Our Scans · (LF.5) 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] Addressing gender disparities in labour force participation could raise gross domestic product by up to 20% in some economies - making gender equality not a social aspiration, but the foundation of a stronger, more resilient global economy. OMFIF
• [New] UN Women prioritizes investments that demonstrate measurable impact on women's economic opportunities and strengthen the broader ecosystem of gender equality advocates operating throughout Moldova's diverse regions. Impact Funding
• [New] The GAP IV will set the EU vision for promoting gender equality and women's empowerment as a strategic priority in all external actions, in an increasingly fragile global environment. Enlargement and Eastern Neighbourhood
• [New] 38% of AI-driven recruitment tools could perpetuate gender or ethnic biases if not carefully monitored. Accurate Legal Billing
• [New] Canada Soccer is committed to advancing gender equity by increasing participation and quality leadership opportunities for women and girls at all levels of the game. Canada Soccer
• [New] Closing gender gaps in the labour force could lift GDP by between 15 and 20% in many economies - and by up to 50% in the MENA region and South Asia. Atlantic Council
• [New] Despite earlier designating menstrual hygiene as fundamental under the right to live and the right to free and compulsory education, a fresh Supreme Court judgement concluded that a mandatory menstrual leave law could reinforce gender stereotypes and harm women's employment prospects. NewsGram
• [New] The Supreme Court dismissed a PIL seeking a nationwide menstrual leave policy, saying a mandatory law could reinforce gender stereotypes and harm women's career prospects. NewsGram
• [New] By building knowledge and skills, deepening leadership capacity, and centering intersectionality and inclusion, UN Women seeks to help unlock the potential of youth, especially young women, to contribute to a growing regional movement for inclusive, gender-responsive peace and security. UN Women - Asia-Pacific
• [New] Coherent gender mainstreaming will require meaningful consultation and inclusion of women's rights organizations and feminist movements from across the Global South, which will provide indispensable policy expertise. Bond | The international development network
• [New] There is a national campaign to improve gender diversity in policing called 30×30, which has the goal of increasing the number of female recruits to 30% by 2030. Public Policy Institute of California
• [New] UNICEF has warned that in low-income countries around 90% of adolescent girls and young women do not use the internet, underscoring the risk of a widening gender gap in opportunity as economies digitise. TechAfrica News
• [New] 1.2 billion young people will enter the workforce over the next decade, making gender equality a vital economic necessity rather than just a social goal. Thailand Business News
• [New] Closing gender gaps in agriculture could raise global GDP by one trillion dollars. IMUNA | NHSMUN | Model UN
• Women were slightly more affected by AI, though differences by gender were not statistically significant, while younger workers in Viet Nam faced higher automation risk than their counterparts in Lao PDR. SpringerLink
• Kansas' Senate Bill 244, proposed earlier this year, bans transgender people from using the bathroom of their gender identity in government-owned buildings, rather than their sex assigned at birth, under threat of being sued. The Reflector
• The policy, part of the Trump administration's broader effort to restrict gender-affirming care for minors, could severely limit access to gender-affirming care for transgender youth nationwide. Peta Murphy MP | Federal Member for Dunkley
• Trump has passed multiple executive orders as president restricting access to accurate federal identity documents, threatening to take away federal funding for gender-affirming care and erasing trans history on federal websites and in schools. The Tufts Daily
• 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
• The UK's fintech ecosystem, valued at $21.44 billion in 2026 and projected to reach $43.92 billion by 2031 per Mordor Intelligence, has been more proactive than most in addressing the gender gap. TechBullion
• One of the major concerns is the lack of comprehensive gender-sensitive data: without stronger data systems, large information gaps risk slowing or obscuring progress toward the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. Generali
• OPM's annual guidance to federal health plans outlines a shift toward preventive, whole-person care in 2027, along with changes to coverage, obesity treatment and gender-affirming care. Government Executive

Last updated: 11 May 2026