular water quality monitoring and assessments.

Recently, there has been a decline in the number of newly reported cases of cholera. However, the conditions that helped the disease to persist still have not changed, so the risk for more infections remains high.

The final common disease affecting the Tanzanian population is malaria. Malaria is a life-threatening disease caused by parasites that are transmitted to people through the bites of infected female Anopheles mosquitoes. Mild symptoms include fever, headache and chills. Severe symptoms include anemia, difficulty breathing due to fluid-filled lungs and cerebral malaria in children. In adults, organ failure is also frequent.

The World Factbook reports malaria is a leading killer of children under five in Tanzania. According to the Malaria Spot website, Tanzania has the third-largest population at risk of malaria in Africa. Over 90% of the population live in areas where there is malaria. Each year, 10 to 12 million people contract malaria and 80,000 die from the disease, most of them children. There is no vaccine for malaria. This fact contributes to why the disease continues to be a threat to Tanzanians.

Common diseases in Tanzania are prevalent because the geographical and economic conditions of the country favor their spread. While HIV and AIDS, cholera and malaria have been a threat to the population there have been positive strides. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has been working with the government of the United Republic of Tanzania and more than 60 partner organizations since 2001 to address HIV, malaria, and other health threats by helping support service delivery and strengthen health systems and infrastructure. The CDC partnership has seen success, including:

  • 637,875 people are currently receiving HIV treatment
  • 74,430 pregnant women have received medication to reduce transmission to their babies through PEPFAR (The United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) since 2010
  • 1,155,833 men have been circumcised to prevent new HIV infections since 2010
  • New malaria infections have decreased from 18% to 10% in children 6-59 months in 2011-2012

With continued aid and improvement in living conditions for the Tanzanian people, common diseases in Tanzania will no longer remain common.

– Jeanine Thomas

Photo: Flickr

,

Gender Inequality Examples and Progress Across the Globe

Comparing Gender Inequality Examples and Progress Across the GlobeIt is the time of year to reflect on achievements and the need for change. The World Economic Forum 2016 Report on the Global Gender Gap points to both.

Countries are measured on the following metrics regarding women and gender inequality: economic participation and opportunity, political empowerment, educational attainment, health, and survival.

The highest possible score is one for gender equality. The lowest possible score is zero for gender inequality. Rwanda has achieved a ranking of five. Pakistan and Yemen are 143 and 144 respectively out of a total 144 countries. Gender inequality examples are numerous in both Yemen and Pakistan.

Gender inequality leads to gender-based violence against both women and young girls affecting one in three females around the world, in the name of “honor killings”, public stoning’s, wartime rape, domestic violence and abuse. Increased conflict in Yemen highlights a correlation with marrying off child bride’s sooner. This is a longstanding human rights violation in Yemen.

Numbers from a survey of 250 community members conducted by UNFPA indicated 72 percent of child marriage survivors in North Yemen were married between the ages of 13 and 15. In the South, 62 percent were married before the age of 16. Child brides experience pregnancy complications and are more vulnerable to violence. They are expected to conceive within their first month after marriage.

Pakistan also experienced severe spikes in violence against women this past summer. Women died by burning, strangling, and poison. Women are vulnerable to early marriage, domestic violence and death by male family members who may be suspicious that they are unfaithful.

New legislation passed in October called the “anti-honor crime bill”. This marks progress; there will, however, remain obstacles between parliament and religious groups. For real change, all murders will need to be treated the same as a crime against the state.

True change for women living in vulnerable settings is possible. Protecting Girls Access to Education in Vulnerable Settings Act is a bill that was introduced in July 2016 that “… is critical to ensure that children, particularly girls, displaced by conflicts overseas are able to receive a quality education and that the educational needs of women and girls are considered in implementing U.S. foreign assistance policies and programs.”

Pakistan activists are taking action for change with a play on words to end violence against all women. The U.N. Women Pakistan’s new #BeatMe campaign challenges men to beat well-known women from Pakistan at things in which they excel. The campaign confronts physical abuse with female mountain climber Samina Baig. She is the only Pakistani woman to climb Mount Everest.

The campaign will focus on success stories of women from all walks of life. Pakistan’s #BeatMe campaign has advocacy components, legal services for survivors and intends to address a shift in social attitudes particularly among men and boys. The campaign’s long-term goals focus on opening a global dialogue about women’s rights and gender equality.

It has been twenty years since the Rwandan genocide where 100 million men, women and children died. Women extended their strength as mothers into the fields of construction and mobilization to rebuild their nation. Today women have a seat at the economic and political tables of power. This is why Rwanda ranks 5th this year for improving the status of women.

  • Fifty percent of Rwanda’s Supreme Court Justice’s are women
  • Girls attend public school in equal numbers to boys
  • Women can legally own property and pass citizenship to their offspring
  • Established businesswomen are leaders in the private sector
  • Rwanda ranks first in the world for women’s representation in elected lower house of parliament.

New laws are one factor in the Rwanda’s shift to a country where women hold a new place in society. These laws are strengthened by a paradigm shift in the collective thinking of the entire country.

Rwanda did not rebuild overnight. The strength of Rwandan women is a model for countries at war, where women are struggling to stay alive, and seek freedom from violence, a large stepping stone to education, political power and equal pay.

– Addison Evans

Photo: Flickr

,

UN Women: Internship Program for Women in Afghanistan

UN Women Provides Internship Program for Women in Afghanistan
Afghanistan is a country where the population largely consists of people under 24 years old, and about 400,000 people are entering the workforce every year. It is hard enough finding a job as a young college graduate, but it’s even more difficult for the women in Afghanistan. Women in Afghanistan who seek education or employment still face backlash from a patriarchal society.

Although 64 percent of Afghans believe women should be allowed to work, many men still feel that women should be forbidden from pursuing an education. Girls who attempt to pursue education face great danger. Schools for girls have been burned down, teachers have been threatened and killed, and girls have been injured walking to and from school. The women who manage to complete their education often have forces working against them, preventing them from getting a job.

In December 2015, U.N. Women developed an internship program to help college-educated women acquire skills and develop a work ethic to better prepare them for the working world in Afghanistan. As of now, 48 women have completed the U.N. Women’s internship program in Afghanistan. The six-month program consists of two months spent training the women in different professional skills, and four months spent interning with an organization in the woman’s chosen field. The women receive a stipend from U.N. Women for the duration of their internship period.

The internship program has helped participants make vital social and professional connections with different programs around the world, some of which have offered these women jobs after completing their internships. The U.N. Women internship opportunity is helping women in Afghanistan look more suitable and appealing to job recruiters, giving them a competitive edge against young men looking for jobs.

As drastic and detrimental as things are for women in Afghanistan, the country is making progress for women and girls in education, political participation and economic roles. The National Unity Government is committed to the empowerment of women, and recognizes that equal opportunity for women is necessary for stabilizing Afghanistan and developing the country in a sustainable way.

There are more women in power than ever before. For example, 27.7 percent of parliament consists of women and three serve as ambassadors as well as the leaders of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission and four ministries. Also, Afghanistan has in place a National Action Plan to implement a resolution for the peace and security of women. These measures of progress show that there have been efforts in promoting and upholding a peaceful society with equal opportunity for women.

Women in Afghanistan continue to be disproportionately affected by poverty, discrimination and exploitation. There is still a substantial amount of resistance and discrimination in the workforce, but Afghanistan is making progress. With the help from U.N. Women, the working and educated women in Afghanistan can be progressive role models and leaders to all other women and girls.

Although Afghanistan has established ambitious goals, these actions are necessary to ensure that progress is not reversed and to preserve the great gains the country has made.

– Kayla Mehl

Photo: Flickr

,

Women-Only Villages of Kenya Defy Patriarchal Laws

Women-Only Villages of Kenya Defy Patriarchal Laws
In some countries, structural change fights systemic oppression. Historically disenfranchised groups will organize and work their way through the existing power structure in order to undermine the ruling class.

The women-only villages in the foothills of Kenya have a different approach. In order to fight the patriarchal laws of the Samburu region, they’ve formed gender-exclusive villages where their peers support the women and provide resources to raise their children without husbands or other family members.

Umoja, which means “unity” in Swahili, is the most prominent of the women-only villages in the southeastern region of Kenya. It is home to about 50 permanent residents who support themselves by opening up their village to tourists and selling handmade jewelry.

Chairlady Rebecca Lolosoli established Umoja 25 years ago with 15 other women. They had all experienced rape and abuse by British soldiers and felt unsupported by their communities. In Samburu tradition, women are considered men’s property and therefore not legally protected in cases of rape and abuse. A group of men brutally beat Lolosoli for speaking out against the patriarchal standards of Samburu culture; she was recovering in the hospital when she got the idea for Umoja.

Today, the women of Umoja share in the day-to-day responsibilities of maintaining the village and protecting it from angry neighbors. They build homes, operate a school for their children, conduct jewelry sales and sleep in shifts in case men from nearby villages come to claim their wives. Many of the current residents consider themselves refugees, coming to Umoja after escaping abusive marriages.

Another reason women come to Umoja is to escape the culturally-ingrained practice of female genital mutilation (FGM). Historically, FGM is used as a mechanism to disempower women and enforce strict patriarchy.

Once “circumcised,” girls as young as eight can be given away to older men. Despite its reputation in traditional cultures for being safe and healthy, FGM frequently results in long-term health consequences, like urinary problems, menstrual problems, life-threatening infections and psychological trauma. The World Health Organization considers FGM a human rights violation and strongly advises against its practice worldwide.

Umoja provides a type of mobility that women of the Samburu tribe don’t have in a traditional setting. The opportunity to earn and save her own money liberates a woman from relying on her husband or family.

On top of that, living in Umoja allows women to raise their daughters beyond the confines of traditional Samburu culture, protecting them from FGM and forced early marriage. For single women who don’t wish to marry or have children, Umoja offers a safe environment in which they can work and live.

There are several other women-only villages in Kenya, including Nachimi and Supalake. In contrast to Umoja, men in Nachimi are allowed in the community, but they must respect the women’s authority.

In Supalake, gender rules still exist, but reversed; men complete chores like house maintenance and water retrieval, while women make the laws and conduct business. Each village serves as a place of refuge for women who have faced oppression or victimization of harsh Samburu traditions.

The women-only villages of Kenya are important to understanding the obstacles women face in traditional tribal cultures. Seeing how women live beyond the confines of patriarchal laws can help people understand the kind of institutional changes needed for gender equality. Places like Umoja, Nachimi and Supalake show us that economic independence is a requisite for social mobility.

– Jessica Levitan

Photo: Flickr

, ,

Canadian Prime Minister Stands Against Sexism in Poverty

Canada and its Strong Stance on Sexism in Poverty
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently condemned sexism in poverty in response to a letter by the ONE Campaign. The open letter was released by Bono and the ONE Campaign on International Women’s Day in March. It was signed by some of the most influential women in the world, including Charlize Theron, Cheryl Sandberg and Angelique Kidjo.

Trudeau is the first world leader to formally respond, addressing the campaign thus: “On behalf of the Government of Canada, I am writing back to let you know that I wholeheartedly agree: Poverty is Sexist. Women and girls are less likely to get an education, more likely to be impoverished, and face a greater risk of disease and poor health.”

According to Melinda Gates, one reason poverty is sexist is time. It takes time to finish an education, learn a new life skill or start a business. Men in developing countries are more likely to have access to this time because women are responsible for the vast majority of unpaid housework. There are also more tangible barriers restricting women’s ability to work, whether in the form of laws barring women’s employment or a lack of access to child care for working mothers.

Trudeau had the opportunity to lead by example when Canada hosted the Fifth Replenishment Conference of the Global Fund in Montréal on Sept. 16. The conference brought global health leaders together to fight HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases. According to Trudeau, such collaboration is an important step to ending sexism in poverty because young women account for 74 percent of all HIV infections among adolescents in Africa.

Canada has increased its contribution to the Global Fund by 20 percent to $785 million CDN, all of which will go toward providing mosquito nets, medication and therapy. The Global Fund aims to save millions of lives and prevent hundreds of millions of new infections by 2019.

According to the ONE Campaign, nowhere in the world do women have the same opportunities as men do, a fact due in part to the sexism inherent in poverty. Trudeau’s response is one of many steps needed to rectify this major inequality.

– Sabrina Santos

Photo: Flickr