On the 15th official United Nations International Widows Day, global leaders, advocates, and grassroots organisers gathered at the Commonwealth Secretariat in London this week for an International Widows Conference, convened by The Loomba Foundation, to call for a renewed global commitment to ending the widespread discrimination faced by widows and integrating their rights into the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Under the theme “Don’t Leave Widows Behind”, the conference brought together distinguished speakers including Mrs Cherie Blair CBE KC, President of The Loomba Foundation; Mrs. Lakshmi Puri, former UN Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women; Lord Khan of Burnley, UK Minister for Faith, Communities and Resettlement; the High Commissioner of Rwanda to the UK, H.E. Johnston Busingye, and representatives of grassroots organisations from Africa and South Asia.

Opening the conference, Mrs Cherie Blair reflected on the 28-year journey of the Foundation and the fight to have International Widows Day recognised by the United Nations in 2010.

She said: “This is not a day for self-congratulation. It is a day to focus the world’s attention on the 258 million widows around the globe—and the tens of millions among them who are trapped in poverty, stigma, isolation and abuse… When widows are given even half a chance, they feed their families, send their children to school, and lead. Yet, the promise of International Widows Day remains unfulfilled for far too many.”

The conference served as a powerful platform for reflection and recommitment, underscored by the findings of the Loomba Foundation’s landmark 2024 study, Not Leaving Widows Behind. Cited by multiple speakers including Mrs Puri and Lord Loomba, the study highlighted that while awareness has grown, the everyday realities for most widows—dispossession, marginalisation, and lack of
protection—remain largely unchanged.

Mrs Puri called for “transformational investment” and laid out five “vital energies” for widow empowerment: legal reform, economic upliftment, data and accountability, leadership inclusion, and cultural change.

“Widowhood remains one of the most overlooked global injustices,” she said. “A UN day cannot alone resolve entrenched injustice. That duty falls to all of us.”

Representing the UK Government, Lord Khan of Burnley reaffirmed Britain’s continued commitment: “Widowhood is not a marginal concern. It is a global human rights issue affecting over 280 million women. The UK stands with the Loomba Foundation in calling for policies that uphold widows’ rights and challenge harmful norms rooted in faith or tradition.”

Grassroots leaders such as Dr Lily Thapa of Nepal, Ms Roseline Orwa of Kenya, and Dr Eleanor Nwadinobi of Nigeria shared firsthand experiences of supporting widows in some of the most challenging environments, reminding attendees that meaningful change begins in communities.

Mr Kumar Dilip, President of Sulabh International, invoked the legacy of his late father, Dr Bindeshwar Pathak, and the transformative work done with widows in India.

“Let us be clear: the pain of widowhood is often compounded not by fate, but by society… Widows do not need pity—they need power.”

Ms Tabitha Morton, Executive Director of UN Women UK, echoed this message in her remarks: “This is not a peripheral issue. It is central to achieving equality. Let’s stop treating widowhood as a side- effect of gender inequality, and start treating it as a structural injustice that demands urgent action.”

In closing the conference, Lord Raj Loomba CBE, Founder and Chairman Trustee of The Loomba Foundation, reaffirmed the Foundation’s mission: “No woman should be punished for outliving her husband. That is why we are here. That is why we fight. And that is why, together, we will make sure that widows are never left behind.”