By investing in them, we build the future
We must act now for a present and future where girls, adolescents and women can thrive and be who they want to be.
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Gender equality is not only an ethical and human rights imperative, but also a powerful driver for sustainable development. However, girls, adolescents and women continue to face structural barriers to participation and progress in conditions of equality in all spheres.
Closing gender gaps must be an urgent global priority. Limiting the opportunities and potential of women and girls violates their fundamental rights. It is also a drag on economic growth, mother and child health, food security, inclusive education, peace and global stability.
The evidence is compelling: strategically investing in girls, adolescents and women has a powerful multiplier effect. Women often reinvest their income in the well-being of their families and communities, which impacts the food, health, education and overall quality of life of their family members, especially their children. This helps to break intergenerational cycles of poverty and inequality.
Por otro lado, su liderazgo es fundamental para crear sociedades más inclusivas y responder a desafíos globales como el cambio climático, la búsqueda de la paz duradera y las crisis humanitarias.
On the other hand, their leadership is critical to creating more inclusive societies and responding to global challenges such as climate change, humanitarian crises and the search for lasting peace.
In Cuba, 100 percent of girls complete elementary school, 95 percent complete junior high school and 63 percent complete higher education. These are significant achievements; however, there are challenges. Early unions are among the said challenges. About 30 percent of Cuban women, aged 20-24, were married or in a union for the first time before the age of 18 and 5 percent before the age of 15, according to the MICS 2019 survey.
Early unions can be an obstacle to continuing education for young women, who are more likely to have children before the age of 18. While the fertility rate in Cuba is very low, 19 percent of pregnancies in 2023 were among adolescents aged 12-19.
Addressing these challenges means providing better options for girls and adolescent girls to continue their educational trajectories, develop their vocations and expand their skills to access the labour market, regardless of their gender. Investing in girls means preparing them for more opportunities in key sectors such as technology, which is still a male-dominated field.
To close the existing gaps, we need policies targeting girls and adolescent girls and gender-sensitive budgets. The emerging private sector in Cuba can play an important role in guaranteeing greater job opportunities for women, with equal pay and conditions.
Civil society also has a great responsibility to promote social and behavioural changes that challenge discriminatory cultural norms and empower girls and adolescents to know and exercise their rights in full. Investing in girls means preparing them to be protagonists in this transformation.
Investing in women means investing in children. For example, by guaranteeing alternative forms of care such as casitas infantiles (childcare facilities) for their daughters and sons, their reintegration into the labour market is favoured.
Investing in women and girls is humane, profitable, strategic and a priority because it is about the enjoyment and protection of their rights. It contributes to their family, community and social progress because it supports the social cohesion that is so necessary in times of many uncertainties, and because it lays the foundations for a more sustainable and equitable future.
The road to substantive equality is long, but we must travel it with determination. We must act now for a present and future where girls, adolescents and women can thrive and be who they want to be.
