“From June 2- 6 2019, I joined young leaders, advocates, and policy makers at the 5th Women Deliver Conference. The event was held at the Vancouver Convention Centre, right in the heart of the beautiful city of Vancouver. As I walked to the foyer of the convention centre the Sunday afternoon of day 1 for the pre-conference, I observed people who had travelled from several parts of the world struggled with their luggage, while some repeatedly checked their google maps just to be sure they have not missed their way. I was also quick to notice some calibre of people whose affluence was eminently recognizable, while others took pictures of the lovely scenery. The pictures reminded me of my first day in Vancouver, and I couldn’t help but chuckle at the ridiculous number of photographs I took that day.
The theme of the conference was “Power. Progress. Change”. I was particularly attracted to the three action words and was curious to see how this connects to gender equity and improved health for women and girls in our world today. Through the sessions I attended, I learned about sexual and reproductive health and rights, intersectionality between health and education, young women at work, progress and pitfalls of gender equality movements, rights to bodily autonomy and other core issues peculiar to the female gender.
It was exciting and inspiring to hear from diverse professionals and advocates, who have made landmarks in their various fields. You needed to have seen me grinned like a Cheshire cat as I listened to and discussed with scholars, leaders and celebrities. These are people I have read their books, watched their Ted Talks, followed religiously on Twitter, and here they were before me. Oh! What a joy I felt!
A key highlight of the event for me was speaking alongside two amazing leaders, Tasha and Alpha at a session organised by the Mastercard Foundation with the theme “Young women at work: Our commitment to a world where young women prosper”. It was a great time to reflect on our education and entrepreneurship experiences. With this, the foundation brought a unique perspective to the conference, being driven by a belief that “all people should have an equal chance to succeed, no matter where they started in life”.
#WD2019 provided an excellent opportunity to network and expand my knowledge beyond my field of research. I hope to see the solutions and ideas presented at #WD2019 being implemented. That we may all look back at the incredible progress recorded during #WD2022 and smile at our victory – #ThePowerofOurResolve!”
Goodness Eniola
Master of Food & Resource Economics
Nigeria