In celebration of International Women’s Day (8 March 2018), the Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative (SSE) together with organisations such as UN Women and the International Finance Corporation annually ring the bell for gender equality to raise awareness of the crucial role the private sector can play in advancing gender equality. This year 65 stock exchanges participate in the events.
Together with the Emerging Markets Dialogue on Finance (EMDF), part of the Emerging Market Sustainability Dialogues (EMSD), the SSE published in 2017 a report on ‘How stock exchanges can advance gender equality’. At the intersection of listed companies and investors, stock exchanges are uniquely positioned to influence capital markets to make progress in achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) 5, particularly to “ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic and public life”.
Acknowledging that enhancing women’s opportunities towards bridging the gender gap is also a cross-thematic issue involving all G20 engagement groups, Business 20 (B20) and Women20 (W20) are jointly endorsing the “Ring the Bell for Gender Equality” initiative. Forming a network of women’s organisations, female entrepreneurs associations and think tanks, W20 seeks to influence the agenda of world leaders and decision-making groups in G20 so they realize the enormous potential of investing in women’s economic development, for example fully closing the gender gap could add as much as $28 trillion to annual global GDP in 2025.
As W20 Germany’s international implementation partner EMSD supported – amongst others – a study on „Effects of digitalisation on gender equality in G20 economies“, facilitated the consultation process and several events such as the W20 Summit and the All-W20-Presidencies Roundtable. EMSD is now continuing the support as a strategic partner for W20 Argentina. EMSD supports the group with a research study on economic benefits of gender equality, digital tools for W20’s consultation process, , outreach to other emerging markets and the following presidency, as well as with intellectual and logistical support.
For details, please contact nina.roth@giz.de .