UN event calls for global inclusivity push

Speakers at a recent UN event have called for leaders, policy experts and change-makers to help accelerate private-sector commitments toward women’s economic empowerment by 2030.

United Nations Global Compact is a non-binding United Nations pact to get businesses and firms worldwide to adopt sustainable and socially responsible policies, and to report on their implementation.

The event was delivered in partnership with UN Women and the Champions of Change Coalition.

Melissa Powell is Deputy Executive Director of the UN Global Compact.

Powell said: “Accelerating women’s full participation is not just a moral imperative, it’s an economic one.

“As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and 25 years of the UN Global Compact, we have never been closer to a true tipping point.”

Despite decades of progress, on average, women are paid about 20 per cent less than men, according to the International Labour Organization leading to significant lifetime income inequality.

At the current rate it will take 134 years to close the global gender gap.

Yet companies with diverse leadership teams are 25 per cent more likely to outperform their peers.

During the dialogue, participants examined how businesses can apply a gender lens across the value chain by creating gender-responsive supply chains and directing capital to women-owned businesses, engage male allies and advocate for policy enablers to bridge persistent gender gaps worldwide.

Powell added: “By investing in women-led enterprises, championing male allyship and building equitable supply chains, businesses can lead the charge on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.”