Everywhere around the world, nations are gearing up for peaceful rallies and activities in conjunction with International Women’s Day (IWD) this Sunday, 8 March. The campaign theme for this year’s IWD is #EachforEqual. According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), the core message of the theme is to have “an equal world in an enabled world”.

According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2020 by the World Economic Forum (WEF), it will take another 163 years for East Asia and the Pacific region to reach gender parity at its current rate.

It is a universal assumption that mothers are the ones who take care of children, but more fathers are now taking time off to look after their new-born babies and their partners, soon after childbirth.

From United States (US) Republicans’ effort to get the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 ruling that established a woman’s right to an abortion, to Poland’s increased restrictions on access to emergency contraception, to Brazil’s clampdown on sexual health education, this is a difficult time for women. But if the global feminist movement has proved anything over the years, it is that it can overcome powerful resistance to defend the rights of marginalised groups.

While Malaysia’s male politicians continue to squabble over power, all the women seem to be left with are breadcrumbs.Recently, the World Economic Forum (WEF) released its 2020 Global Gender Gap Report. While it was unsurprising that Nordic countries like Iceland, Norway, Finland, and Sweden were the top performers, some ASEAN countries like the Philippines – which managed to secure the 16th spot out of 153 countries – didn’t do too shabby either.

The International Day of the Girl Child (IDGC) falls on the 11th of October every year to recognise girls’ achievements and encourage them to pursue their dreams, uplift their self-esteem and celebrating all their talents.

International Coffee Day falls on 1 October every year with coffee businesses offering promotions to coffee lovers worldwide. But if coffee is not your cup of tea, it is important to know that it is a key commodity in Southeast Asia.In 2017, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Cambodia exported a total of US$5.34 billion worth of coffee based on a report by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

From teen activist Greta Thunberg’s much-publicized transatlantic journey on a zero-emissions boat to attend the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to the proliferation of climate protests, the world is more aware than ever of the climate threat. Yet this increased awareness has yet to translate into collective action by world leaders to mitigate climate change, let alone targeted efforts to protect the most vulnerable groups – beginning with women and girls.The facts speak for themselves.

Barefoot and muddied, a group of youngsters sprint across a makeshift pitch in rural Vietnam, passing the ball in a game of touch rugby in a country where few people have ever heard of the sport.They belong to Vietnam's only rugby programme for locals, rolled out for kids in a remote commune where some players have to travel by boat to training sessions often held against a backdrop of rice terraces and curious onlookers. Few knew anything about rugby when they joined the scheme

It is a universal assumption that mothers are the ones who take care of children, but more fathers are now taking time off to look after their new-born babies and their partners soon after childbirth.