Exactly so. As a practical ongoing example, aid agencies have repeatedly proved that educating and empowering women is the most effective way to lift nations out of poverty. (Besides the direct economic benefits, it has such useful consequences as curbing overpopulation and stopping the spread of HIV.)
It's notable that people who are happy to refer to the judgement of history with regard to failed ideologies like, for instance, communism, don't care to follow the same logic with regard to the oppression of women, where the verdict of history is already clear.