Women’s Economic Opportunity

When women earn an income and control their earnings, their children are more likely to attend school, their families are healthier, their self-worth improves, their household incomes increase, and national and global economies grow.
300 M
possible jobs generated by investing in universal child care and long-term services

Why women’s economic opportunity matters:

  • Closing the gender gap boosts GDP
    Increasing women’s participation in the economy leads to gains at home, at work, in society at large, and in a country’s GDP.
  • Investing in women strengthens families and communities
    When women have economic power, their families benefit too.
  • Economic growth
    The capacity of both women and men to participate in, contribute to, and benefit from economic growth is essential to transforming the lives of the poor.

When money flows into the hands of women—and when those women have the power to save and spend that money—the lives of people all over the planet are better.

How we advance women’s economic opportunity

Entrepreneurs Supporting women entrepreneurs
We are focused on economic mobility for women entrepreneurs, supporting them to earn and increase their income and helping reduce barriers to growing their businesses.
Agriculture Supporting women smallholder farmers
Working with partners, we support women farmers in strengthening their livelihoods—expanding opportunities to move from subsistence farming toward profitable enterprises and greater participation across the agricultural supply chain.
Removing Barriers Removing barriers to work
We help reduce barriers for women entrepreneurs to growing their businesses. We support and scale impactful programs that reach the poorest women, including women's empowerment collectives, and working with the private sector to expand access to loans for women.
Financial Inclusion Financial inclusion
We design inclusive solutions that meet the needs of women where they are. For example, economic opportunities may look very different for older rural women than for younger urban women.

Stories, insights, and case studies about women’s economic opportunity