Valerie Jarrett blogs for women
A more complete wrap up of Oxfam’s efforts around International Women’s Day coming tomorrow. But for now, a treat from the White House blog and our keynote speaker, Valerie Jarrett. http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2012/03/08/working-oxfam-fight-hunger-around-world This morning, I had the opportunity to address Oxfam’s Sister Ambassadors at their International Women’s Day Summit in Washington, D.C. I was proud to […]
A more complete wrap up of Oxfam’s efforts around International Women’s Day coming tomorrow. But for now, a treat from the White House blog and our keynote speaker, Valerie Jarrett.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2012/03/08/working-oxfam-fight-hunger-around-world
This morning, I had the opportunity to address Oxfam’s Sister Ambassadors at their International Women’s Day Summit in Washington, D.C. I was proud to be able to say that over the last three years, our work with organizations like Oxfam has resulted in more international support for food security, more game-changing innovations, and most importantly, more people living without hunger.
However, we have much more work to do, particularly when it comes to confronting the often tragic circumstances facing women and girls around the world.
Today, women make up the majority of those living below the poverty line. Women grow more than half the food produced in many developing countries, but when prices rise, they are often the first to go hungry. Discrimination, both legal and cultural, still prevents too many women from contributing fully to their families and their communities.
President Obama believes that the United States must fight hunger, both at home and abroad, and he believes we can only win that fight if we empower women to be true agents of change. From the day he took office, the President has worked to, as he has put it, “strengthen our common security by investing in our common humanity.”
Read the full blog here.
