Global Scans · Gender Equality · Weekly Summary

In September 2015, 193 world leaders agreed to 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. If these Goals are completed, it would mean an end to extreme poverty, inequality and climate change by 2030.
Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower women and girls.

• [New] The national strategy on gender equality for the 2021-2030 period set a goal of the proportion of female directors / owners of enterprises and cooperatives to reach at least 27% by 2025 and 30% by 2030. Vietnam Economic Times
• [New] UN Women is urging corporate leaders to reframe gender equality not as a social obligation, but as a significant business imperative and a major economic opportunity. Nongluck Ajanapanya
• [New] Women's rights in Somalia remain heavily constrained by legal, structural, and social barriers including early marriage, limited educational opportunities, discrimination, and pervasive gender-based violence. Human Rights Watch
• [New] The AFB will establish a fund of $7 million per year to provide core support for national gender equality organizations working on advocacy, research, education, policy analysis, and legal reform to advance the rights of women and gender-diverse people. CCPA
• [New] NYU Langone Health, one of New York City's major hospital networks, announced this week that it will shut down its gender-affirming care program for minors, as the Trump administration escalates threats to strip federal funding from providers that treat trans youth. The Guardian
• [New] The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in December unveiled a proposed rule that would bar hospitals that participate in Medicaid and Medicare from providing any gender-affirming care to youth - a change that could sharply restrict access in most hospitals. North Carolina Health News
• [New] More limits could be on the horizon in 2026 as the Trump administration signals a continued focus on regulating abortion and gender-affirming care. North Carolina Health News
• Sessions focused on women's access to land tenure, credit, and cooperatives, recognising that closing the gender gap in agriculture could increase African food production by up to 20%. Africa Agricultural Network | The Face of African Agric
• If Germany and the EU wish to defend and deepen a gender and human rights agenda at the multilateral level, Mexico, Chile and Colombia will be important partners. Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP)
• The number of people at risk of Gender-based violence has tripled in two years. Sudan Research, Analysis, and Advocacy
• The United Nations estimates that if current trends hold, gender equality in the highest positions of government will not be reached for another 130 years. CFR Education from the Council on Foreign Relations
• Developing countries could increase their gross domestic products by an average of 23% if they closed gender gaps in the labour force. CFR Education from the Council on Foreign Relations
• Looking ahead, Mexican society will hopefully become more gender conscious with time. Canning House
• If current trends continue, gender parity on corporate boards would not be reached until 2043, 19% of which still have no female representation. / Mexico Mexico Business
• Employers will need to create action plans for gender equality and menopause which will be voluntary until some time in 2027. Small Business UK
• Across the world, gender is central to authoritarian populists' efforts to generate public support, justify power expansion, and enact discriminatory actions that threaten everyone's rights and freedoms. Kettering Foundation
• The Trump-Vance administration last month announced it will expand the global gag rule, which bans U.S. foreign aid for groups that support abortion and/or offer abortion-related services, to include organizations that promote gender ideology. Washington Blade: LGBTQ News, Politics, LGBTQ Rights, G
• Legislative work, engagement with the UN on policy development, gender equality, youth engagement, leadership renewal and inter-cooperative collaboration will remain priorities, alongside continued support for cooperatives operating in fragile or crisis-affected contexts. ICA

Last updated: 15 March 2026