Grounded in international human rights, gender equality doesn’t just improve the lives of individual women, girls, and their families; it makes economic sense, strengthens democracy, and enables long-term sustainable progress.

Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries on earth. Security issue or no security issue, there would need to be a focus on it.

I only take on roles that I'm passionate about.

Any serious shift towards more sustainable societies has to include gender equality.

As New Zealanders, we've been in on the United Nations from the very beginning, played a role in the drafting of the charter - it means a lot to us that those processes are followed.

Well of course New Zealand isn't anti-American.

If you neglect those who are currently poor and stable, you may create more poor and unstable people. There has been a tremendous concentration of donor interest in countries that are seen as particularly fragile - but it becomes harder to mobilise money for sub-Saharan, plain poor countries.