International Women’s Day today

International Women’s Day is being observed today (March 8) across the country as elsewhere in the world with the theme 'Investing in women: Accelerate progress'.

"Achieving gender equality and women’s well-being in all aspects of life is more crucial than ever if we want to create prosperous economies and a healthy planet. However, we are facing a key challenge: the alarming $360 billion annual deficit in gender-equality measures by 2030," the UN said.

Different women, social and political organisations have taken separate programmes to observe the International Women's Day.

International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on March 8 every year.

After the Socialist Party of America organised a Women's Day on February 28, 1909 in New York, the 1910 International Socialist Women's Conference suggested a Women's Day to be held annually.

After women gained suffrage in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8 became a national holiday there.

The day was then predominantly celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries until it was adopted in 1975 by the United Nations.

On the eve of the day, President Md Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have issued separate messages, greeting all women across the world.

Apart from the government, private and socio-cultural institutions should also come forward with various development projects for development of women, the head of the state said.

He described this year's theme of the day 'Narir Somo Odhikar, Somo Sujog-Egiye Nite Hok Biniyog' as time befitting.