Prize 2023

International Gender Equality Prize will be awarded in Tampere, Finland on 11 December

The International Gender Equality Prize will be awarded at a ceremony in Tampere on 11 December. The prize is awarded to an organisation that has made a significant international contribution to gender equality. In 2023, the prize amounts to €300 000. The prize will be awarded by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.

The event will be hosted by US news anchor Richard Lui. Representatives from countries such as Ukraine, Afghanistan and Rwanda will discuss gender equality in conflict. Janine di Giovanni, author and war correspondent, will give the keynote speech. 

The event is by invitation only. You can follow the event remotely at Yle Areena from 1 pm (UTC+2). 

The speakers

 

Janine di Giovanni

Janine di Giovanni has worked for over 35 years as a human rights reporter and investigator in conflict zones in the Balkans, Africa, and the Middle East. She is the recipient of nearly a dozen journalistic awards, including two Amnesty International Awards and the National Magazine Award, and in 2020, The American Academy of Arts and Letters awarded her their highest prize for non-fiction, the Blake Dodd, for her lifetime body of work.  Di Giovanni has reported on 18 wars, 3 genocides and published 9 books about conflict and peacemaking.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zarifa Ghafari 

Zarifa Ghafari is a trained economist, politician and entrepreneur. In 2014 Ghafari started an NGO (Assistance and Promotion for Afghan Women ORG) to support Afghan women.  Known for her efforts to advance women’s rights in Afghanistan, Ms. Ghafari experienced an untenable career in politics. In November 2019, she became the mayor of Maidan Shahr, the capital city of the Wardak Province, Afghanistan. 
As mayor, Ghafari became a role model to women in Afghanistan. In 2020, Ms. Ghafari was chosen as an International Woman of Courage by the US Secretary of State. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yuliia Shchetyna

Yuliia Shchetyna is a journalist and producer from Ukraine, originally from Kherson. Since the beginning of Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine, she has been consistently documenting and narrating stories about people's lives during the Russian occupation, shedding light on life in Ukraine for publications in Finland and Germany. She also co-organizes the first Freedom of Speech conference in Tampere, Finland.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Diane Gashumba

Diane Gashumba is a Rwandan paediatrician, medical director, politician and diplomat. She served as Minister of Health of the Republic of Rwanda since 2016. During her career, Ms Gashumba focused in particular on maternal, newborn and child health and gender issues. She has contributed to policy debates on issues such as gender-based violence, early childhood development and sexual, adolescent and reproductive health.