Every time we make a purchase, we use our dollars to send a message for the kind of world we want to see. Nearly half the world’s population lives on less than $3USD a day with women and girls representing the majority of the world’s poor. Investing in girls and women isn’t just the right thing to do, it also makes economic sense.
Worldwide, 31 million girls don’t have access to an education, and over 20% of girls in developing countries won’t continue schooling beyond the sixth grade. In India alone, if only an additional 1% of girls continued to secondary school, their GDP would rise by $5.5 billion. Think of the impact that would have on impoverished communities, infrastructure, hunger, and quality of life.
In a world where 70% of the poorest people are female, there is so much work to be done to provide educate. In fact, a girl’s income can increase 25% for every additional year she stays in school. Educated girls are healthier and can lift up their entire communities instead of relying on them for support. Women in the workforce reinvest up to 90% of their income into their families and communities (compared to 30-40% of the income of men). This reinvesting creates long-term social and economic benefits for entire towns that continue to grow and thrive.
Women work 66% of the world’s working hours and produce half of the world’s food. Compare that to earning only 10% of the world’s income and owning less than 1% of the world’s property. If given access to agricultural resources, women could increase farm yields up to 30% and reduce the number of those who struggle with hunger by 150 million. Land ownership obstacles and little to no access to credit is preventing millions of bellies from being full. Women could be a key to making strides to combat world hunger.
We just threw a lot of facts at you, none of them are uplifting. But we think knowing the full picture is the first step in understanding the problem so we can work towards a solution.
More than 50% the world’s Fair Trade artisans are women. These working women earn their own income, can afford to send their kids to school, and are empowered to have their own voice in their communities.
On average, working women earn half of what men earn. Fair is beautiful, Fair is empowering, and Fair it a great step towards making these changes become a reality.
Send a message to your leaders. Hold your policymakers accountable. Ensure that women’s rights are taken seriously both at home and around the world. Female empowerment is a demand for equality, not superiority. To have an even greater impact, support small businesses that take these principles to heart. Use our dollars to send a message for the kind of world we want to see.
