Hansard

When people are moving around, it is easy to slip through the system, but I hope that our equally safe strategy captures the situation for such women.

We must push forward to ensure that women’s and girls’ rights are at the heart of everything that we do at home and abroad. Our global perspective complements domestic equality policy, and the Conservative amendment is right to draw attention to the unacceptable practice of female genital mutilation, which is the physical manifestation of a deep-rooted gender inequality. FGM is illegal in Scotland and is recognised internationally as a violation of the human rights of girls and women. It is important that we work collectively to prioritise both protection and prevention.

Globally, there is growing momentum towards adopting a feminist approach to international policy considerations—one that is fair, intersectional and based on human rights. In Scotland, we are committed to taking a feminist approach to all of our international work. As part of that, we will continue to strive to give people who are most affected by structural inequalities and injustice, conflict, climate change and environmental damage a platform to speak for themselves, influence and make decisions.

Our commitment to invest in women and girls as advocates for human rights is clear. We have invested in the Scottish human rights defender fellowship programme and, as part of that, in 2023-24, we are supporting three women from the global south to undertake fellowships in Scotland on gender and the environment.

Since the programme was established, in 2018, we have welcomed 17 human rights defenders—the majority of whom have been women—from 16 different countries to participate in the programme, and we support them to further develop their skills and networks in safety.

We also fund the women in conflict 1325 fellowship programme, which is delivered by Beyond Borders Scotland. The United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 was the first Security Council resolution on women, peace and security, and our fellowship programme has, to date, helped 362 women peace builders by providing training and building their capacity in the prevention and resolution of conflict.

I am pleased to announce today that we have just awarded the contract for our new international development women and girls fund. Following a competitive process, the fund is the first new programme to be launched as part of the equalities programme, following our 2021 international development review. We will deliver the fund in partnership with Ecorys, in collaboration with the Forum for African Women Educationalists in Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia. In line with the UN sustainable development goal, the main aim of the new £3 million women and girls fund is to support the advancement of gender equality and the rights of women and girls in our African partner countries.

We recognise the lack of funding for women’s rights in the global south. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, in 2021, less than 1 per cent of global bilateral overseas development assistance for gender equality and women’s empowerment went specifically to women’s rights organisations and movements—the very organisations that are the key drivers of change in addressing gender inequality. When gender equality remains one of the greatest human rights challenges globally, that simply is not good enough, and the fund puts feminist principles into action.

As we begin phase 1, taking a grass-roots, participatory approach, the focus and delivery mechanisms will be designed by Malawian, Rwandan and Zambian women and girls. Through that process, local women and girls will be empowered to define and meet their priorities. They will have the decision-making power. The aim is to challenge and shift typical structural inequalities by moving beyond simply hearing the voices of women and girls to ensuring that their voices actually influence the actions that are taken. Reflecting our commitment to equalising power, the fund will provide direct funding to organisations led by local women and girls to support them to advocate and advance the rights of women and girls in their cultural context.

I am pleased to note that a guidance note outlining our approach to mainstreaming gender equality across our international development portfolio was published a few weeks ago. That aligns with our commitments to do no harm and to build more gender-responsive programmes. The new mainstreaming approach will, equally, apply to our new health and education programmes, which we will also launch in 2024.

It is important to recognise that women are not a homogeneous group—we exist in all our wonderful multifaceted diversity. We must remember that achieving gender equality does not involve just one glass ceiling being smashed. For many women, that metaphor does not illustrate the complexity of their experience when facing unique and compounding intersectional inequality. I know that, even if we break the glass ceiling and step into positions of influence, we then face glass walls. We continue to encounter prejudice, to not have our voices heard and to be overlooked when it comes to decisions that affect us.

In order to truly tackle structural inequality, therefore, gender inequality cannot be considered in isolation from other forms of discrimination. That is why we must ensure that intersectionality is at the heart of the feminist approach and that the voices that are amplified are as diverse as the communities that are impacted by our interventions.

By investing in women’s organisations, feminist networks and grass-roots movements, as advocates for human rights, we can support those who are speaking out for structural change and amplify the voices that are too rarely heard.

I am clear that inspiring inclusion requires a participatory feminist approach that invests in women and girls in the pursuit of transformed national and international systems that work for people and place.

I am pleased to move,

That the Parliament welcomes the 2024 International Women’s Day theme of “Inspire Inclusion”, which recognises that, when people understand and value women’s inclusion, they forge a better world; acknowledges that, at a time of increasing conflict affecting civilians around the world, the specific impact on women and girls can be profound; recognises that achieving gender equality is more vital than ever and remains one of the greatest human rights challenges globally; marks International Women’s Day and the second anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, and welcomes the efforts of organisations and communities working tirelessly in pursuit of peace, inspiring inclusion, pushing forward on gender equality and amplifying the voices of women and marginalised groups, and notes the Scottish Government’s investment in women as advocates for human rights, and initiatives such as the Warm Scots Future, Women in Conflict 1325 Fellowship and Human Rights Defender Fellowship, and its commitment to a feminist approach to international relations.