International Women’s Day, 2023: Op-ed

ASYA VARBANOVA

Each year, March 8 International Women’s Day is the time to celebrate women and girls around the world and their remarkable achievements in the persisting struggle for equality and justice.

This is also the time to recognize that equality has yet to be achieved in nearly all aspects of life, political participation and representation, economic participation, and the ability to live a life free from violence and discrimination. Such gaps remain globally and in Türkiye.

This year’s International Women’s Day is marked under the shadow of the devastating earthquakes that struck southeastern Türkiye just over one month ago, killing over 45,000 people and injuring thousands more.

Today, we recognize the strength, bravery, and resilience of all the women who have been instrumental in the hours, days and weeks following the disaster, the unsung heroines who have held others up while their own worlds crumbled around them.

And we honor the countless women and girls who lost their homes, livelihoods, and loved ones.

Crises such as this one disproportionately impact women and girls, and has the risk to deepen pre-existing inequalities.

The depth and breadth of adversities facing the roughly 7 million women and girls in the provinces hardest hit by the earthquake is extraordinary. Initial rapid assessments by the U.N. on the impact of the crisis and the feedback provided to U.N. Women by women’s organizations active in the field show that women and girls face particular challenges to access essential services and vital relief items, to remain safe and cover their basic needs for appropriate shelter, hygiene and sanitation, healthcare and protection.

This is particularly acute for women with specific needs such as those who are pregnant and breastfeeding, who are single and single mothers, with disabilities, or from rural areas.

Additionally, crises often intensify different forms of violence against women and girls, who face increased risk amidst volatile conditions such as the loss of homes and shelter that can leave them particularly exposed and vulnerable.
Even before the crisis, the level of reporting of domestic violence to the competent authorities in the 11 affected provinces was relatively low.

This means that dedicated efforts are needed to ensure that women and girls receive the needed information, services and support to remain safe, and for violence to be prevented from happening in the first place.

To meet such needs and in support to the government-led response, U.N. Women mounted a swift response targeting the most at-risk women and girls in the affected region and those relocated to other provinces.

This year globally, International Women’s Day is marked under the theme “DigitALL: Innovation and technological for gender equality.”

The digital age is bringing unprecedented opportunities to improve the lives of women and girls around the world, and their access to digital networks, platforms and technologies can sometimes be life-saving.

However, women’s access to technology around the world and in Türkiye is lower than men’s.

Their underrepresentation in STEM education remains a major barrier to their participation in tech design and governance.

In the face of multiple global crises, U.N. Women is calling on governments, activists and the private sector alike to power on in their efforts to make the digital world safer, more inclusive and more equitable, and to draw fully on the perspectives, experiences and talents of women.

This is not only a matter of rights, but can significantly improve the way communities and countries prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.

The road ahead is long, but our commitment to women and girls now, in their darkest hour, is stronger than ever.

We draw inspiration from the courage and dedication of all those women who took action, saved lives, and became the beacon of hope for so many.

So on this International Women’s Day, against the backdrop of profound grief and despair, let us not only remember the needs of women and girls who are affected by the earthquake, but take action in solidarity to ensure that they are not left behind.

* Asya Varbanova Is the UN Women Türkiye Country Director