Rwanda's commitment to women's right has helped it secure a prestigious international conference.
The Women Deliver Conference will see 6,000 delegates meet in the capital Kigali, and online, from 17-20 July 2023.
The hybrid aspect of the event hopes to attract a further 200,000 participants from around the world to engage in the conference content. The hybrid model aims to help underrepresented communities be part of the conversation.
Created in 2007, with the ambition of addressing and challenging gender inequality, the 2023 Women Deliver Conference (WD2023) will seek to identify opportunities to advance gender equality including sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), to improve the health, and wellbeing of girls and women.
Rwanda’s Minister of Gender and Family Promotion, Jeanette Bayisenge, who is also chair of the WD2023 Host Country Committee said: “For the very first time, the Women Deliver Conference will be held on the African continent. It is an honour for Rwanda to be the next host of this convening as it affirms that the ongoing efforts in-country around gender equality by the Government of Rwanda are gaining the desired traction.”
The World Economic Forum ranks Rwanda seventh globally and first in Africa as a leader in advancing gender equality. Currently, 60 per cent of Rwanda’s government comprises women and it was this female-first focus that helped it to win the bid to host this conference.
In addition to Rwanda’s elevation of women in politics, as a nation, it is also focused on Sustainable Development Goal 5, which acts to ensure gender equality and women and girls' empowerment is achieved towards the sustainable development of Africa.
But there is still a lot of work to be done to achieve international gender equality. According to the African Development Bank, women still disproportionately spend more time than men on unpaid and unskilled work, such as collecting firewood, with often little or no financial gain. This issue, largely seen in lower-and-middle income countries, stresses the amount of work still to be done to achieve gender equality.
WD2023 will be held in the Kigali Convention Center (KCC), the first convention centre in Rwanda and the largest in the region. WD2023 will span the use of the KCC, the adjacent Radisson Blu Hotel, and the nearby Kigali Arena for the Opening Ceremony. The Conference will also include a Culture Night — an evening event that will showcase Rwanda’s culture, art, food, and music for all participants of the conference.
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
