Women who courageously supported their communities across India during the pandemic feature in a new book launched at Raisina Dialogue 2022 in New Delhi on Wednesday. Called The First Responders: Women Who Led India Through The Pandemic, the book published by Reliance Foundation and Observer Research Foundation celebrates the leading role of these women in helping combat the challenges of the pandemic at the grassroots and shows the importance of supporting leadership capacity building for women. These heroic stories were gathered from across India in partnership with a range of partner organisations.
The launch of the book at the event with international delegates from over a 100 countries was followed by a panel discussion on the subject, ‘The First Responder: Women Leadership and the SDGs’, with illustrious speakers Smt Smriti Irani, Minister for Women and Child Development; Ms Kwati Candith, Deputy Minister, International Relations and Co-operation, South Africa; Ms Waseqa Ayesha Khan, Member of Parliament, Bangladesh; Dr Vanita Sharma, Advisor, Strategic Initiatives, Reliance Foundation; and Mr Shombi Sharp, Resident Coordinator, India, United Nations.
