Women’s leadership is in the spotlight in the U.S. with the first woman of color at the top of a major party ticket. However, fewer than a third of U.N. member states have ever had a woman leader, and women CEOs run only 10.4 % of Fortune 500 companies. Let that stark reality sink in.
The limited number of women in leadership is unsurprising when we consider the persistent barriers that continue to confront women around the world – bias and discrimination, unequal pay, limited childcare and more. Given these challenges, we will not successfully advance women’s leadership without addressing the enormous obstacles that girls face around the world.
For example, through its Cummins Powers Women program, the company has partnered with world-class nonprofits such as Rise Up to accelerate gender equality. Yet, as the numbers show, much more work needs to be done to remove the barriers facing women and girls.
Globally, there are 1.16 billion girls under the age of 18. Twelve million of them are married off as children each year, and 119 million school-aged girls do not attend school. And although numerous studies prove that investing in girls’ health, wellbeing, education and skills development leads to greater opportunities, higher incomes, increased productivity and a more skilled workforce, girls have not been a priority for global investment. Less than 2% of charitable giving goes to supporting girls and women, and only .5% goes to organizations focused on women and girls of color specifically.
It seems obvious that if we want a future filled with strong women leaders in STEM, politics, business, philanthropy, entrepreneurship and beyond, we must start by removing barriers and supporting girls to become leaders now. Without bold investments in girls, we will never unlock women’s leadership potential in solving our world’s greatest challenges.
That is why, in honor of International Day of the Girl, we are calling on our fellow leaders in business, philanthropic and nonprofit sectors to build strong alliances and make greater investments in girls through these concrete actions:
- Build strong partnerships across sectors, using impactful partnerships like that between Cummins and Rise Up as models. Trust community leaders on the ground by generously investing your financial support, time and business expertise over the long-term in their solutions.
- Invest your philanthropic and corporate responsibility dollars in nonprofits that are working to support girls and women. Regardless of the issues you prioritize — climate, education, health — addressing the needs of girls and women is critical to your success.
- As a leader, offer to be a mentor to a young woman in your organization. Ask about her goals and find meaningful ways to support her.
Focused on Breaking Down Barriers
Together, we are working to change this reality and break down barriers for girls and women. Our combined focus has been in place for six years, and we are expanding our work to advance girls’ rights and leadership around the world. So far together, we have invested in more than 700 local girls, women and allied leaders who have positively impacted more than 27 million people globally.
The two of us come to this issue with deep personal connections. As a woman in the male-dominated field of mechanical engineering, Jen has been an advocate for women representation in STEM fields throughout her career. As a young woman spending time in her mother’s native country of Argentina, Denise learned early on about the challenges facing girls around the world and was inspired to found Rise Up 15 years ago.
The powerful leaders we are supporting through our partnership are changing the world. Melody Yeleny Juárez Buch is one of those leaders. She became part of Las Niñas Lideran, Rise Up’s girl-leader network in Guatemala, at the age of 11. She became a girl leader in a national movement that successfully advocated for a national ban on child marriage, ultimately transforming the lives of two million girls by allowing them to be in control of their own futures.
We also partner with local community leaders who are working every day on behalf of girls. Take Rise Up male ally Ashwani Tiwari, for example, who recently received the prestigious Ban Ki-moon Award for Women’s Empowerment in honor of his work to expand STEM education for marginalized girls in India.
Over the years, we have seen evidence – through Melody, Ashwani and hundreds of other Rise Up Leaders – that our strategic partnership works. To prevent girls and women from continuing to fall behind, we need more corporate-nonprofit partnerships if we want to protect and advance gender equality in the U.S. and globally.
If we truly want a better future, expert research and data points to starting with investments in girls. When girls thrive, we all benefit. The time for investing in girls is now.
