Select CITYWALK promotes 'SheDecides India' global movement

The very first national movement of SheDecides, SheDecides India, a global movement, was officially launched at Select CITYWALK in the presence of Dr. Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Dr. Jaideep Malhotra, President, FOGSCI, Kamla Bhasin, Human Rights Activist, Robin Gorna, Global Co-Lead, SheDecides among many other social activists.

On this occasion Arjun Sharma, Chairman, Select CITYWALK said, "We at Select CITYWALK truly support this greatest cause to promote fundamental rights of adolescent girls and women, their lives and their future. Being a working place led by equal number of women employees we support and salute the power of women and always stands to protect their rights. We were honoured to host the India launch of SheDecides India."

"This movement is of such greatest importance for us in India. It is not an elite movement, it is not a movement of what some politician once referred to as the painted dented citizens of the cities and that's why we all need to stand-up to increase awareness of the extraordinarily importance for young women to be able to decide for themselves. For a woman to decide that she wants to study, for a woman to decide that she doesn't not wish to marry when her parents wish her to. For a women to decide when she wants to give birth to a child or for a woman to decide to wait for her to have a second child. These are all the decisions that all the Indian women have the right to make. I want to congratulate those behind these extraordinary efforts to make SheDecides not just a slogan but a reality," added Tharoor.

According to the United Nations, a staggering 2.3 million women in the region are hospitalised annually for treatment of complications from unsafe abortion. The shortfalls of sexual education are also pervasive, with 12.8 million adolescent girls worldwide have an unmet need for family planning, about half of whom live in the Asia-Pacific region.

SheDecides is a global movement, with community support, to promote and protect the fundamental rights of adolescent girls and women to decide for themselves about their bodies, their lives and their future.

At a time when many try to roll back women's right to decide, the movement has galvanised worldwide commitment to take action in three pillars:

Stand Up, Speak Out: engaging new positive conversations, celebrating the bold and expressing public support for the rights of adolescent girls and women to decide for themselves

Change the Rules: making sure that laws and policies make it easy for her to decide

Unlock Resources: getting the money, skills and technical support, from governments, donors, foundations and individuals to secure access to quality information and services

The launch evening at Select CITYWALK included music performances, live art, and dance. The purpose of India launch is to bring together community groups, youth, artists and several prominent leaders from Indian society to stand up and speak out to say yes, SheDecides.