Equality is not inevitable: Why International Women’s Day still matters

Over thirty years after governments adopted the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the promise of equality under the law remains unfulfilled.

International Women’s Day is often framed as a celebration. But in 2026, it is also a strategic checkpoint. A moment to assess where progress has been secured, where backlash is accelerating, and what must happen next.

Because equality is not inevitable. It is the result of deliberate legal reform, political will, sustained accountability and social change.

Legal inequality persists – and it harms lives

The World Bank’s latest Women, Business and the Law report, released last week, found that not a single country has achieved full legal equality for women and girls:

• Globally, women have less than two-thirds of the legal rights enjoyed by men
• Only 4% of women worldwide are living in countries close to full legal equality
• No economy grants women equal economic opportunities

These gaps are not abstract. They are embedded in nationality laws that prevent mothers from passing citizenship to their children and spouses. In criminal frameworks that fail to define rape on the basis of consent. In legal systems that tolerate child marriage or excuse violence in the name of so-called “honour”.

Progress – and backlash – exist side by side 

Our new Words & Deeds update on progress and backlash in legal equality, Progress and backlash: Accountability for the rights of women and girls, shows a dual reality.

It documents tangible gains across multiple regions, including reforms to nationality laws, strengthened protections against child marriage, and expanded legal frameworks addressing sexual violence. Since 1992, Equality Now has contributed to reforming more than 130 discriminatory legal provisions worldwide, evidence that sustained legal advocacy delivers results.

At the same time, the report highlights coordinated efforts to dilute protections, stall implementation, and reframe gender equality as negotiable. In some contexts, progressive laws remain unenforced. In others, rights once secured are being challenged outright.

Legal equality is foundational, not symbolic

Gender equality is frequently discussed as a social aspiration. But our work demonstrates that it is also fundamentally a legal question.

When inequality is written into law, it shapes every institution that follows. Discrimination constrains access to justice, economic independence, political representation, and personal autonomy.

The worldwide consequences are profound.

If women participated equally in the workforce, up to $7 trillion could be added to global GDP over the next decade. Equal access to land and productive resources could significantly reduce food insecurity. Peace agreements are 35% more likely to last at least 15 years when women meaningfully participate in negotiations.

Legal equality is not a “women’s issue.” It is a governance issue. An economic issue. A stability issue.

Progress is real – and we’ve made it together

It is important to recognise what has been achieved.

In recent years, governments have strengthened laws on child marriage, criminalised forms of gender-based violence previously ignored, and reformed nationality codes that discriminated against women. Courts in multiple jurisdictions have interpreted constitutional guarantees in ways that expand protections for women and girls.

These advances did not happen organically. They were driven by sustained advocacy, survivor leadership, coalition-building, and strategic use of international human rights mechanisms.

They also demonstrate that legal systems can change.

Our approach has always been grounded in the belief that reform transforms systems sustainably. We work with governments, treaty bodies, civil society organisations, and regional institutions to strengthen laws, close gaps, and ensure implementation.

Backlash makes this moment more urgent

We are operating in a period of democratic strain, war and global instability. Economic pressures, armed conflict, and political polarisation have created fertile ground for narratives that question or undermine gender equality.

In some countries, sexual and reproductive rights are being restricted. In others, legislative initiatives attempt to narrow definitions of gender-based violence or weaken accountability frameworks. Funding for women’s rights organisations remains insufficient relative to need.

Backlash does not always take the form of sweeping repeal. Often, it appears as delay, dilution, or defunding.