Grassroots Women Across Latin America Unite to Mark International Women’s Day 2026

This March 8th, Huairou Commission member organisations across Latin America came together to commemorate International Women’s Day with marches, community gatherings, and public events – demonstrating the strength, resilience and leadership of organised grassroots women across the continent.

From rural territories and indigenous communities to campesina networks and Afro-descendant organisations, women united to celebrate their collective power and reaffirm their demands for justice, equality and dignified lives.

To mark the occasion, HC’s Latin American region issued a joint statement honouring the historical and present struggles of grassroots women who sustain families and communities, protect land and water, preserve ancestral knowledge, and defend territories against extractivist threats.

The statement calls for gender-responsive public policies and budgets, equitable access to land and technology, and a firm commitment from states to improve conditions for women and girls. It also reaffirms the right of all women to a life free from violence – in the home, the community, the workplace, and in public and political spaces.

As the statement powerfully declares: “When grassroots women advance, communities advance.”

Caption: Picture courtesy: MUDECI, Mexico (HC Member)

Read the full statement from HC’s Latin American region here:

• English
• Spanish