Equal Futures moves evidence to impact by empowering advocates, policymakers, and other stakeholders with actionable information on what works to improve health and economic outcomes at scale and
which policy approaches have been feasible in geographically, culturally, or economically similar contexts. Equal Futures’ approach to impact builds on a model developed with the WORLD Policy Analysis Center, which includes:
- Building actionable comparative policy data
- Undertaking rigorous studies of inequalities hidden in law and what works to improve outcomes
- Widely sharing data through at-a-glance policy maps, data visualizations, tailored policy toolkits, and other accessible resources
- Partnering with civil society organizations, IGOs, governments, advocates and others to ensure actionable information reaches policymakers
Applying this approach over the course of a decade at WORLD, we shared data directly supporting policy changes in at least 38 countries, with the potential to affect 1.4 billion lives over the next decade. These included:
India: More Than Doubling Maternity Leave
As India was debating changes to its maternity leave, the National Commission on Women published a report urging longer leave, which featured our map of maternity leave duration around the world. Shortly thereafter, a bill was introduced to substantially increase leave from 12 to 26 weeks, and legislators cited global comparisons in successfully advocating for its passage.
US: Passing Paid Leave at the State Level
The US remains a global outlier on paid leave–but states are increasingly stepping up, and comparative data is helping advocates make the case. For example, during legislative testimony in Connecticut, the Connecticut Association for Human Services and Mayor of Hartford both cited our global findings on paid leave to successfully advance the state’s adoption of 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave.
Philippines: Nearly Doubling Maternity Leave and Covering Informal Workers
In the introduction to his bill to increase maternity leave, a senator in the Philippines explicitly cited our impact study on paid leave and infant mortality, which found that each additional month of paid leave reduced infant deaths by 13%. Multiple senators also noted during debates that the Philippines provided less leave than neighboring countries–ultimately leading to the expansion of leave from 60 to 105 days.
South Africa: Taking Steps towards Meaningful Paid Leave for Fathers and Partners
Following WORLD’s longstanding engagement with South African partners, civil society organizations and policymakers used our comparative data on paternity leave in an advocacy campaign around a new leave law. In 2017, the new law passed—increasing the paid leave available to fathers and partners from 3 to 10 days, a duration that while short has been shown to shift norms on work and caregiving.
Australia: Filling a Longstanding Gap by Enacting and then Improving Paid Parental Leave
While our comparative data helped advance Australia’s first paid parental leave policy, impact studies helped improve it. In a report designed to inform policy design, the Women’s Economic Equality Taskforce, a government agency, cited our work on the importance of leave policies that incentivize men’s take-up, while an Australian think tank elevated our study showing that these policy designs can also improve gender norms in the workplace. Over the next two years, Australia extended leave and reserved four weeks for each parent.
Thailand: Extending Paid Leave to Better Align with International Standards
Bolstering a longstanding local campaign to pass paid leave in Thailand, UNICEF, the World Bank, the World Health Organization, and the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action all used our data to put Thailand’s policies in regional context. UNICEF’s Bangkok office also issued a press release calling on Thailand to strengthen its paid leave policies, building on its global Family-Friendly Policies initiative and citing the benefits for infant mortality established by our research. Less than a year later, Thailand extended maternity leave from 90 to 120 days and established 15 days of paternity leave for the first time.
Mexico: Doubling Paid Annual Leave
After a bill was introduced in Mexico to double paid annual leave from 6 to 12 days, local media put the proposal in context by using our data. A member of parliament then directly cited our data and paid leave map during debates. Within a few months, the bill became law, marking the biggest change to Mexico’s labor code in over 50 years.
Banning Child Marriage Across the African Union
In both 2016 and 2018, the African Union extensively used WORLD’s data in a report launching a new regional campaign to improve child marriage laws. Keeping the data up-to-date was pivotal for making the report an actionable resource–and it was. Within two years of the second edition, a number of countries highlighted in the report closed legal loopholes that left girls vulnerable, including Cote d’Ivoire, Sao Tome and Principe, Gabon, and Mauritius.
Georgia and Djibouti: Landmark Protections for Equal Rights at Work
When Georgia and Djibouti each came up for review by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, we submitted reports highlighting gaps in their legal frameworks–including the lack of laws mandating reasonable accommodations at work for people with disabilities. The Committee asked both Georgia and Djibouti about these gaps during their review. Within a year, each country had enacted its first reasonable accommodations law.
Moving forward, Equal Futures is positioned to update the policy databases annually, subject to funding, and to continue developing and answering research questions that are responsive to partners’ needs in the field. Building on our history of impact, we will carry forward our proven methods of building and sharing this data in a way that helps countries improve their policies by better understanding what works and what has been feasible in peer countries.
