Saraki calls for financial empowerment for women in SDGs

Wellbeing Foundation Africa says the United Nations General Assembly where leaders will consider sustainable development goals should make financial empowerment of women a priority. It also calls for “increased access to free and universal healthcare, which is essential for mothers, their newborns, and young children, and is central to attaining Sustainable Development Goal 3,” said […]

Wellbeing Foundation Africa says the United Nations General Assembly where leaders will consider sustainable development goals should make financial empowerment of women a priority.
It also calls for “increased access to free and universal healthcare, which is essential for mothers, their newborns, and young children, and is central to attaining Sustainable Development Goal 3,” said Wellbeing founder Toyin Saraki.
The third SDG, which replaces millennium development goals after a deadline by year end, seeks “to ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for everyone, at all ages.”
“When a woman has access to finance and a safe place to save outside of the home, she also has greater control over her life,” Saraki told the UN General Assembly Guardian roundtable on Tuesday in New York.
“She can participate more in the economy, set aside fund for schooling or starting a business, and take a more equal role in her marriage and community by establishing her own source of income.
“[However], when we exclude adolescent girls and women from our economy, or from accessing finance, we are holding back our countries from the value that women can add.
“The financial inclusion of girls and women could unleash untold potential and transform communities – both in my motherland, Nigeria, and across the world,” she said.
 
“As a signatory for the Girl Declaration and a partner to the Girl Effect, I believe in the potential of girls as they grow into leaders and join the economy,” Sarakisaid.
“We need initiatives like the Girl Effect that place the potential of our youth at the front and center of our policies as the future is in their hands. Our policies and initiatives should focus on empowering youth and giving them the financial tools that they need to lead.’’ she added.