COMMENT | The United Nations cemented gender equality as a core tenet in the 1945 UN Charter. 

Yet, in 2024, we continue to see women and girls struggling for recognition and safety.

The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report of 2023 suggests closing the gap could take 131 years, needing US$6.4 trillion (RM29.8 trillion) annually across 48 developing countries for gender equality.

In 2022, military spending surpassed US$2.2 trillion. Clearly, some priorities need to shift.

Without a deeper understanding of what drives equality and a conscious approach to tackling disparities, the coming generations may be trapped in a backward society 131 years later.

Closer to home, women’s leadership in Asean reveals only a two percent increase over the past two decades. The region’s politics remains predominantly male-dominated.

In Malaysia, the journey toward greater women’s participation in Parliament - and ultimately having a woman prime minister - continues, inspired by the...