“The best way to predict the future is to create it.”
– Peter Drucker. [1]
It is the development that aims to meet our current needs as human beings, and the word (sustainable) means achieving these needs while preserving the natural resources for the succeeding generations who are as entitled to them as we are.
The Sustainable Development Goals are a global call for action to end poverty, protect the planet, and improve the lives and prospects of everyone and everywhere.
All member states of the United Nations adopted the 17 goals in 2015, within the framework of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which resulted in a 15-year plan to achieve these goals. [2]
17 goals for people and the planet.
It is for both men and women to have equal rights, conditions, and opportunities to shape their lives in the way they want regardless of their gender, to equally contribute to the development of society, and to end all kinds of gender-based violence against women.
In light of the recent improvements in the conditions of women around the world, many would believe that gender equality has been achieved, and they might even say, in jest or in earnest, that it is time for men to obtain equality with women. [3]
Unfortunately, this remains a minor improvement, as according to the statistics of the United Nations Development Program:
Gender Equality ensures a great economic and intellectual development of the society, as it appears that societies with more gender equality tend to be happier and more economically prosperous because equal opportunities between women and men allow making full use of women’s potential.
Gender inequality is also a form of violence and racism that must be morally ended. [4]
It started with the beginning of the evolutionary journey of humans when males had to go hunting and do the most physically difficult tasks, while women had to take care of children and the things that didn’t require much physical capacity, but after the social and technical development of human society, physical strength was no longer the measure of the ability to work but rather the mental capacity.
Many studies have proven that both genders are similar in terms of cognitive ability, personality development, and leadership skills, and the concept of gender discrimination is purely inherited cultural concept, meaning there are no scientific reasons or logical social necessity to differentiate between the sexes; as the differences that we sometimes observe result from learning these differences rather than being real differences.
We notice how the media always emphasizes the different nature of men and women and the expected roles of each of them. Since childhood, we see girls’ toys are kids’ dolls limiting their role to motherhood only, compared with boys whose toys are cars and violent games and sometimes toys that depend on intelligence development.
Consequently, sexual violence and exploitation, the unequal burden of domestic work and unpaid care work, and discrimination in public office all remain huge barriers to achieving gender equality in many countries and societies, reinforcing the prevailing stereotypes against women. [3]
According to a study conducted at the University of Minnesota in America on data collected from countries such as Canada, Portugal, America, Denmark, and others, they found a clear correlation between the rate of happiness and life satisfaction in societies and gender equality.
The greater the equality, the higher the level of life satisfaction.
Some may argue that this level comes from the high level of satisfaction among women at the expense of men, however, when the test was conducted after separating people according to their gender, they found that the level of satisfaction among men was also elevated.
Therefore, gender equality doesn’t reflect positively on women only, but also on men.
Having equal responsibilities and the ability to choose the lifestyle and interests beyond the influence of society, gives freedom to both parties.
Besides, living with a partner with whom we share responsibilities, rights, and interests and communicate properly based on respect and equality, rather than living in the manner of owner and commodity, strong and weak, gives a sense of security to both parties and helps them achieve their goals, thus creating a cohesive and balanced society. [4]
Progress has been made in supporting women and girls around the world. According to UNICEF, in 1995, 65 million girls were out of primary school, this number went down to 32 million in 2020.
1 in 4 girls was forced into an underage marriage which now decreased to 1 in 5.
As for the Arab region and the labor market, despite the narrow educational gap between the two parties, there still is a significant disparity in the labor market.
According to the statistics of the United Nations Development Program, the unemployment rate among women witnessed a slow decline from 22.4% in 2000 to 19.96% in 2015. However, this number is still double the region’s unemployment rate among men is 8.96% and three times the global rate of 6.2% in the same year.[6][7]
In addition to the efforts of the international organizations and the attempts of many countries to amend their laws in order to achieve gender equality, there are many community initiatives that seek to raise awareness and make a change on this matter, and our initiative is a perfect example of this, as we aim to make a difference in the lives of many women by offering free courses to help them enter the labor market and become financially independent or scientifically advanced, and to influence the society as a whole through clarifying many concepts related to equality in order to rise with the society.
Also read: Sustainable Development Goals- Goal 4
♀️ Uplifting Syrian Women Initiative aims at sustainable peace building in Syria through targeting women and providing them with free online courses, workshops, discussion sessions and trainings, with a view to achieving the goals of Gender Equality, Quality Education and Decent Work and Economic Growth, which all fall into the interest of society as a whole and serve the purpose of rebuilding it.