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We hope you will be inspired by our annual report celebrating 20 years of advancing women’s rights globally. We thank you, our partners, for making our work possible. We are delighted to share this report with you on the 60th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights, which was signed in San Francisco, December 10th, 1948.
This holiday season we find ourselves at a very unique moment of history, one that is both sobering yet full of potential. We are at the end of a year in which violence and terror was inflicted on innocent civilians as well as combatants – by national armies as well as by rebels and militias. No part of the world was spared – from the attacks in Mumbai, to Afghanistan, Pakistan, Gaza, Colombia, Haiti, Darfur, Georgia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and of course Iraq. Women paid a particularly horrendous price as rape and sexual assault became commonplace. It is painfully clear that, to date, the “war on terror” has served only to exacerbate hostilities.
Rising food and petroleum prices, followed by the rapid collapse of the global financial system have also raised anxieties around the world. Despite immediate responses including so-called bailouts from governments and multi-lateral institutions, it appears that a worldwide recession is well underway.
And yet, in 2008, we also witnessed a sea change in the United States, as America elected its first ever African American President, Barack Obama. Though faced with myriad problems, the new President has a mandate and an opportunity to demonstrate resolve and imagination in managing the end of two wars, an economic crisis, climate change, and regaining credibility for the United States in the global community.
Similarly, while growing militarism, violence against women, and the financial crises pose major challenges for the Global Fund for Women, we see this as a time to lead with courage and conviction. We are committed to keeping a tight check on our expenses, while diversifying our funding base so that we can continue to be a steady source of support for women and girls. They, after all, are hardest hit by current events. Now more than ever, it is imperative that women’s voices and perspectives be at the forefront of change. With your support, we will continue to be there for them – for we know that the only guarantee of human security is to end global inequality and injustice by advancing human rights for all. [Download Annual Report as Pdf]
In peace and solidarity,
Kavita N.Ramdas
President & CEO
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