BRIDGETOWN, Barbados: The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) has issued a firm and urgent call to intensify efforts toward achieving gender equality, even as global conditions become increasingly challenging.
Against the backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions, worsening climate crises, and declining trust in global institutions, CDB president Daniel Best warned of a quiet but unmistakable regression in gender equality gains.
“In many parts of the world, women and girls are being pushed to the margins—losing their rights, their access to opportunities, and too often, their hope,” he said. “At the same time, men and boys are growing up in systems that reinforce harmful gender norms, contribute to underachievement in education, and fail to support the goal of gender equality.”
President Best delivered these remarks at the opening of the 2025 Global Gender Summit, hosted recently by CDB in Bridgetown, Barbados. Emphasising the urgency of collective action, he stated:
“The global political economy is shifting, and not gently. While in these moments the instinct may be to turn inward, I say this with absolute clarity: this is not the time to retreat. This is the time to reinvest—intentionally, strategically, and inclusively.”
The Summit brought together over 150 participants, including gender experts, global development stakeholders, thought leaders, and representatives from the public and private sectors. The event served as a platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration, aimed at developing innovative action plans to address critical challenges and seize opportunities to shape the global gender equality and inclusion agenda.
Centred on the theme “Equality in Action,” the Summit focused on three key areas: Finance, Climate, and Leadership. Discussions explored actions to advance gender equality, including promoting gender lens investing, increasing access to finance for women-owned micro, small, and medium enterprises, ensuring gender equality is at the heart of climate action, strengthening public sector gender policies, and dismantling barriers to women’s leadership. To identify practical and actionable solutions to address factors inhibiting gender equality, the programme comprised plenary sessions, interactive workshops, deep-dive discussions, and networking opportunities designed to foster partnerships.
Despite the uncertain global environment, president Best reaffirmed CDB’s unwavering commitment to gender equality. “‘Equality in Action’ is more than a Summit title. It is a call to design the future differently, to ensure that gender equality is not treated as an afterthought but as the very architecture of resilience,” he said.
Describing the pursuit of gender equality as “non-negotiable”, the bank president stressed that progress requires stronger, cross-sector collaboration among multilateral development banks, the private sector, national governments, civil society, and academia to drive meaningful, systemic change. He urged the private sector, in particular, to play a leading role by mobilising capital for inclusive innovation and embedding gender equity into corporate governance frameworks.
“We must be relentless in our pursuit of equality,” president Best concluded. “Because when we invest in equality, we create a future that is just, resilient, and prosperous for everyone.”
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