The annual day to commemorate girls’ and women’s equality began 50 years ago.
According to the UN, only 4 countries had ever been led by a woman then. In the five decades since, over 60 countries have had a woman as their leader.
Fifty years ago, the majority of the world’s population lived in countries that did not criminalise domestic violence. Today, 90% live in countries that do.
Historically, girls and women and their rights were not included in global development goals. Today the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs, introduced in 2015 include specific goals and targets on girls’ and women’s rights, opportunities, and wellbeing.
This shows the HUGE progress made to advance women’s equality within the UN and broader international systems.
But what does the picture look like going forward?
While the women’s movement has advanced, the 2025 International Women’s Day theme of #AccelerateAction reflects the deep systemic work still to be done.
At the current rate of progress, The World Economic Forum states it will take until 2158, which is roughly five generations from now, to reach full gender parity.
Gender parity is not to be confused with undermining boys and men to raise girls and women. This is an old worldview that is counterproductive to human progress. Gender parity is the equal contribution of women and men in every dimension of life to benefit humanity. From homes to workplaces and every place in between, the data backs diversity and inclusion over inequality every single time.
So what’s holding us back? What do we need to do #accelerateaction
As an inclusive company that works with multi-industry leaders from the local to the global village, here are a few thought starters:
- For humanity’s sake. The women’s movement can’t just be championed by women alone or by people with power and influence. It’s about human rights, which means we all need to see ourselves as champions of change, men included.
- Challenge archaic thinking. Industries such as politics, law enforcement, the armed forces, science, engineering, and technology, and many others unconsciously bias women. What barriers need to be removed to enable more equal representation?
- Prioritise women’s entrepreneurship. Female-only founded startups received less than 5% of venture capital (VC) funding globally, a number that has remained stagnant for years. Beyond awareness and training, how can VC firms be made more accountable?
- Profile women changemakers. Women need to see and hear the human stories of women who have broken glass ceilings and more importantly how they have done it. This is powerful role modelling for the next generation of women.
- Encourage women to speak up. IWD is about empowering every woman’s story. How can we create forums in our community to mobilise women’s voices and their ideas at every level of society?
Wrapping up
We took all this onboard when we invited women to gather for IWD2025 in the heart of Amsterdam on the themes of #AccelerateAction and #BloomWhereYouArePlanted. 40 diverse women came from homemakers to business leaders and entrepreneurs.
We wanted to create a safe environment for women to make meaningful connections and take ONE action back into their lives and community to accelerate change.
Some of the IWD2025 actions were:
- Conviction to start a new online course
- Bravery to speak in front of thousands of people
- Courage to seek new job opportunities
- Commitment to connect with other women to promote a cause
- Taking a course to become a more confident public speaker
- Developing a personal brand
- Bringing Markd Global women’s activities to The Hague
- Reaching out to others with confidence
- Exploring new, fulfilling hobbies
We were so inspired by the stories of the women in the room that we’ve committed to making IWD an annual event to ensure we continue to accelerate change and impact.
If you’re a changemaker and some or all of this resonates with you, connect with our team. We love to further the cause of women’s voices and ideas.
