International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8th is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. Significant activity is witnessed worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women's achievements or rally for women's equality.
Originally, International Women’s Day was commemorated in Belize by planning and executing a week of activities in March. In 2009, to provide more agencies with opportunities to highlight women’s issues and the achievements of women in observance of International Women’s Day, the Women’s Department transformed what was originally Women’s Week into Women’s Month in March.
The theme for this year’s Women’s Month was: #ChoosetoChallenge: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world. This inclusive theme challenges everyone to continue to challenge gender inequalities, even as we go through a pandemic.
Activities countrywide addressed: education, celebration, sensitization, health, and spirituality.
The National Women’sAward is also an important event during Women’s Month. This year 20 women from across the country were awarded. A live virtual award was held and aired on Love TV and various social media platforms. Nine of the 20 awardees participated in the ceremony.
To address the dynamics of gender-based violence and the issues of masculinity in our society, the National Women’s Commission and Spouses of CARICOM Leaders Action Network, with funding support from the British High Commission designed and implemented a Barbershop Forum in November 2019 to further engage men and boys in Belize on the importance of prioritizing key interventions in reducing violence against women and boys while also ensuring that the key issues concerning men and boys were also being addressed.
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