Women make up more than half of the world's population, yet, historically, women have experienced disparities when compared with men in a broad range of issues such as education, health, economic development and personal safety. While many notable strides have been made to address these disparities in recent years, there is more to be done. By addressing these issues to promote the status of women and girls, the State of Ohio can lead by example and serve as a model for local communities.
The Governor's Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach (GOWIO) was created in March 2007 by Governor Ted Strickland. GOWIO works across state agencies on issues as they impact women and girls. GOWIO also collaborates with non-governmental entities and seeks to include the diverse voices of women and girls from local communities to identify and address public policy issues.
As former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan famously stated, “Study after study has shown that there is no effective development strategy in which women do not play a central role. When women are fully involved, the benefits can be seen immediately: families are healthier; they are better fed; their income, savings and reinvestment go up. And what is true of families is true of communities -- ultimately, indeed, of whole countries.”