#3 Promote gender equality and empower women

What does this mean:
Make sure that girls can go to school just like boys, and that girls and women are allowed to do the same things that boys and men do. This goal also wants to make sure that girls and women are considered to be equal to boys and men, and are included when important decisions are made that concern them, their families, and their communities.

Why:
Just over one half of the people in the world are women and girls, yet in many countries their chances to improve themselves and the lives of their families are very limited. Girls are often kept from going to school. Women are not allowed to have jobs outside of the home or to borrow money to start businesses to support their families. They don’t get to go to the doctor as often or to eat as healthily as men do. They are not allowed to vote or voice their opinions in the development of their communities or countries. Yet experience shows that when girls and women are given opportunities to go to school, to start businesses, or to plan how many children they have, they tend to make major improvements to the quality of life of their entire families.