International women's week 2025

For more than a century, people around the world have marked International Women's Day on 8 March.

But what is the day for, and why does it matter?

International Women's Day (IWD) grew out of the labour movement.

The seeds were planted in 1908, when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter working hours, better pay and the right to vote.

A year later, the Socialist Party of America declared the first National Woman's Day.

The idea to make it an international event came from Clara Zetkin, a communist activist and advocate for women's rights.

In 1910, she raised it at an International Conference of Working Women in Copenhagen.

Her suggestion was unanimously backed by the 100 women from 17 countries who were at the conference.

The first International Women's Day was celebrated in 1911, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.

The United Na