“All of on Thursday's greatest challenges – from climate change to fighting terrorism or ending world's deadliest conflicts – can only be resolved with full participation of women,” she declared on the third day of the Assembly’s annual general debate, stressing that ending female poverty, hunger and denial of education are critical to successfully implementing the 2030 Agenda.

“Both women and men are affected, but lifting women out of poverty is much more difficult,” she said in referring to the Agenda’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that seek to eliminate poverty, hunger and a host of other social ills by 2030, noting that women are often more impacted because they are left behind and ignored.

As if poverty alone is not hard enough, women also face gender-based discrimination, stereotyping and social marginalization that see them earning 24 per cent less than men, encountering greater difficulty in getting a loan to start a business, and receiving a smaller part of inheritance or nothing when they leave abusive husbands.

“The trend of poverty feminization has to change,” Grybauskaite stressed. “By not allowing women to prosper we condemn entire families to poverty,” she said.

With regard to hunger she noted that half the world's agricultural work is done by women, yet they are the first to suffer if food is running out, risk being killed on trips to fetch food or water when public order breaks down, and often end up being pushed aside or abused in bread lines in times of hunger, although they give the little food they have to their children.

“Empowering women by expanding land ownership or providing credit would not only feed a family, but would also raise incomes of women and make more food available for all,” she said.

Turning to education, the president stressed that for so many girls and women inclusive learning remains “an impossible dream,” with women accounting for two thirds of the 750 million illiterate adults worldwide, girls sent off or sold into early marriage, criminals selling them into slavery, and extremists burning down schools and killing teachers who educate women.

“That needs to change. Education is a key that opens many doors. Educated women are a tremendous resource and a power for the common good. Women must be free to have access to education, choose the profession they want,” she stressed.

“We cannot afford to fail in this challenge. To achieve this, we need everyone on board. Only if all members of the society, both women and men, are fully represented and engaged, can the world's future be truly sustainable.”