Copenhagen to Host Women Deliver 2016 Global Conference

The 2016 Women Deliver Global Conference will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark  to strategize on how to make sure that investments in girls and women become a priority at the national and global levels.

The conference, the fourth triennial global meeting will be the largest gathering on girls’ and women’s health and rights in the last decade and the first large global conference on these issues following the launch of the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

It will offer advocates, activists, researchers, policymakers, young people, journalists, private sector leaders and members of civil society an unprecedented opportunity to operationalize these new goals given that the MDG target of reducing maternal mortality and achieving universal access to reproductive health is likely to be met.

In statement issued by the Women Deliver Secretariat and copied to the Ghana News Agency said the 2016 Conference will build on momentum generated around the previous landmark conferences held in 2013 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which was attended by 4,500 participants from 149 countries; in 2010 in Washington, D.C.; and in 2007 in London.

The conferences have in the past drawn high-level attendance including by the UN Secretary-General and have generated action, spurred new ideas, and shared solutions that continue to make a difference for girls and women around the world.

Women Deliver President Jill Sheffield launching the conference in Denmark said “We are beyond thrilled that the Women Deliver and the Danish government has played a key role in advancing girls’ and women’s health and rights and, with its support, this conference could catapult these issues to the forefront of the global development agenda and unify advocates from all around the world around one simple ask: Invest in girls and women – it pays.”

The statement noted that Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mary of Denmark was active in working to create awareness on girls’ and women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights, global maternal health and child mortality issues, and acts as patron of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Maternity Foundation.

“I am proud that Denmark will be hosting the Women Deliver 2016 Conference, and look very much forward to not only welcoming the world’s leading girls’ and women’s health and rights advocates to Copenhagen for this historic event, but also to be participating once again in what is an inspirational, powerful and potentially game-changing forum,” she added.

Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Mary of Denmark said “Together, we need to increase investments in women and girls. If we can close the gender gap, it will be a win for the individual, for global development, and for economic growth where everybody wins.”

The Danish Minister of  Trade and Development Cooperation Mogens Jensen used the occasion to also launch a new Strategic Framework for Gender Equality, Rights an Diversity to guide its efforts to improve the lives of girls and women around the world. The new framework focuses on the potential of gender equality to transform societies, and highlights how Denmark will help girls and women access resources and seize opportunities that will enable them to take control over their own lives.

“Women Deliver and Denmark are united in our dedication to improving the lives of girls and women everywhere. We look forward to collaborating with Women Deliver and others – in line with our new Strategic Framework – to accelerate progress in the final 500 days of the MDGs and to make sure that girls and women remain front and center in the post-2015 world, he added”

The Chief Executive Officer of Women Deliver Katja Iversen noted that “There has never been a better time to raise our voices in support of the health and rights of girls and women, together, we can and we must create a future where all girls and women, no matter where they are born, can lead healthy, productive and happy lives.”

GNA