Celebrating International Women’s Day Dr. S.S. Verma, Department of Physics, S.L.I.E.T., Longowal, Distt-Sangrur (Punjab)-148106
The story of women's struggle for equality belongs to no single woman, family, any organization, nor to any one country but to the collective efforts of all who care about human rights. International women’s day (IWD) being celebrated on 8th March every year all over the world indicates towards a collective action and shared responsibility for driving a genderbalanced world. After the Socialist Party of America organized a Women's Day on February 28, 1909, in New York, the 1910 International Australian Senator Larissa Waters with her daughter in the federal parliament Socialist Woman's Conference suggested that a Women's Day be held annually. After women gained suffrage in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8 became a national holiday there. The day was then predominantly celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries until it was adopted in 1975 by the United Nations. Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike. The Day is being celebrated everywhere with numerous activities attended by women from the fields of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and design, senior officials of the Organization and various personalities committed to the advancement of women's rights. The first International Women's Day occurred in 1911, supported by over one million people. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collectively everywhere and is not country, group or organization specific. International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women - while also marking a call to action for accelerating gender balance. The achievement of the ambitious sustainable development goals requires transformative shifts, integrated approaches and new solutions, particularly when it comes to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. From grassroots activism to worldwide action, we are entering an exciting period of history where the world expects balance. The future is exciting and let’s build a gender-balanced world. IWD is organized by UN Women, the UN agency dedicated to promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. UN Secretary-General, António Guterres said that let’s make sure women and girls can shape the policies, services and infrastructure that impact all our lives. And let’s support women and girls who are breaking down barriers to create a better world for everyone. The IWD-2019 theme “Think equal, build smart, innovate for change” focuses on innovative ways in which we can advance gender equality and the empowerment of women, particularly in the areas of social protection systems, access to public services and sustainable infrastructure. International Women’s Day is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities.
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Innovation and technology provide unprecedented opportunities, yet trends indicate a growing gender digital divide and women are under-represented in the field of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and design. It prevents them from developing and influencing genderresponsive innovations to achieve transformative gains for society. From mobile banking to artificial intelligence and the internet of things, it is vital that women’s ideas and experiences equally influence the design and implementation of the innovations that shape our future societies. We look to industry leaders, game-changing start-ups, social entrepreneurs, gender equality activists, and women innovators to examine the ways in which innovation can remove barriers and accelerate progress for gender equality, encourage investment in gender-responsive social systems, and build services and infrastructure that meet the needs of women and girls. On IWD we have to make sure to create a future in which innovation and technology creates unprecedented opportunities for women and girls to play an active role in building more inclusive systems, efficient services and sustainable infrastructure to accelerate the achievement towards sustainable development and gender equality. It is great to see women progressing well in all spheres’ of life and profession making a very delicate balance between profession and family life. We can only wish to all the women who are getting Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi fighting for country with her child on back opportunities as working women that they should not compromise their professional duties and make progress at par with very successful women in various walks of life. There are numerous examples of successful women in different walks of life to quote but still the picture of women independence is not so rosy. Women still face lots of discrimination at the hands of men not only at their workplaces but also all over the way of life. Safety of women in the society is still a big issue all over the world. Some key targets of the 2030 UN-Agenda To ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes. To ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and preprimary education so that they are ready for primary education. End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere. Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation. Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital mutilation.
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