Empowering women to create a better world
By Ambassador Jerry Lanier
As people in Sudan, America, and around the world celebrated International Women’s Day on March 8, they stood united in their support for the rights of women and girls to live healthy, full, and productive lives. Americans continue throughout March to celebrate Women’s History Month as we honor the generations of courageous women who fought for equal rights throughout our nation’s history. These women, who represent the values at the heart of our nation, fought fiercely to bring truth to the idea that we are all created equal.
In Sudan too, there are countless examples of strong women fighting poverty, discrimination, and violence, sometimes at great personal risk, so their families and communities can lead better lives. Through their daily acts of courage – teaching children, establishing hospitals, creating businesses, and speaking up about injustices when others may be afraid to – these women serve as ambassadors of peace and prosperity, advocating for a better and brighter future in Sudan and beyond. We stand with Sudanese women in their struggle to nurture strong families and build more peaceful communities, and we call on all Sudanese, women and men, to remember their example in working together to find paths to lasting peace and prosperity.
As today’s women and girls reach for new economic, political, and social heights, they stand on the shoulders of all those women who came before them, and they carry on that proud legacy of achievement.
In too many homes and too many communities, however, women and girls are still denied the opportunity to fully participate and contribute. As a result, too many of those opportunities for which previous generations fought so hard remain unrealized, and when women are excluded, our entire community suffers.
Tapping the full power, intellect, and potential of women is essential to addressing the challenges all nations face today. Stability, peace, and prosperity absolutely depend on advancing the rights of women and girls. Research shows that investment in women’s health, education, and employment lead to greater market competitiveness and overall economic prosperity. Governments that equally empower male and female citizens as political and social actors better represent their constituents and are more successful in meeting the needs of their communities. Evidence also shows that integrating women into peace and security negotiations helps to end conflict and create more enduring peace agreements. And as a male who grew up during the period of “women’s liberation,” the change and progress it brought also constituted “liberation” for men, as old prejudices and beliefs gave way to social, political, and cultural equality for women. Everyone wins when our mothers, sisters, daughters, and wives have opportunities for education, expression, and full social and cultural participation.
For Women’s History Month – and every month – we honor all of our pioneering women and their countless victories, in courtrooms, classrooms, and living rooms, and on all of the other battlefields where they continue to fight to bring our reality a step closer to our stated ideals. We support them in their effort to build a better world, where our daughters can dream as big as our sons, and where they have the same means and opportunities to make those dreams realities.
The author is the Chargé d’Affaires at the United States Embassy in Sudan