In Practice Breaking Barriers Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs By Nazia Moqueet, Meghana Kaladi, and Puja Dutta 13 © 2025 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of The World Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or currency of the data included in this work and does not assume responsibility for any errors, omissions, or discrepancies in the information, or liability with respect to the use of or failure to use the information, methods, processes, or conclusions set forth. 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Cover photo: BRAC/CARE Volume 13 November 19, 2025 In Practice The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs ii Contents Acknowledgments iv About the In Practice series v Abbreviations vi Introduction 1 Interactive Table of Contents Landscape of Economic Inclusion Programs 3 Click to navigate Framework: Operational Approach to Increasing Women's Economic Empowerment 5 Gender-intentional Design and Delivery in Economic Inclusion Programs 7 Strengthening Agency 7 Increasing Access to and Control over Resources 9 Promoting Changes in Norms and Contextual Barriers 15 Measuring Women's Economic Empowerment 20 Conclusion 22 Notes 24 References 26 Figures 1 | Pathways through which economic inclusion programs promote women’s economic empowerment 3 2 | Approaches programs use to facilitate women’s empowerment 4 3 | Operational approach to women’s economic empowerment 5 Boxes 1| A framework for measuring gender outcomes in economic inclusion programs 21 The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs iii Acknowledgements This note was prepared under the guidance of Victoria Strokova, Program Manager of the Partnership for Economic Inclusion (PEI). The authors gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the Gates Foundation and BRAC International and extend their appreciation to Radu Ban (Gates Foundation) and Claire Hutchings, Anu Kumar, Rasha Natour, and Max Gollin (BRAC International) for their valuable guidance. The note benefited greatly from the insightful comments from peer reviewers: Laura Rawlings, Sarika Gupta, and Margaux Vinez (World Bank) and Tatiana Rincón (Fundación Capital). The authors would further like to thank the PEI team, particularly Janet Heisey and Shilohni Sumanthiran, for their support. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs iv About the In Practice Series The Partnership for Economic Inclusion publishes the In Practice series featuring accessible, practitioner-focused publications that highlight learning, good practice, and emerging innovations for scaling up economic inclusion programs. Guide to navigation The In Practice series is interactive and provides built-in technical features to assist readers as they progress, including a navigation bar, progress bar, and the ability to jump to endnotes and back to the text throughout. Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Chapter navigation Progress bar Jump notes1 The progress bar tracks your 1. Notes throughout the text are linked to The navigation bar at the top of progress through each chapter and allow easy navigation between endnotes each page allows easy navigation throughout the document. and the main text. with a simple click. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs v Abbreviations ELA Empowerment and Livelihood for Adolescents GBV gender-based violence ID identification MSME micro-, small- and medium-size enterprises SEWA Self-Employed Women's Association SWL Supporting Women's Livelihoods UPG Ultra-Poor Graduation WEE women's economic empowerment   The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs vi Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Introduction Poverty is not gender-neutral. Entrenched social and economic inequalities that limit access to education, employment, and financial resources mean that 1 in 10 women lives in extreme poverty (UN Women 2023; Stepanovic et al. 2025). In 2023, only 49 percent of women were in the global labor force, compared with 73 percent of men (ILO 2024). When they do work, women are more likely of future generations (World Bank 2024b). than men to work in the informal sector, Equal participation in the labor market and where jobs are less secure, and on average parity in earnings can increase long-term gross they earn 20 percent less than men (ILO domestic product per capita by an estimated 2022, 2023; OECD 2024). These gaps reflect 20 percent and human capital wealth by persistent barriers in women’s access to 22 percent (World Bank 2023; Wodon and resources, productive assets, financial systems, de la Brière 2018).1 Expanding women’s and decision-making authority, which limit access to jobs also enhances innovation and their ability to fully engage in economic competitiveness in the economy (Gomes and opportunities. The effect of these barriers is Rijal 2024). compounded when gender intersects with factors such as disability, ethnicity, and age. Despite these benefits, progress toward closing the gap remains slow. Without Addressing these barriers is critical to targeted interventions, achieving gender advancing women’s empowerment—the parity could take over 100 years, undermining process through which individuals gain the global efforts to reduce poverty (World Bank ability to make strategic life choices (Sen 2024b; WEF 2023). 1985; Kabeer 1999). Within this framing, women’s economic empowerment (WEE) Economic inclusion programs are a refers to women’s capacity to participate in, scalable and proven way to advance WEE. contribute to, and benefit from economic By combining income support (e.g., cash activities in ways that recognize the value of transfers) with interventions such as their contributions, respect their dignity, and entrepreneurship and life-skills training, ensure fair and equitable access to economic coaching, business capital, and market resources and decision making (Golla et al. linkages, these programs help poor and 2011). vulnerable people, especially women, access economic opportunities, increase incomes, Promoting WEE and closing gender gaps and build self-reliance. As of 2024, over 400 are essential for boosting economic growth, programs had reached 70 million people in 88 reducing poverty, and ensuring the well-being countries, with 90 percent targeting women The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 1 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment (Arévalo-Sánchez et al. 2024). Targeting economic activity as well as exercise agency, women alone is not enough, however. Unless access resources, and influence decisions. programs are designed to address gender- The paper is structured as follows: the first specific barriers, they risk reinforcing rather section provides an overview of gender- than reducing inequalities. focused economic inclusion programs. Next, the conceptual framework and rationale for This paper provides guidance on how incorporating a gender lens in economic economic inclusion programs can advance inclusion programs are described. Global WEE, drawing on best practices from evidence and operational experience are programs that have demonstrated success. It reviewed in the third section, which examines adapts the operational framework proposed how interventions can be adapted across the by Cunningham and Ringwala (2023) and van three pillars of agency, resources, and context. Eerdewijk et al. (2017), which includes three The fourth section focuses on measuring WEE pillars: agency, resources, and context. The and presents standardized tools to guide paper also highlights how setting WEE as a practitioners and policymakers. The fifth core objective allows women to participate in section concludes with key recommendations. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 2 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Landscape of Economic Inclusion Programs Economic inclusion programs are designed to support the poorest and most vulnerable populations, with a strong focus on reaching women (Arévalo-Sánchez et al. 2024). A defining feature of these programs is their multifaceted design, with each intervention having the potential to enhance WEE (Figure 1). For instance, business capital enables women to own assets and start businesses, training builds entrepreneurial and technical skills, and coaching helps build self-esteem and social capital (Laszlo 2019). Figure 1 Pathways through which economic inclusion programs promote women’s economic empowerment Source: Partnership for Economic Inclusion, World Bank (2025) The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 3 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Evidence from economic inclusion programs • In Afghanistan, the program led to shows that they have delivered significant improved mental health, self-confidence, gains in women’s labor force participation and social participation, with evidence of and economic outcomes across various greater involvement in household decision countries2: making (Bedoya et al. 2019). • In Niger, the Adaptive Safety Net program, which targeted poor and Despite a growing emphasis on WEE, only a vulnerable women in rural settings, led to third of economic inclusion programs identify income gains as high as 100 percent over it as a core objective (Arévalo-Sánchez an 18-month period, with income from et al. 2024). Even among these programs, non-agricultural activities rising by up to interventions often fail to address critical 107 percent (World Bank 2025). barriers women face. Only 11 percent of such • In Zambia, the Supporting Women’s programs provide childcare support, for Livelihoods (SWL) program, which reached example, and just 2 percent include eldercare nearly 145,000 women, led to a 45 percent (Figure 2). Such gaps limit women’s ability increase in business profits one year after to engage in economic activities and risk the program ended. These gains were reinforcing gender inequalities. sustained, with profits increasing by 80 percent three years later (Botea et al. 2025). • In Afghanistan, the Targeting the Ultra- Poor program led to an 11.5 percentage Figure 2 Approaches programs use point boost in women’s labor force to facilitate women's empowerment participation and a 32 percent increase in income five years after the asset transfer, underscoring the potential of such programs, even in fragile, conflict-affected settings (Bedoya et al. 2023). • In India, Bandhan’s Targeting the Hardcore Poor program in rural West Bengal sustained income and consumption gains a decade after the program ended, highlighting the long-term impacts of these programs (Banerjee et al. 2015; Banerjee et al. 2021). These programs also led to noneconomic benefits: • In Niger, women reported improved psychological well-being, including Source: Arévalo-Sánchez et al. (2024). reductions in depression and enhanced Notes: Percentage of programs with WEE as a core objective (N=135). future outlook, as well as greater control over earnings and decision making (Bossuroy et al. 2022). • In Zambia, SWL participants reported To maximize WEE outcomes, economic greater self-esteem, happiness, and mental inclusion programs must be intentional well-being than people who did not in their design and delivery to address the participate in the program (Botea et al. constraints limiting women’s economic 2025). participation. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 4 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Framework Operational Approach to Increasing Women's Economic Empowerment This paper adapts the framework presented in Cunningham and Ringwala’s An Operational Approach to Enhancing Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in World Bank Projects (2023). The framework draws on a body of literature that highlights the role of social and economic structures in limiting women’s decision-making power and their ability to make strategic life choices (Kabeer 1999; Sen 1985). It also builds on the empowerment model productive assets, knowledge, and skills. Figure developed by van Eerdewijk et al. (2017), which 3 illustrates the adapted framework used in identifies three core dimensions of women’s this paper to show how capabilities, access to empowerment: agency of women and girls; resources, and contextual factors interact to formal and informal institutional structures influence women’s economic opportunities. and norms3; and access to resources, including Figure 3 Operational approach to women's economic empowerment Source: Adapted from Cunningham and Ringwala (2023) and van Eerdewijk et al. (2017). The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 5 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment The framework is structured around three Intended outcomes under this framework pillars that influence women’s decision- include increasing women’s labor force making capacity: participation and increasing their control • The agency pillar focuses on an over resources. These gains are achieved individual’s capacity to set and act on through mutually reinforcing improvements goals. Women often face social and across the three pillars: enhanced confidence economic barriers that prevent them from and aspirations (agency), improved access to developing confidence and envisioning financial services (resources), and supportive a better future, which limits their community norms or policies that enable ability to fully participate in economic women’s economic participation (context). opportunities. Economic inclusion Addressing one pillar in isolation is unlikely programs attempt to strengthen agency to yield sustained gains in WEE. Economic through coaching, goal setting, and access inclusion programs achieve sustainable to mentors and role models that build self- impacts by systematically working across the confidence and decision-making ability. three pillars through a holistic and integrated • The resources pillar includes the financial, approach. physical, human, and social capital needed to exercise choice. Economic inclusion To empower women economically, programs programs typically offer a combination must first identify constraints across all pillars. of business capital and access to financial Gender-responsive assessments are critical for services to improve access to physical diagnosing barriers and informing appropriate capital; business skills and financial interventions (Cunningham and Ringwala literacy training to build knowledge; and 2023). These assessments typically combine integration with community networks and household surveys, participatory qualitative leaders to enhance social capital. methods, and labor market analysis with • The context pillar includes laws, customs, direct input from women, to ensure that their and norms that collectively shape the perspectives shape program design. Key areas opportunities available to women. of focus include access to resources, mobility Interventions that raise awareness on constraints, social norms, and GBV, among women’s legal rights—such as property others (World Bank 2021b). These assessments ownership and protection against allow programs to tailor interventions to discrimination and gender-based violence local contexts, particularly in settings with (GBV)—can improve their ability to limited resources or political support, where participate in community networks it may be necessary to prioritize a subset of that influence local policy. Actively interventions. Combining gender-responsive engaging men and influential members diagnostics with continuous improvements of the community can also build support across the program cycle ensures that for WEE. Their involvement can help interventions remain relevant, adaptive, and shift negative social norms and create impactful. a supportive environment that enables women to participate in economic activities. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 6 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Gender-intentional Design and Delivery in Economic Inclusion Programs STRENGTHENING AGENCY This section explores how economic inclusion programs can strengthen women’s agency through life-skills training and coaching. It highlights key design features, such as tailoring training content and delivery modalities, leveraging community networks, and using behavioral nudges, drawing on best practices and evidence from global programs. Poor and vulnerable women face social and and designed with a gender lens, the two economic barriers that make it difficult for interventions can lead to positive behavior them to envision a better future. Lack of change and a more optimistic outlook. In hope and confidence can limit their ability Burundi, for example, Concern Worldwide’s to fully benefit from economic inclusion Terintambwe Programme provided training programs. Programs that support livelihoods and regular coaching sessions that led through business capital or asset transfers are women to feel positive and confident about important, but on their own, they will not their future (Roelen and Devereux 2018). improve women’s agency (Chang et al. 2020). In BRAC’s Ultra-Poor Graduation (UPG) Economic inclusion programs include targeted Programme in Bangladesh, intensive coaching interventions such as coaching and life skills and training enabled women to develop training; their effectiveness in building the skills and confidence needed to manage women’s agency depends on how intentionally productive assets while also strengthening they address psychosocial barriers. their bargaining power within the household (Bandiera et al. 2017). Life-skills training equips participants with essential knowledge in goal setting, Economic inclusion programs that communication, and problem solving—skills intentionally target women are more likely that can help them manage their livelihoods than those that do not to include social issues and become self-reliant. Coaching provides such as intrahousehold dynamics and child tailored support to help participants apply marriage in life-skills training and coaching training concepts, navigate economic and (68 percent versus 33 percent) (Andrews et social challenges, and leverage the resources al. 2021). Programs that facilitate women’s the program provides (Sumanthiran and participation in community institutions or Roelen 2023). When delivered together promote peer networks can increase their self- The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 7 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment esteem and motivation to exercise their rights, than targeting individual agency alone. as discussed in the next section (Laszlo 2019). These findings underscore the importance Interventions that leverage women’s strengths of culturally tailored interventions that and resourcefulness can counteract the address both personal motivation and stigma associated with living in poverty while relational aspects to build women’s agency. fostering confidence and a positive mindset. • The SWL program in Zambia implemented Doing so involves encouraging women to a comprehensive life-skills training consider how they manage constraints and curriculum that included goal setting, apply these strengths to other situations negotiation, decision making, conflict (Bauer, Boemelburg, and Walton 2021). resolution, and sexual and reproductive The following examples illustrate effective health. The program led to an improvement approaches to gender-intentional life skills in women’s perceived happiness, self- training and coaching: esteem, and mental health (as measured by a decrease in symptoms of depression and • In the Democratic Republic of Congo, exhaustion) (Botea et al. 2025). a program implemented by Women for Women International targets ultra-poor Tailoring the content and delivery of life- women in a region facing protracted skills training and coaching is essential to conflict. The program provides training maximize their impact on women’s agency. in women’s rights, negotiation, decision The delivery modality (group or individual) making, and civic action. The program must align with women’s needs. Evidence on increased women’s participation in the effectiveness of group versus individual household decision making and sense of coaching is mixed, with both approaches control, largely through their increased yielding benefits, depending on the context. involvement in decisions about income Group coaching helps build solidarity and generation (Angelucci et al. 2023). peer networks; individual coaching offers • In Niger, the Adaptive Safety Net Project tailored support, which can be critical when included nine training modules on decision addressing sensitive issues like household making, goal setting, women’s leadership, conflict (Laszlo 2019). and interpersonal communication. They were complemented by a community Programs such as the Productive Safety Net sensitization intervention in which Programme in Ethiopia and the Targeting participants watched a film promoting the Hardcore Poor Programme in India women’s entrepreneurship as a way to combined group and individual coaching foster social harmony and collective to maximize impact and cost-effectiveness. aspirations. The dual approach significantly The program in India found that individual improved economic outcomes (e.g., home visits were crucial in building women’s women’s business performance, control confidence and aspirations. The Stronger over earnings); psychosocial outcomes Women, Stronger Nations Program in Nigeria (e.g., a positive vision of the future); and found that group visits were instrumental in relational outcomes (e.g., household fostering community integration and skills dynamics) (Thomas et al. 2024; Bossuroy et development (Ascencio et al. 2022). al. 2022). Combining personal interventions that enhance future vision and self-efficacy Having coaches with the appropriate profile with community-centered approaches is key to ensuring that coaching is responsive can be more effective in strengthening to women’s needs. In the Empowering Women women’s agency and economic outcomes The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 8 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment and Youth through the Graduation Approach Net Programme, for instance, a series of and Financial Inclusion Program in Mexico, behavioral interventions was designed to for example, women participants were help cash transfer recipients set goals for reluctant to discuss sensitive topics with male productive investments. These actions coaches. This led to the recruitment of female included goal setting and planning activities coaches to improve engagement and trust that enabled recipients to set realistic (Sanson et al. 2021). savings targets and determine the number of payments needed to achieve the targets. Coaches can incorporate behavioral nudges Text messages were sent upon disbursal of to motivate women to work toward their cash transfers to remind recipients of their goals related to livelihoods, savings, and goals. Implementation of these behavioral other domains. Insights on using nudges interventions resulted in a 41 percent increase can be drawn from cash transfer programs, in the amount saved compared with the which often use them to encourage saving control group, which received cash without behavior. In Kenya’s National Social Safety nudges (Datta, Koh, and Rawlings 2022). INCREASING ACCESS TO AND CONTROL OVER RESOURCES This section explores how economic inclusion programs can strengthen women’s agency through life-skills training and coaching. It highlights key design features, such as tailoring training content and delivery modalities, leveraging community networks, and using behavioral nudges, drawing on best practices and evidence from global programs. Financial and physical capital Barriers—including low financial literacy, risk aversion, lack of collateral, and Despite the narrowing of gender gaps in discriminatory lending practices—limit recent years, women are still much less likely women’s ability to engage in and expand than men to have access to monetary and livelihoods, perpetuating gender gaps in in-kind resources that help them generate economic participation. income. In Sub-Saharan Africa, women are concentrated in agriculture and informal Gender-responsive diagnostics, such as work; their lack of access to land, credit, and market assessments and value chain analyses, inputs limits their productivity (Buehren can inform program design by identifying 2023). Self-employed women face multiple livelihood options that are appropriate, constraints to expanding their business, viable, and sustainable for women. Such including limited access to finance. Globally, assessments consider the specific constraints the financing gap for women-owned micro, women face, including caregiving duties, small and medium size enterprises (MSME) limited skills, and restricted mobility. is estimated at $1.9 trillion, representing about one-third of the total MSME gap The Forsa Program in Egypt conducted a (International Finance Corporation 2025). rapid market assessment to identify demand- The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 9 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment and supply-side constraints affecting both In India, gender-tailored climate-risk self- and wage employment opportunities. products were instrumental in protecting Through stakeholder interviews, the program women working in the informal sector. identified the challenges women face in The Self-Employed Women’s Association engaging with markets. This approach (SEWA) bundled an index-based Extreme- ensured that livelihood options were Heat Livelihood Support microinsurance aligned with women’s time constraints and product that is automatically triggered when responsibilities. Livelihood activities focused local temperatures exceed set thresholds. It primarily on livestock rearing, tailoring, is coupled with inexpensive adaptation tools, and handicrafts. The program also offered such as insulated water jugs, large umbrellas, flexibility by providing both self- and wage tarpaulin sheets, or solar lanterns. In its employment tracks, with most women first year, the scheme reached 21,000 female selecting the self-employment track (Allen workers across Gujarat, enabling them to et al. 2023). Similarly, in the Philippines, the maintain earnings during heatwaves (SEWA Padayon Sustainable Livelihood Program 2025). incorporated gender considerations in its market assessment and accounted for high Effective economic inclusion programs care burdens and potential risks faced by incorporate design elements that strengthen women managing livelihoods in public women’s control over and sustained use markets. The program offered a range of of financial and physical resources. Most options, including home-based activities with programs provide capital through mechanisms lower time demands such as food processing such as cash transfers or productive grants. and livestock-rearing (Ito, Shrestha, and However, evidence suggests that simply Valenzuela 2023). giving cash to women does not automatically lead to their empowerment. In Morocco, Sound diagnostics can also ensure that the an evaluation of the national cash transfer design and distribution of financial products program found no change in household is appropriate for women, increasing uptake. spending patterns when women rather than In the Horn of Africa, the De-risking, men were named as recipients, as men often Inclusion, and Value Enhancement of Pastoral retained control over the funds (Benhassine et Economies (DRIVE) project conducted al. 2015). In Burkina Faso, a randomized trial diagnostics that identified gender gaps in comparing transfers to mothers versus fathers women’s access to financial services and showed nuanced effects, with no advantage in the livestock trade and value chain. The to targeting women (Akresh, De Walque, and project adapted the design of the drought Kazianga 2016). Although women are often insurance product and tweaked marketing the designated recipients, prevailing social activities and awareness campaigns to increase norms that position men as financial decision female pastoralists’ financial inclusion. It makers can undermine their ability to control also included activities to enhance women’s or benefit from these transfers or business access to markets along the value chain, grants. including targeted support to women-run businesses. With gender-sensitive training To address the problem, some programs and female community mobilizers, more than incorporate measures such as (a) direct half the policies initially sold were to women payments to women’s bank or digital (Robakowski-Van Stralen and Roberts 2024). accounts, (b) design features and awareness campaigns around financial products that The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 10 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment are tailored to women’s needs, (c) financial Programs that specifically address barriers literacy training, and (d) family or community that limit women’s access to digital financial engagement on gender norms. Each of services can support broader development these measures aims to enhance women’s outcomes. For instance, access to digital autonomy and ability to productively engage financial services is often constrained by in economic activities, as highlighted in the a lack of identification (ID) documents, following examples. especially in fragile and rural contexts. Several programs offer insights into introducing ID– Ensuring that financial transfers are enabling measures to overcome these barriers. deposited directly into women-owned bank or digital accounts has the potential to In Afghanistan—where gender gaps in ID enhance their control over resources and ownership were significant in 2017 (52 percent improve intrahousehold bargaining power. of women lacked IDs, compared with just 6 A randomized evaluation conducted by percent of men)—the Targeting the Ultra- BRAC and Innovations for Poverty Action Poor program helped women apply for ID in Tanzania tested whether encouraging cards, which are needed to open a bank women to repay microfinance loans using account, own a mobile phone, and vote mobile money would increase their broader (Livani and Haddock 2020). In Pakistan, use of digital financial services and enhance the government created mobile registration their empowerment. The study found that units in rural areas to help women obtain IDs women who were encouraged to use mobile without having to travel long distances. In money were significantly more likely to use addition, it stationed female staff at ID sites it for loan repayments, savings, and other to help take photographs and fingerprints of household transactions, including school women to adhere to local norms (CFI and fees. These women also demonstrated greater WFP 2022). financial autonomy and bargaining power within the household, including increased Even in contexts with restrictive gender decision making over income and household norms, economic inclusion programs can be purchases and a greater willingness to retain designed to increase women’s access to and money for their own use. Notably, the gains control over financial and physical resources. were achieved without triggering household In Nigeria, for example, the National Social conflict, a common concern when women Safety Nets Project (NASSP) implemented a begin exercising greater financial control gender-sensitive recipient nomination process (Heath and Riley 2024). In Uganda, a recent that combines community engagement with evaluation compared delivering transfers in facilitated household-level reflection. Trained cash to married women versus paying the gender experts and female project staff same amount into a mobile-money account conduct guided discussions within beneficiary registered in the woman’s name. It found that households to identify who is primarily digital delivery raised women’s individual responsible for caregiving tasks such as earnings by 31 percent and was more effective cooking, childcare, and water collection. in increasing their household decision-making By framing cash transfers as support for power and economic independence (Greco et household well-being and caregiving al. 2025). responsibilities, the process encourages households to designate women as recipients The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 11 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment without triggering resistance. This approach is capital. The following examples show how supported by targeted information campaigns training packages can enable women to start, to build community acceptance of women’s manage, and expand their livelihoods: roles in managing household resources. As a result, over 90 percent of the 1.2 million • Technical skills comprise livelihood-specific households enrolled in the NASSP selected skills, such as livestock management, women as primary transfer recipients. The that can help program participants build program takes a pragmatic approach to sustainable livelihoods. BOMA’s Rural empowering women by increasing their Entrepreneur Access Project (REAP) control over household resources, thereby targets ultra-poor women in arid and semi- laying the groundwork for longer-term arid lands of Kenya, providing technical shifts in intrahousehold dynamics (Botea, skills training in combination with three Cunningham, and Mossman 2023). components: women-only savings groups; seed capital for starting microenterprises; and individualized coaching to build Human capital financial literacy, business acumen, and self-confidence. The program is designed Gender parity in basic education has to accommodate women’s time constraints, improved, but women still participate at literacy levels, and social norms, including lower rates than men in formal vocational delivery in local languages, flexible training training, limiting their skills development schedules, and support for home-based and employability (World Bank, UNESCO, businesses. BOMA’s REAP for Climate and ILO 2023). Women often also have Resilience (Green REAP) supports higher dropout rates because of domestic participants (primarily women) with responsibilities, lack of childcare, and technical skills training to develop green mobility barriers (World Bank 2020). businesses, engage in conservation efforts, and adopt climate-adaptive livelihoods. The most effective economic inclusion These adaptations acknowledge both the programs are designed to address specific disproportionate exposure of women to skills gaps and gender-related barriers that climate shocks and the potential for women impede participation in skills training. to lead locally grounded resilience efforts Training assessments that incorporate a (Carter, Zheng, and Jensen 2022). gender lens are critical in identifying gaps in • Business skills training covering areas life and technical skills, uncovering sector- such as price setting and financial specific barriers, and informing the design of management is essential, particularly for targeted training modules (Ubfal 2024). They women with limited or no experience in can be combined with market assessments, income generation. Business skills training as was done in Egypt’s Forsa Program pilot, that integrates gender-focused content where the joint assessment identified suitable has proven very effective. In Peru, for livelihood activities as well as the sector- example, a training program for female specific skills needed to ensure that women microentrepreneurs that combined can build their capabilities to manage the standard business skills with agency- livelihoods. enhancing modules increased sales 7–10 months after program implementation (J-PAL 2023b). A similar program in Kenya Developing a training package that combines led to a 15 percent increase in women’s sector-specific technical skills with business weekly profits three years post-intervention and life skills can enhance women’s human (J-PAL 2023b). The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 12 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment • In Togo, life-skills and personal better learning outcomes than programs that initiative training focused on building did not (UN Women 2021). socioemotional capabilities such as future orientation, self-efficacy, and perseverance, BRAC’s Empowerment and Livelihood for which restrictive gender norms often Adolescents (ELA) Program in Liberia, undermine. Female entrepreneurs Tanzania, and Uganda recruited young who received this training saw profits women from the community to provide increase nearly threefold compared with training and mentorship to participants. As women who received traditional business mentors have similar life circumstances, they training, indicating that interventions act as credible role models and help motivate addressing internal constraints may be participants (Banks 2017). especially powerful in low-autonomy settings (Campos et al. 2017). Life-skills Lessons from the program also highlight and psychosocial interventions are critical that dedicated “safe-space” venues matter. In in fragile contexts, where women face Uganda, ELA rented single-room houses, so greater structural and normative barriers that meetings could be held privately at times to economic participation. Programs chosen by the girls, fostering frank discussion such as the Stronger Women, Stronger and strong peer bonds. In Tanzania, in Nations Program by Women for Women contrast, the groups met in public spaces, International provided women in conflict- which limited scheduling flexibility and affected settings with a holistic package of vocational skills, life-skills, and rights- reduced privacy, making participation less based training. Its modules on the value of consistent (Banks 2017). In Liberia, training women’s work, women’s rights, and GBV venues were chosen based on girl-friendly prevention helped enhance autonomy, and criteria: safety, accessibility, proximity to reduce the risk of women experiencing community centers and security posts, and violence (Noble et al. 2019; Angelucci et al. conducive learning environments with water 2023). and sanitation facilities (Adoho et al. 2014). In Benin, the Azôli program offered training Tailoring the delivery of training to the in the communities where the participants specific requirements of women can lived and provided free childcare and flexible substantially enhance their participation, timing, with both morning and afternoon retention, and outcomes. Doing so could training sessions, allowing women to include measures such as recruiting trainers continue their existing domestic and income- with the ability to engage with the target generating activities and to focus on training women, setting flexible timings for training while at the venue (Dutta, Clay, and Avalos or group activities, ensuring accessible and 2022). safe venues for training or group activities, and allowing women to train with a friend. For women facing greater restrictions on Evidence from Latin America suggests that mobility, training with a friend may increase women’s time constraints, unpaid care work, participation and post-training outcomes. and literacy barriers remain major obstacles In India, Shri Mahila Sewa Sahakari Bank to training participation. Programs that offered a short microentrepreneurship adapted methodologies to women’s literacy training course to its clients, some of whom levels and provided childcare and flexible were invited to attend the training with a scheduling reported higher participation and friend. Women who trained with a friend doubled their demand for loans, expanded The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 13 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment their businesses, and increased their incomes and Demographic Dividend project, girls’ more than woman who attended alone. These clubs supported by vouchers and adolescent- impacts were particularly high for women from friendly services increased the use of modern social groups that restricted women’s mobility contraception by more than 300,000 women in (Field et al. 2016). target areas and enabled over 9,000 midwives to complete basic and refresher training Beyond skills development, improving health (Altuwaijri et al. 2024). outcomes is crucial, as health is a foundational component of human capital and directly Social capital influences women’s ability to engage in and benefit from economic opportunities. BRAC’s Restrictive gender norms limit women’s UPG Programme traditionally embedded mobility and participation in community health education, direct health care access, and groups, reducing their access to collective life-skills training in its multifaceted support resources and peer support. Research shows package. Participants received guidance on that women’s low social capital weakens preventive health care, antenatal and postnatal their entrepreneurial outcomes. Female services, contraceptives, micronutrient microentrepreneurs often rely on family-based supplements, immunizations, and referrals networks, which provide emotional support through community health workers, as well but little access to new markets or financial as linkages to government facilities (BRAC services (Carranza et al. 2018). These constraints 2016). As access to formal health care improved mean that even when women acquire skills and in Bangladesh, BRAC strategically shifted assets, they often struggle to translate them from delivering services directly to facilitating into sustainable livelihoods without the social connections between participants and networks that facilitate economic mobility. government health systems, ensuring that health remains deeply integrated into livelihoods Economic inclusion programs often mobilize programming. women into groups or leverage existing community platforms to build their social Economic inclusion programs can also integrate capital. These groups include self-help groups, health considerations—particularly in areas village savings and loan associations, adolescent like sexual and reproductive health and GBV— girls’ clubs, and solidarity committees. Their within their training and coaching components. goal is to help women build the networks and For instance, the life-skills curriculum in relationships that facilitate peer learning and economic inclusion programs could cover collective empowerment. sexual and reproductive health, particularly for young women, who are vulnerable to sexual These groups of women have the potential to exploitation, early marriage, and childbirth. engage in collective action. In India, under In Uganda, BRAC’s ELA program provided the National Rural Livelihood Mission, 8.5 life-skills training to help adolescent girls make million self-help groups were mobilized to informed choices about sex and marriage. An improve the economic and financial inclusion impact evaluation four years post-intervention of women (Gates Foundation 2023). In addition reported a 34 percent decline in teenage to increasing women’s entrepreneurship rates, pregnancy, a 62 percent reduction in early these self-help groups served as a foundation for marriage or cohabitation, and a 30 percent collective agency and policy advocacy against drop in reports of forced sex (Bandiera et al. restrictive social norms and GBV. The groups 2020). In the Sahel Women’s Empowerment empowered women, boosted their self-esteem, The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 14 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment and inspired them to be community resources most marginalized and sequence interventions and role models. so that social inclusion is prioritized before economic interventions are delivered. In Uganda, AVSI’s Graduation Approach for refugee populations placed strong emphasis Economic inclusion programs can also leverage on building community-based mentoring community platforms to facilitate the social structures and peer networks among women, integration of participants. In Bangladesh, fostering mutual accountability and emotional BRAC’s UPG Programme includes Village resilience amid displacement challenges. Solidarity Committees—community-based In Honduras, a financial inclusion project groups composed of local leaders and other (ACTIVO) found that strengthening networks influential people who meet monthly with between successful female entrepreneurs and participants to resolve crises, advocate for new entrants in business helped build social access to public services, and provide a support capital (JICA and Kaihatsu Management network. The committees resolve unexpected Consulting, Inc. 2020). challenges during the program cycle, covering tuition fees to avoid disruption to children’s Establishing savings groups or self-help school attendance, gaining access to clean water groups must be done in a way that is and health services, and helping in post-disaster inclusive, particularly for the most vulnerable. management, for example. They enhance social Conventional practices of mobilizing groups capital by linking women to public resources of 10–20 members have sometimes excluded and reinforcing their visibility within the marginalized individuals, including poor and community. During the COVID-19 pandemic, vulnerable people, people with disabilities, the committees were instrumental in boosting and Indigenous groups, among others, who are the social inclusion of women and linking them viewed as high financial risks (Arévalo-Sánchez with essential government services, such as food, et al. 2024). To avoid exclusion, programs must cash, and hygiene products (BRAC 2021). include a mobilization effort that reaches the PROMOTING CHANGES IN NORMS AND CONTEXTUAL BARRIERS This section explores how economic inclusion programs can shift the broader context of social norms and institutions that shape women’s opportunities. By drawing on global examples, it highlights strategies such as engaging men in dialogue, using media and community sensitization, linking women to nontraditional livelihoods, and advocating for supportive institutional reforms. Shifting social norms household tasks, limiting the time and flexibility they have to engage in paid work. Women often bear the primary responsibility Social norms that assign responsibility for for unpaid care work, including caring for caregiving and domestic chores to women children and elderly relatives and managing reinforce these gender roles (Deshpande and The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 15 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Kabeer 2024). On average, women spend Designing life-skills training to cover topics almost 18 percent of their day on unpaid care that are relevant to both men and women can work— nearly three times as men ( Hanna et raise awareness about the importance of WEE al. 2023). In 2023, around 708 million women and promote behavioral change among men. worldwide were out of the labor force because It can include training on gender dynamics, of unpaid care responsibilities, with nearly equal division of labor, GBV, and other issues. half (45 percent) citing care responsibilities as the main barrier to entering the labor force In Malawi, Concern Worldwide introduced (ILO 2024). Female labor force participation gender empowerment training for couples is 12–14 percentage points lower among in its economic inclusion program. The women with young children than among training, called Umodzi (united), included women without children (ILO 2024), and monthly sessions over the course of a year. women’s average earnings decline significantly Each session focused on a specific topic, following the birth of their first child (Kleven such as family vision, decision making and et al. 2019). household dynamics, forms of power, working together as partners, and the role of men as These household and social constraints also fathers. Sessions were held in both mixed and shape the types of work women can pursue. single-sex settings, and the messages were Research shows that limited information, reinforced during regular coaching visits. restrictive norms, and a lack of role models Evaluation results show that households prevent women from entering male- participating in the gender-focused training dominated fields, which are typically more experienced significantly greater gains than lucrative than those dominated by women non-participants—in the value of livestock (Campos et al. 2015; Chakravarty, Das, and owned by women, household income, asset Vaillant 2017). These factors cause many value, and more equitable division of labor in women to choose traditional, lower-value household chores (Concern Worldwide 2024). livelihoods, such as tailoring, beauty services, Men’s perception of women as caregivers and handicrafts. Women are also more gradually changed, and men took on more likely than men to engage in home-based household tasks, enabling women to focus on enterprises, which enable them to balance income-generating activities and signaling a economic activity with their domestic shift in norms. responsibilities (Heintz, Kabeer, and Mahmud 2018). Leveraging audio and visual tools for life- skills training and community engagement Men often set rules regarding women’s can be an effective way to convey messages economic participation and control their about gender dynamics and help shift access to resources, information, and capital. mindsets about WEE. The Projet Filets Economic inclusion programs can shift Sociaux in Cameroon provided training on these gender roles by engaging women in topics such as shared household budgeting, livelihood activities, which can make men feel family communication, positive parenting, threatened. In some cases, the incidence of emotional expression, and family conflict GBV increases as women defy social norms. resolution. These trainings were delivered to To mitigate potential backlash, it is important groups of 10 couples and broadcast on the to engage men in dialogue and training before radio in public awareness events. The drama and during the program, emphasizing the included a five-episode radio novela in the benefits of women’s work for both women local language. Each episode focused on a and the family. different module and featured local actors The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 16 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment and a narrator to describe positive behaviors to manage livelihoods. Screening these videos in a family. The episodes were also broadcast broadly can increase cohesion between during participant group meetings, where program participants and nonparticipants they were followed by discussions facilitated and garner broader support for WEE in the by community outreach workers. Holding community (Bossuroy et al. 2024). discussions on the drama helped participants In Paraguay, a mobile-based application understand the messages, increasing the (IgualdApp) was developed by Fundación likelihood of them adopting the behaviors Capital to deliver digital coaching content at home (World Bank forthcoming). The to participants of Programa Abrazo. The program also used visual tools in the trainings application provided short learning modules, to complement the radio drama, which reflection exercises, and behavioral prompts. increased the retention of key concepts. The coaching intervention aimed to shift gender norms by promoting a more equitable In Mauritania, the Tekavoul safety net division of care, greater joint decision program introduced a family dialogue making, and increased recognition of women’s pilot that combines couples’ training with leadership. Digitizing the content enabled the community-level edutainment. Early results program to reach households efficiently. The point to increased women’s participation in intervention resulted in measurable changes economic activities, greater decision-making in perceptions of gender equity, underscoring power over household finances, and more how technology can address restrictive norms equitable sharing of household responsibilities (Molano 2022). by men (Billey et al. 2024). Economic inclusion programs are increasingly Combining household and community-level integrating childcare and/or eldercare support interventions can help reinforce messages to help women balance the demands of paid and shift mindsets about WEE. The Niger work and unpaid care responsibilities. Doing Adaptive Safety Net Project organized video so can shift norms that place the burden of screenings and dialogue with the community, such care on women and provide care services including leaders and program participants that allow women to work. and their spouses (Bossuroy et al. 2022). The video, which was filmed in local languages, Lessons on how to provide appropriate showcased stories about couples working childcare support can be drawn from together with the support of the broader public works programs in Burkina Faso, community. It highlighted the importance the Democratic Republic of Congo, and of women’s economic activities and equal Ethiopia, where mobile creches have been decision making in the household. In used to provide care for children while discussions following the screening, trained women work (World Bank 2021a). In Benin, facilitators guided discussion of how social after identifying care responsibilities as a norms affect women in their communities. key barrier to women’s participation in the This type of community outreach is essential labor force, the Azôli program introduced to establish trust and secure buy-in from the community-based childcare services, hiring community. local mothers as providers and turning caregiving into an entrepreneurial pathway. In the Social Safety Net program in Burkina As a result of this support, many participants Faso, mini-drama videos modeled positive who had been excluded from economic behaviors, including couples working together opportunities were able to participate in The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 17 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment apprenticeships (Agbeshi, Adegbite, and such as higher interest rates, which prevent Samakéet 2024). them from investing in and expanding their enterprises (World Bank 2021b). According Establishing links to opportunities in to the 2024 Women, Business, and the Law traditionally male-dominated occupations can report, 96 countries do not explicitly ban help shift norms and facilitate women’s entry gender-based discrimination in access to into these professions. Lessons on designing credit (World Bank 2024a). In Kenya, women interventions to address these barriers can are less likely to adopt or frequently use be drawn from a vocational training program digital financial services, in part due to in Kenya, which used posters and videos to algorithmic credit screening models that illustrate the differences in wages between inadvertently perpetuate societal bias against male- and female-dominated occupations women (Oluoch and Alhassan 2025). (Hicks et al. 2016). The videos also used role models—such as women working as Formal and informal institutions set the mechanics—to encourage trainees to consider rules of society and can influence gender- these professions. focused programs. For example, government institutions can allocate more financial Apprenticeships provide women with resources to livelihood programs that hands-on learning experience to gain target women or pass laws that prohibit technical skills in sectors where they are gender discrimination in access to services typically underrepresented. The Recovery (Cunningham and Ringwala 2023). In many and Advancement of Informal Sector contexts, informal actors, such as community Employment program in Bangladesh offers groups and village councils, are influential, six-month apprenticeships to poor and particularly when formal institutions are vulnerable young women in activities such weak and out of reach for poor households. as tailoring and petty trade, while also promoting participation in non-traditional Coaching is a key mechanism through livelihoods such as motorcycle repair and which women can gain awareness of their mobile phone servicing. rights and access essential resources in the community. Evidence from the CGAP–Ford Shifting institutional barriers Foundation Graduation pilots demonstrates that economic inclusion programs can Contextual barriers often prevent women’s enable participants to be more politically economic and social empowerment. They active (Bannerjee et al. 2015; Laszlo 2019). include limited legal rights to land; customary The Targeting the Ultra-Poor program in laws that prevent women from owning Afghanistan led women to increase their property; and structural constraints, such attendance at community-level meetings as discriminatory hiring practices, low (Bedoya et al. 2019). Coaches helped make access to training, unsafe transportation, women more comfortable reaching out to and restrictions on mobility. Over one- community leaders when faced with an issue, third of countries still have laws that limit empowering them to have a voice in laws that women’s right to work (UN Women 2023). affect them. Gender gaps in access to financial services, including credit, have narrowed in recent Community mobilization is another pathway years, but women are still more likely than through which economic inclusion programs men to face discriminatory lending practices, help women mitigate institutional barriers The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 18 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment at the informal level. In India, the Bihar Advocating for policy change to improve Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society, known the enabling environment is crucial to as JEEViKA, empowered self-help groups ensure that women do not bear the sole to act as decentralized institutions that responsibility for reforms. As of 2024, advocated for state-wide policy changes, only 28 percent of programs with WEE including a successful lobbying campaign to as a core objective actively engaged in ban liquor (World Bank 2018). In BRAC’s policy advocacy (Arévalo-Sánchez et al. UPG Programme in Bangladesh, Village 2024). Meaningful empowerment requires Solidarity committees play a critical role addressing institutional barriers and creating in raising awareness on social and health supportive environments, such as providing issues, such as preventing early marriage. In accessible childcare services and enforcing mobilizing these committees, the program care-friendly policies, as well as tackling supports participants, helps them avoid discriminatory lending and hiring practices. negative coping mechanisms during crises, Evidence from eight low- and middle-income and encourages informal institutions to adopt countries shows that implementing childcare a pro-poor and inclusive development agenda interventions can significantly increase (Hossain and Matin 2007; Hasan and Tasnin women’s labor force participation (J-PAL 2021). The mixed-gender composition of these 2023a). Other barriers, such as restrictive groups and inclusion of program participants gender norms or scarce job opportunities, give poor and vulnerable women a voice in limit the effects, however, highlighting public forums. the need for a comprehensive approach to strengthen the enabling environment. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Financial Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 19 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Measuring Women's Economic Empowerment Measuring empowerment is difficult because it is multidimensional and context specific. The literature shows that studies use diverse measurement approaches, each with its own limitations and biases (Annan et al. 2017; Glennerster, Walsh, and Diaz-Martin 2018; Martinez-Restrepo and Ramos-Jaimes 2017). For example, self-reported decision-making Another key limitation is the lack questions may not reflect actual control. In ofcomprehensive and consistent measures Macedonia, a lab-in-the-field experiment of empowerment. Without robust tools to revealed that gender-targeted cash transfers capture changes in agency, voice, or control strengthened women’s control over income, over resources, many evaluations have likely even though traditional survey measures underestimated the full scope of program showed no change in women’s decision making impact. Measurement matters not only for (Almås et al. 2018). learning but also for program design and iteration, helping implementers identify what In the context of economic inclusion works, for whom, and why. programs, it is important to evaluate both economic (e.g., income, consumption, business Recent studies that apply broader and more profits) and noneconomic (e.g., agency, nuanced empowerment metrics—such as mental well-being) outcomes. Early evidence those used in Afghanistan, the Democratic from economic inclusion programs showed Republic of Congo, and the Sahel—have positive effects on economic indicators but shown promising results across multiple limited impacts on broader aspects of women’s dimensions of empowerment. Building on this empowerment, at least partly because early progress and lessons learned, Box 1 presents evaluations often lacked gender-intentional a standardized measurement framework designs or failed to target the specific aimed at harmonizing gender-specific constraints faced by women. Many programs outcomes across economic inclusion programs, were not explicitly designed with women’s facilitating cross-country comparison and empowerment as a core objective or did not benchmarking of results across diverse sufficiently tailor interventions to the barriers settings. women face in accessing resources, markets, or decision-making opportunities. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 20 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Box 1 A framework for measuring gender outcomes in economic inclusion programs The Impact Collaborative of the Partnership for Economic Inclusion (PEI)—a global collaboration for the co-creation, knowledge sharing, and scale-up of evidence-based economic inclusion programming— has prioritized the integration of WEE measurement in the design and evaluation of economic inclusion interventions. Through a common measurement framework, it is standardizing how WEE is assessed across World Bank–financed economic inclusion operations in Cameroon, Ethiopia, Haiti, Malawi, Sierra Leone, and South Sudan. The framework, which builds on global best practices, includes indicators across three domains: • decision-making power (e.g., control over earnings, consumption, and production decisions) • perceived agency (e.g., self-efficacy, resilience, and self-esteem) • social capital (e.g., community financial support, collective action, and partner dynamics). These indicators are embedded in a standardized survey instrument (available upon request), which is used to collect data through baseline and follow-up household surveys to inform outcomes of interest for impact evaluations. This harmonized approach enables cross-country learning and benchmarking while ensuring that gender-specific outcomes are systematically captured and used to inform program design and policy dialogue. The tool aligns with broader efforts, such as the World Bank Development Impact Group’s Women@Center program, which emphasizes integrated, multisectoral strategies to enhance women’s economic participation and autonomy, and similar initiatives to create standardized economic inclusion and WEE indicators/tools, such as BRAC’s PROPEL Toolkit, the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP)’s WEE in Financial Inclusion indicators, the World Bank’s Africa Gender Innovation Lab (AFRGIL) and Living Standards Measurement Study’s Measures for Advancing Gender Equality (MAGNET), and the Center for Global Development and Data2x’s WEE Measurement Learning Collaborative. By incorporating rigorous, standardized WEE measurement in economic inclusion programs, the PEI Impact Collaborative is helping close critical knowledge gaps and ensure that interventions are not only inclusive in design but also transformative in both economic and noneconomic outcomes. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 21 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment Conclusion Closing gender gaps in economic participation is essential to reducing poverty. WEE is achieved when gains in agency, resources, and context combine to enable women to participate in the labor force and exercise control over their earnings. Global evidence shows that economic women into groups that build social inclusion programs can address the multiple, capital and collective action. interlocking barriers that women face in achieving economic empowerment. To • Context: By engaging men and community enhance WEE, programs must go beyond leaders and leveraging community simply targeting women to adopting a gender- sensitization activities and media intentional approach. Core interventions— campaigns, economic inclusion programs such as coaching, business and life-skills can help shift social norms and promote training, business capital, and financial gender-equitable roles in the household. services—need to be tailored to meet women’s Programs should engage both women and specific needs. men from the outset, to prevent backlash and reduce the risk of GBV, which can Adaptations in three areas can tailor economic increase when women gain access to inclusion programs to achieve WEE: resources. • Agency: Tailoring the content and Three main lessons emerge from this paper: delivery of life-skills training, coaching, and mentoring to women’s needs; building • Effective economic inclusion programs the capacity of coaches to provide effective start with robust diagnostics to identify guidance; and incorporating behavioral the specific constraints women face while nudges can increase women’s confidence, also accounting for diversity among aspirations, and decision-making capacity. participants, such as differences in age, disability, education, ethnicity, and • Resources: To be effective, financial, location. Gender-responsive assessments physical, human, and social capital are essential to identify these gaps and resources need to be tailored to reflect design interventions that align with women’s realities. Design elements that women’s capabilities, aspirations, and the can strengthen women’s control and use environments in which they live and work. of resources include delivering transfers directly into women’s accounts, tailoring • Interventions should address the most training to accommodate women’s time significant constraints women face. and mobility constraints, and mobilizing Given limitations in resources, capacity, The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 22 Introduction Landscape Framework Gender-intentional Measuring Conclusion Design and Women's Economic Delivery Empowerment time, and political support, programs The experience presented in this paper need to be selective about what they highlights critical knowledge gaps. Many of prioritize instead of addressing all issues the adaptations discussed are recent, offering comprehensively. Detailed diagnostics can limited evidence on their impact or the help identify the most critical constraints effectiveness of additional components. A affecting the target group. more systematic approach to evidence-based design is needed, leveraging the common • Program-level adaptations should be framework and standardized metrics to complemented by broader advocacy for measure, monitor, and evaluate WEE in gender equality reform, such as public economic inclusion programs. investment in childcare and eldercare services and legislative reforms to remove regulatory barriers to women’s work, access to finance, and ownership of assets. The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 23 Notes The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 24 Notes 1. Human capital wealth is defined as the value of people’s skills, knowledge, and health as a foundation of productivity (Wodon and de la Brière 2018). 2. The evidence is largely from a subset of economic inclusion programs known as Graduation, which combine a productive asset, basic needs support, and intensive coaching, delivered in a sequenced and time-bound manner to help people move out of extreme poverty (McAnnally- Linz 2025). 3. Norms are defined as behavioral rules that people follow based on what they believe others do (empirical expectations) and what they think others expect them to do (normative expectations) (Bicchieri 2010). The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 25 References The Partnership for Economic Inclusion | In Practice | Breaking Barriers: Empowering Women through Economic Inclusion Programs 26 References Adoho, Franck, Shubha Chakravarty, Dala T. Korkoyah, Mattias K. A. 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