Announcement: Fondation Botnar is pleased to announce a new partnership with Women Deliver, 04/06/2019 – Vancouver, Canada.

Fondation Botnar is pleased to announce a new partnership with Women Deliver, a global advocacy organization that champions the health and rights of girls and women, to promote meaningful youth engagement in gender equality efforts and initiatives. The partnership will span three years, starting at the Women Deliver 2019 Global Conference.

Young people today hold the key to unlocking society’s collective progress on some of the world’s most entrenched problems. Half of the world’s population – over 2.5 billion people – is under 30; 1.2 billion of those are adolescents, aged 10 to 19. Yet, with only 1.9 percent of those aged below 30 having a voice as legislators, and less than 2% of global health funding allocated to their specific health issues, young people continue to be chronically under-represented in both policy and programs.

The partnership will aim to build capacity and empower young people through the promotion of meaningful youth engagement via the Women Deliver Young Leaders Program, which equips outstanding young changemakers with the knowledge, skills, and resources to amplify their influence on a global scale.

Stefan Germann, CEO of Fondation Botnar said, “Youth voices and joint decision making must remain a central component and a guiding input as we seek to improve and innovate in global health and beyond. The Women Deliver Young Leaders Program is an important example of progress in meaningful youth engagement, and I am delighted to see our partnership launch to expand the number and impact of young people empowered to input and advise on how we achieve more equitable health for improved health outcomes in a digital world.”

Part of the Young Leaders Program involves facilitating speaking, advising, training and consulting opportunities for youth (Women Deliver Young Leaders Speakers Bureau). In one such opportunity, beginning in June, Young Leaders can apply to serve on the first-ever Youth Advisory Group on Digital Technology for universal health coverage (UHC). The Group will work to ensure greater youth engagement in all activities related to advocacy, communication and accountability including by advising on a call to action for the High-Level Meeting on UHC this September, and work to influence the agenda through youth-led action. This is part of a 10-year coalition-led movement that includes Fondation Botnar among other partners, and seeks to leverage frontier technologies as a catalyst for the UHC agenda toward 2030. The scope of the Group and the coalition will be shaped by and with young people, and eventually seek to involve and engage other youth experts and aligned coalitions.

Katja Iversen, President/CEO of Women Deliver said, “Young people are leading the way in achieving health equity, gender equality, and tackling the major barriers faced by girls and women. Their insight, diverse voices, and engagement, every step of the way, will boost our collective impact and help make health for all and UHC a reality.”

Recent progress in digital innovation provides new opportunities to accelerate health equity by making health systems stronger, more resilient, and effective. As healthcare moves from the hospital to the home, Fondation Botnar focuses on applying the transformative power of digital health and artificial intelligence (AI) to increase young people’s access and opportunity to improve their long-term development and activate change in their local contexts. Youth voices and their experiences should inform decisions about how digital health and AI are embraced to truly reach universal health coverage by 2030.

Women Deliver counts 700 outstanding Young Leaders and alumni from 138 countries who are advancing gender equality in their communities, countries, and around the globe. They report experiencing increased knowledge, improved skills, and wider influence as a result of the Program.

Tanisha Chadha (India), Women Deliver Young Leader (Class of 2016), believes “Young people today are the leaders of how we come to achieving equity in health, and tackling the prevailing barriers faced by women and girls, especially diverse and marginalized women. Amplifying diverse youth
voices in the program will boost our collective impact when it comes to achieving rights-based UHC.”

 

 

About Fondation Botnar

Fondation Botnar is a Swiss foundation established with the core purpose of improving the health and wellbeing of children and young people in growing secondary cities around the world. To achieve this, Fondation Botnar acts as a catalyst, connecting diverse partners and investing in solutions that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and digital innovation. www.fondationbotnar.org

About Women Deliver

Women Deliver is a leading global advocate that champions gender equality and the health and rights of girls and women. Our advocacy drives investment – political and financial – in the lives of girls and women worldwide. We harness evidence and unite diverse voices to spark commitment to gender equality. And we get results. Anchored in sexual and reproductive health, we advocate for the rights of girls and women across every aspect of their lives. We know that investing in girls and women will deliver progress for all.

Fondation Botnar

Kiara Barnes
Engagement and Communications Manager
Direct: +41 61 201 04 82
Mobile: +41 76 549 43 48
Email: kbarnes@fondationbotnar.org