Chuka Umunna
: Ed's Google Speech and What It Means for Responsible Capitalism
B.J. Epstein
: Down With the Matriarchy? What Matriarchy?
Dr Peter Bruggen
: Sir David Nicholson Resigns but if Many Bad Apples Remain, The NHS Might Be Rotten to the Core
Jack Butler
: Miliband Talks the Talk on Tax Avoidance - But Can Anyone Walk the Walk
Xenios Thrasyvoulou
: Is It Easier Than Ever to Start a Business?
Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani schoolgirl brought to England after being shot in the head by the Taliban, has announced the first donation from her n...
For me International Women's Day is an opportunity to remember some of the incredible women who have helped us win the rights we enjoy today here in the UK. Progress has been slow but this world is unrecognisable to us today, and it is hard to imagine the courage and passion of countless people that it has taken to change this status quo.
My first visit since arriving in Zambia was to a UK aid adolescent girls empowerment programme in one of the poorest neighbourhoods of the capital, Lusaka. This initiative is supporting more than 1,500 of the most vulnerable girls, providing safe spaces and mentoring to help build their confidence and life skills.
Meeting Mariana, who told me with great self-confidence that she wanted to be a doctor, I realised her care has to be continuous. I have to be there for her for the long haul, even after I'm gone.
One problem is that women still think of engineering as dull and male-centric. There is a pervasive image of grease, hard hats and building sites. But our research shows that girls are prepared to engage with engineering given the right motivation. They are also interested in the relatively high salaries that can be achieved in the sector, and why not?
Tomorrow, August 23rd, British girls are likely to yet again outperform boys in GCSE results. So why as I travel around the world am I so often told that girls are either not as bright or not as interested in school as boys? Perhaps because while girls are outperforming girls in the "Global North", in Latin America and in the Caribbean, the opposite is true in many developing countries.
At the 2012 Olympics in London, only two African women's teams will feature among the 12 nations competing. Last year, a plucky women's team from the diminutive Central African nation of Equatorial Guinea hit world headlines during the women's football World Cup in Germany.
A week is a long time in Nepalese politics. Nepal is one of the world's poorest countries and despite a relatively small population of 30 million people, there are over 100 ethnic groups, nearly as many languages and 60 castes.
The Commonwealth stands on the brink of change. Put simply, the 54 leaders of the Commonwealth gathering in Perth, Australia, this weekend will decide the association's fate, at least for the next decade.
