This article argues that international efforts to progress gender equality now and post‐2015 need to build on the achievements of the MDGs and other international frameworks, but simultaneously address the gender dynamics that underpin the root causes of poverty. The first half of the article seeks to unpack the ways in which gender inequalities underpin five clusters of MDGs: poverty and sustainable development; service access; care and caregiving; voice and agency; international partnerships and accountability. The analysis then turns to highlight the importance of harnessing the momentum from other global initiatives such as CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women) and the Beijing Platform for Action to promote more fundamental change including: the establishment of a more powerful UN agency to champion gender equality; the institutionalisation of gender budgeting and gender‐responsive aid effectiveness approaches; and the promotion of gender‐sensitive social protection to tackle gender‐specific experiences of poverty and vulnerability.