A record of over 110 exchanges and central counterparty clearing houses (CCPs) around the world will this year support the eighth annual “Ring the Bell for Gender Equality” campaign, to raise awareness about the role and opportunities for the private sector to advance gender equality and sustainable development. For the eighth consecutive year, markets in 98 countries are planning to ring, opening or closing bells to celebrate International Women’s Day 2022 – starting on 1 March and continuing until the end of the month of March.
The UN Women’s theme for International Women’s Day 2022 - “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow” recognizes the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are leading the charge on climate change adaptation, mitigation, and response, to build a more sustainable future for all.
The Ring the Bell for Gender Equality initiative is coordinated by IFC, Sustainable Stock Exchanges (SSE) initiative, UN Global Compact, UN Women and The World Federation of Exchanges.
Exchanges that have participated in the past seven years of ringing the bell for gender equality have made progress by:
- Promoting women’s access to finance and encouraging women to invest in public markets.
- Developing new products, such as sustainability-linked bonds with gender criteria and gender bonds.
- Signing and adopting the Women’s Empowerment Principles, which offer guidance to businesses on how to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace, marketplace and community
- Promoting gender equality listing criteria and gender data disclosure
The full list of exchanges and CCPs can be found here.
About the Partner Organizations:
International Finance Corporation (IFC):
IFC—a member of the World Bank Group—is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2021, IFC committed a record $31.5 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
Follow on Twitter: @IFC_org or any of other social media platforms: www.ifc.org/SocialMediaIndex
The Sustainable Stock Exchanges initiative
The SSE initiative is a peer-to-peer learning platform for exploring how exchanges, in collaboration with investors, regulators, and companies, can enhance corporate transparency - and ultimately performance - on ESG (environmental, social, and corporate governance) issues and encourage sustainable investment. The SSE initiative is convened by four organizations - the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UN Global Compact, the UN Environment Program Finance Initiative (UNEP FI), and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). To learn more about becoming a Partner Stock Exchange or participating as a regulator or investor, visit sseinitiative.org Follow us on Twitter: @sseinitiative
United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women)
UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide. UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programmes and services needed to ensure that the standards are effectively implemented and truly benefit women and girls worldwide. It works globally to make the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals a reality for women and girls and stands behind women’s equal participation in all aspects of life. In collaboration with the UN Global Compact, UN Women engages the private sector through the Women’s Empowerment Principles – a global framework and engagement platform to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace, marketplace, and community. In line with its Strategic Plan (2022-2025), UN Women focuses on four strategic priority areas: governance and participation in public life; women’s economic empowerment; ending violence against women and girls; and women, peace and security, humanitarian action and disaster risk reduction. UN Women also coordinates and promotes the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality. Learn more at: www.unwomen.org and www.weps.org Follow on Twitter @UN_Women, @WEPrinciples and on LinkedIn: UN Women, WEPs
United Nations Global Compact
As a special initiative of the UN Secretary-General, the United Nations Global Compact is a call to companies everywhere to align their operations and strategies with Ten Principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment, and anti-corruption. Our ambition is to accelerate and scale the global collective impact of business by upholding the Ten Principles and delivering the Sustainable Development Goals through accountable companies and ecosystems that enable change. With more than 15,000 companies and 3,000 non-business signatories based in over 160 countries, and 69 Local Networks, the UN Global Compact is the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative — one Global Compact uniting business for a better world. For more information, follow @globalcompact on social media and visit the website at unglobalcompact.org.
The World Federation of Exchanges (WFE):
Established in 1961, the WFE is the global industry association for exchanges and clearing houses. Headquartered in London, it represents over 250 market infrastructure providers with 35% are in Asia-Pacific, 45% in EMEA and 20% in the Americas. WFE’s 57 member CCPs collectively ensure that risk takers post some $1 trillion (equivalent) of resources to back their positions, in the form of initial margin and default fund requirements. WFE exchanges are home to 47,919 listed companies, and the market capitalisation of these entities is over $109 trillion; around $137 trillion (EOB) in trading annually passes through WFE members (at end 2020). Its statistics database stretches back more than 40 years and provides information and insight into developments on global exchanges. The WFE works with standard-setters, policy makers, regulators, and government organisations around the world to support and promote the development of fair, transparent, stable, and efficient markets. Click here to view the WFE’s website, sign up for the industry’s Focus magazine or to visit the WFE on LinkedIn. Follow on Twitter: @TheWFE
