According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2025 by the World Economic Forum, at the current pace, it will take us 123 years to achieve total parity (the equivalent of 5 generations). The legal, social, and cultural norms that govern the world continue to be major obstacles to achieving real gender equality in political, economic, social, and family participation. In fact, 40% of the world’s women and girls live in countries with “high” or “very high” levels of discrimination, according to the OECD (SIGI 2023).

To address these challenges, the BBVA Microfinance Foundation and the Permanent Mission of the Dominican Republic to the United Nations are organizing the event Breaking Biases, Building Equality.

This event is an official side event of the 70th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), which focuses on the priority theme of ensuring access to justice for all women and girls by eliminating discriminatory laws and practices.

Register → here

Streaming → here

PROGRAMME

Opening Keynote

Javier M. Flores, CEO, BBVA Microfinance Foundation

Panel: Understanding barriers to pave the way toward equality

Moderated by Elizabeth Prado, Head of Strategy, Institutional Relations, BBVAMF

• Gloria Reyes Gómez, Minister of Women, Dominican Republic.
• Michelle Muschett, Subsecretary general of the United Nations and director of the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, UNDP.
• Bibiana Aido Almagro, Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean, UN Women.
• Ana Güezmes García, Director, Division for Gender Affairs, ECLAC.
• Terence Gallagher, Head of Financial Health, IDB Invest.

Dialogue

• Elsa María Gómez,  Dominican entrepreneur.
• Mercedes Canalda, CEO, Banco Adopem.