Contact: Dilly Severin | dseverin@data2x.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, DC—Data2X is calling on commitment makers to the Generation Equality Forum to prioritize gender data—specifically, its collection, financing, and use—to ensure that progress on gender equality and the Sustainable Development Goals is realized. At present, just 40 percent of countries have available data to track progress on the sustainable development goal related to gender equality (SDG 5) and a recent report by Data2X estimates that approximately 500 million dollars would be needed annually to fill the funding gap for core gender data systems.
The Generation Equality Forum provides an opportunity to address these longstanding gaps as well as stem the immediate social and economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which have disproportionately impacted women and girls and other marginalized communities.
“What is exciting about the Generation Equality Forum is that governments, donors, civil society and companies are all coming together to say a better, more equitable world is possible,” says Data2X Executive Director, Emily Courey Pryor. “However, saying is not the same thing as doing. To be more effective, and more accountable for the promises we make, we must improve gender data to have better insights and information on the lived realities of women and girls and commit to acting on that data for better, more equitable policies.”
Data2X is committing to tracking all gender data commitments made in support of Generation Equality and will build a dedicated microsite to showcase and monitor them. This includes tracking commitments from governments, civil society, and from newer actors, such as the private sector, including PayPal, who will work with Data2X and other partners to foster collaboration and drive gender data solutions that make a practical difference in the lives of women and girls worldwide.
“Imagine the prosperity women entrepreneurs could achieve if we had the data to understand the barriers they face accessing capital—and crafted specific policies to address them. Imagine how many lives could have been saved and how much trauma could have been mitigated in this pandemic alone if we had better data on where and when gender-based violence is happening,” says Courey Pryor. “Gender data can create tangible benefits in people’s lives but only if we collect it, fund it, and use it. It’s up to us to make sure that happens at the Paris Forum and beyond.”
###
About Data2X
Data2X is a global gender data alliance which builds the case and mobilizes action for gender data. Through our research, advocacy, and communications, we make gender data central to global efforts to achieve gender equality. Data2X’s work is made possible by contributions from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the William & Flora Hewlett Foundation.