Women continue to face challenges as political conflicts and the global pandemic have eroded some of the progress gained in the past decade.
The International Women’s Forum brought Atlanta leaders together Thursday afternoon to provide an update on the “Global Status of Women” in a three-hour program at the Georgia-Pacific Auditorium with a focus on the challenges related to Afghan refugees who came to Atlanta after the Taliban took control of the country last August. It was IWF’s third annual International Women’s Day program.
Michelle Nunn, president and CEO of CARE USA, recalled the last in-person gathering two years ago — right before the COVID crisis.
“In the last two years, we have lost a lot of ground,” Nunn said about the global state of women, but she added there has been incremental progress over the last decade. Ten years ago, one out of every four girls got married by the age of 18. Today, the percentage of child brides has decreased to one in five girls. Nunn said this shows progress, but there was still a lot of room for improvement.