Nearly 65% of adults in the Arab region remain excluded from formal financial systems, according to a new report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA). The Annual SDG Review 2025 paints a sobering picture of persistent financial exclusion that is undermining the region’s ability …
Women’s Voice & Agency beyond the household (VABH) has increasingly been recognized as critical to strengthening resilience, increasing women’s access to important resources, improving women’s decision-making power, and facilitating broader social networks (Njuki et al. 2022). Despite rapidly intensifying climate change in recent years, a knowledge gap persists as to …
Agricultural commercialization is often pursued as an important driver of agricultural transformation in low-income countries. However, the implications it can have on gendered outcomes are less understood. While agricultural commercialization creates opportunities to increase income, this may come at the expense of change in women’s decision-making agency and control over …
This report provides a high-level assessment and concrete policy recommendations to close the most relevant gaps on gender and mobility policy and actions in the context of South Africa. For this, the report discusses the context of gender and transport in South Africa, and describes how the methodology and framework …
Women play a key role in environmental protection and social and economic development in mountain areas. They are often the primary managers of mountain resources, guardians of biodiversity and keepers of traditional knowledge. Empowering rural women is crucial to eradicating hunger and poverty. Yet, due to discriminatory social norms, rural …
Analysis by the UN ahead of World AIDS Day reveals that inequalities are obstructing the end of AIDS. On current trends the world will not meet agreed global targets on AIDS. But the new UNAIDS report, Dangerous Inequalities, shows that urgent action to tackle inequalities can get the AIDS response …
The Office of the Registrar General, India under the Ministry of Home Affairs, apart from conducting the Population Census and monitoring the implementation of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act in the country, has been giving estimates on fertility and mortality using the Sample Registration System (SRS). SRS is …
This brief delves deeper into the relationship between food insecurity, gender inequality and gender-based violence (GBV). It highlights how investing in gender equality doesn’t just make women safer—it helps them access food, helps their families eat more, and can even increase their food production.
The Poverty and Gender Assessment examines the structural challenges to securing a robust and inclusive recovery from the pandemic and sustained progress in poverty reduction and gender equality in The Gambia. It leverages a diverse set of data sources to understand the nature of poverty and household welfare, and highlights …
The “Climate Equity: Women as Agents of Change” Report has been jointly produced by the National Commission on Status of Women and UNDP Pakistan. The findings of the report have emerged from an extensive desk review of policies and sectoral practices, followed by key informant interviews and countrywide consultative sessions …
The off-grid solar (OGS) sector has the potential to increase universal access to energy, alleviate poverty, support economic development, and increase gender equality. Nevertheless, although considerable advances have been made in closing gaps in access to energy, women’s presence in the sector as consumers and active participants in OGS value …
This new UN report shows that women’s and children’s health has suffered globally, as the impacts of conflict, the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change converge with devastating effects on prospects for children, young people and women. Data presented in this report show a critical regression across virtually every major measure …
This report contains a systematic analysis that sheds light on each component of digital finance and on how the components are linked with gender equality and women’s economic empowerment. It addresses five key challenges that limit the use of digital finance to promote women’s empowerment in Africa. The first challenge …
The second annual Global Food 50/50 Report, a joint initiative of Global Health 50/50, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and UN Women, reviews the gender- and equity-related policies and practices of 51 global food system organizations. The report highlights the progress, or lack thereof, made by food organizations …
India’s rural economy, largely dependent on rainfed agriculture, is increasingly vulnerable to climate change. More frequent, intense heatwaves and unpredictable rains undermine farmers’ efforts to protect crops and sustain their families. In 2021, to support communities to cope with crises, ‘CRISP-M’ was launched: an accessible online tool that helps communities …
This report assesses recent progress in poverty reduction in Zanzibar. It is based on Zanzibar’s last three household budget surveys and considers the period between 2009 and 2019, with a focus on the last four years of this decade: 2015–2019. Poverty — based on household consumption — fell by 9 …
South Asia and the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) are among the regions that are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Its adverse impacts are worsening and becoming more evident here. The impacts of climate change are leading to severe consequences such as increased food insecurity, poverty, and social …
This report reviews the experiences of market linkage programs implemented globally, particularly those focused on poor smallholders, including women, as beneficiaries and farmers who participated in government social safety net schemes. The report highlights lessons learned by program implementers, governments, and other stakeholders related to efforts to link extremely poor …
The India Discrimination Report 2022 focuses on differential access to labour market (absorption and wages),factor market (access to credit) and endowment market (access to hospitalisation) for different socio-religious and gender groups. The analysis attempts to capture the extent of identity-based discrimination explaining the gaps in access to employment and in …
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation today released its sixth annual Goalkeepers Report, noting that nearly every indicator of the UN Sustainable Development Goals is off track at the halfway point for achieving them by 2030. Despite significant setbacks caused by overlapping global crises, the report is optimistic, underscoring opportunities …
“Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals: The gender snapshot 2022” presents the latest evidence on gender equality across all 17 Goals, calling out the long road ahead to achieve gender equality. It emphasizes the interlinkages among the goals, the pivotal force gender equality plays in driving progress across the SDGs, …
