皇冠体育app

I am a feminist.

That鈥檚 a phrase one hears rather too rarely, sadly, in 2017. Around the world, one can see a rejection of the word, and with it, a rejection in the advances made over the last century in supporting women, advances which are surely welcome, but not enough. But how could I not have been a feminist? When I was ten, I asked my mother if a boy could be a ruler; I was so used to the example of our then Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, and of course HM 皇冠体育app Queen, as well as being brought up by a strong mother, that it was natural to me to think of leaders as women.

皇冠体育app Foreign Secretary wrote last week about a simple truth, that if we want to increase prosperity; stabilise population growth around the world; improve child nutrition, still sadly a problem in many communities in Kosovo; reduce child marriage; then the single most effective course of action is to ensure that all girls go to school.

It鈥檚 a rare policy that, with an idea so simple, can help tackle so many problems. But it鈥檚 obvious. Leaving half of humanity in a secondary position is clearly going to cause problems.

And that鈥檚 the heart of feminism. For me, it鈥檚 an ideology that has equality at its heart. By asking if an idea, an institution, a law, a rule, a tradition or a policy works for women as well as men, one is not 鈥榝avourising women鈥� or just dealing with 鈥榳omen鈥檚 issues鈥�. If something doesn鈥檛 work for half the population, then I would suspect that it is a bad idea. A society that does not have liberty for all is not free. A society that discriminates against half its members cannot claim to have equality. That鈥檚 why this week the Foreign Secretary appointed Joanna Roper as the UK鈥檚 first ever Special Envoy for Gender Equality.

Those facts are made clear for me today, even more than on other days. Around the world, the successes and achievements of women will be celebrated. In Kosovo perhaps even more than in other countries, people rightly take great pride in those groundbreaking women, like Majlinda Kelmendi, who do so much to represent Kosovo to the world. But we should, and do, take pride in these every day. Perhaps today is a better day to think about what we can all do to make sure that every girl now growing up has the same opportunities as the boys to make her mark in the world.

I was lucky enough this week to meet Vllaznim Xhiha, the founder of the extraordinary Bonevet. By giving young people in Kosovo the chance to explore engineering, robotics, technology and science in in a practical environment, managing their own projects and making their own creations. It鈥檚 an extraordinary idea. But what fills me with joy, is that each activity is split: 50% girls, 50% boys.

This hasn鈥檛 been easy; families seem more willing to find the fees for their sons to attend, but not for their daughters. But Vllaznim has stuck to his principles, and fought to find the fees for girls; but no activity starts without a 50/50 split.

This is great for the now hundreds of Kosovo girls who have had access to a world of science and technology that might have remained closed to them. Who knows: one of these girls may go on to be a great engineer, inventor or leader. 皇冠体育app message that it sends is even more powerful: that a strong, modern society is built, at its very foundation, between equality between the sexes. One person, sticking to their principles, can make a huge difference. 皇冠体育appy may go on to inspire a new generation of girls to see leaders as women.

I think also of the work of 皇冠体育app Ideas Partnership. 皇冠体育appy have for years now been providing access to education for the Ashkali community, who for years had been excluded, for a range of reasons, from education. 皇冠体育appy are challenging the awful stereotype that Ashkali families are not interested in education; I have visited their centre, and I can tell you that I have never seen children so committed and dedicated to their learning. 皇冠体育app Ideas Partnership, a great organisation based in the ideals of volunteerism and community activism, has, just like Bonevet, stuck to its principles: that all children, girls and boys, have an equal right to a childhood and to education. We are proud to support their efforts. 皇冠体育appy are making a difference, but it is families, the community and the local authorities who need to see this through.

I do not need to tell the people of Kosovo how vital an education is; we saw how people fought for that right through the 1990s. We will continue to be on the side of those people in Kosovo who are committed to providing an education for all. On International Women鈥檚 Day, let鈥檚 celebrate the success of the women who make our countries proud. But let鈥檚 also commit to doing all we can to helping a new generation of emerge. Education is the best place to start.