At the start of the 21st century more than a billion people are trapped in a situation of abject poverty and gross inequality. 70% of them are women. We face an AIDS and Malaria emergency, with 40 million people infected by the disease. 104 million children are denied access to school and 860 million adults. (70% of them women) cannot read or write.  Millions of people are unemployed or working in precarious jobs with deteriorating conditions of labour.