Promoting just and strong societies around the globe: What does “feminist development policy” actually mean?

Societies can only be peaceful and stable if everyone has equal access to participate in political, economic and social life. Recognising this, German development policy seeks to promote strong and just societies worldwide. Feminist development policy is intended to promote equality through cooperation and partnership. Genuine equality has in fact not been achieved in any country of the world even though it is a human right. The World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report confirms this, stating that it will take another 132 years to reach gender parity at the current rate of progress. The BMZ’s new feminist development policy aims to accelerate that progress in an effective manner.

Global Gender Gap Report

Around the world, people continue to be discriminated against and oppressed – due to their gender, their age, their religion or any of a number of other reasons. Women and girls are the largest group to face these disadvantages. They are often subject to violence, have their rights curtailed in numerous areas, they have fewer resources and are still not adequately represented in parliaments.

Feminist development policy provides potential solutions to discrimination and oppression. And it shifts the spotlight to women and the key role they play as knowledge-bearers and decision-makers. At its core, it is about creating a worldwide movement for more equity - and leveraging the potential of everyone.

The ministry’s new strategy on feminist development policy builds on an extensive consultation process in 2022, especially with civil society organisations and experts from the Global South and North.

In the 2030 Agenda, the international community set itself 17 goals to promote socially, economically and environmentally sustainable development - the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs. SDG 5 is about achieving gender equality and empowering all women and girls.

“SDG 5 is key to the entire sustainability agenda,” said Dr Bärbel Kofler, Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, at the 60th anniversary celebrations for the Centre for Rural Development (SLE) at Berlin’s Humboldt University. “We cannot overcome poverty and hunger without ensuring genuine equality. That is why we need a resolutely feminist development policy now! A policy aimed at overcoming gender-specific inequalities. It is the only way we will achieve the other SDGs too,” she continued.

Agenda 2030

The AGYO’s projects are also based on the 2030 Agenda, including SDG 5. There have already been various projects in which youth groups have come together under our Teams up! programme to explore the issue of gender equality. One example is a project called “Closing the Gap (after a pandemic) - Equality and an end to gender-based violence”, which is being conducted by the St. Georg e.V. girl guides’ network from Germany and the Rwanda Girl Guides Association to promote SDG 5. The project, which will run until the end of the year, focuses on the negative impact of the Covid pandemic on development possibilities for young girls. In particular, it will investigate why the inequality gap grew during the pandemic and how we can create safe spaces for girls now so that all children can develop their potential.

Teams up! programme