Women’s Economic Empowerment
Our Approach
Elements
Fundamental Enablers
Delayed marriageEducationFamily planningLegal rights for women to workMobility and safety
Opportunity and Inclusion
Decent work opportunitiesDigital inclusionFinancial inclusionProperty and assetsVocational and life skills acquisition
Equality and Security
Alleviation of unpaid care workPolicies to promote workplace equalitySocial and workforce protection
Accelerators
Case Studies
Case Studies
BangladeshBoliviaBrazilEthiopiaIndia - Himachal Pradesh
AboutResources
Theory of Change
Accelerators
Accelerators are broad-based enablers that expedite progress on women’s economic empowerment. Distinct from the elements, accelerators play a support role by sparking and amplifying interventions across multiple elements. They operate through institutional structures that shape gender inequalities, such as the market economy, the public sector, community, and family structures.
Partnerships with international organizations
International organizations working with government / local NGOs to organize, mobilize, and fund WEE programs such as skills training
Relevant Case Study
BangladeshBoliviaBrazil
Political will for gender equality
Political leaders’ support for gender equality at the highest levels of government
Relevant Case Study
Brazil
Private-sector job creation
Increased demand for women’s labor due to rapid industry growth, often supported by trade policy, foreign direct investment, deregulation, or other means
Relevant Case Study
BangladeshBrazil
Public awareness campaigns
Efforts to educate the public on policy changes or other key issues (e.g., public health) that affect women and girls, often led by public-sector, philanthropic, and/or civil society organizations
Relevant Case Study
Ethiopia
Public investment in infrastructure
Government investment in the physical environment, including roads, water access, power, agricultural research, and irrigation
Relevant Case Study
BrazilHimachal Pradesh
Public-private partnerships
Collaboration between private-sector firms and public-sector actors to advance key policy goals
Relevant Case Study
Brazil
Social norms change
The shift from restrictive social norms to more equitable norms that support women’s economic empowerment
Relevant Case Study
BangladeshEthiopia
Women’s empowerment collectives
Institutions of the poor that build women’s human, financial, and social capital through financial services programming that enables pooling of savings and risk, often in combination with additional training and skills development. Potential models include traditional savings groups, layered models that incorporate health and/or livelihood programming, and comprehensive models that also address economic and political empowerment
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Women’s movements & organizations
Social justice movements and advocacy groups (e.g., lawyers’ associations) focused on the needs of women that press for greater empowerment through activism and grassroots organizing
Relevant Case Study
BoliviaEthiopiaHimachal Pradesh
Women’s political participation
Expansion of women’s participation in the political realm, either organically or through implementation of quota systems that establish a minimum threshold for women’s representation in government
Relevant Case Study
BoliviaHimachal Pradesh
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