Women’s Agency Amid Shocks: A Gendered Analysis of Poverty Dynamics and the Implications for Social Protection in Bangladesh, Peru and the United Republic of Tanzania

The world has experienced multiple crises in recent years– the COVID-19 pandemic, food, fuel and financial crises, climate-related disasters and violent conflict. The need for universal, gender-responsive social protection systems is urgent in this context. This paper employs quantitative panel data and qualitative interviews to present an analysis of gender, poverty dynamics and social protection in three countries spanning different geographies– rural Bangladesh, Peru and the United Republic of Tanzania – amidst shocks and crises. It also examines the implications of these results for social protection system design and implementation.

Results highlight high rates of transient poverty in all three countries, reflecting underlying vulnerability of households and crises-driven downward income mobility. In the face of shocks, women’s resources (e.g., education levels and ownership of phones or financial accounts) and agency within and outside of the household (e.g., right to sell land, comfort in speaking up on public needs) are a critical means of support household resilience. However, adverse financial inclusion and other barriers constrain these efforts. Moreover, low social protection coverage has limited the ability of households and women within them to draw on social protection entitlements to maintain resilience during shocks. Though there was a surge in social protection responses during COVID-19, results suggest that this remained largely inadequate in guarding women’s resilience during the pandemic. Based on the study findings, we derive implications for policymakers and practitioners regarding the gender-responsive design and implementation of social protection during shocks, stressors and crises.

Author: Vidya Diwakar, Deputy Director, Chronic Poverty Advisory Network; Research Fellow, IDS

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World survey on the role of women in development 2024: Harnessing social protection for gender equality, resilience and transformation

The “World survey on the role of women in development” is presented every five years to the Economic and Financial Committee of the United Nations General Assembly. It provides a unique opportunity to put gender equality issues on the economic policy agenda and bring together perspectives on human rights and sustainable development.

This ninth edition (UN document A/79/111) takes stock of progress, gaps, and challenges in building comprehensive, gender-responsive social protection systems. It provides examples and recommendations on how these systems can better protect women and girls from poverty and deprivation, strengthen their resilience to shocks, and transform social norms, structures, and institutions that keep them from realizing their full potential.

To produce the report, UN Women brought together researchers, policymakers, civil society actors, and UN system partners. The report draws on their collective expertise to provide guidance to policymakers and support advocacy for a new generation of gender-responsive social protection systems equipped to uphold rights and advance sustainable development.

Vidya Diwakar made important contributions to the report, particularly through informing Chapter 1, section C, alongside a forthcoming background report.

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Delegating Authority in Bangladesh to Manage the Covid-19 Pandemic

Bangladesh, like most countries, grappled with the harsh conditions of Covid-19, with little infrastructure and set up of institutions to deal with the consequences of the pandemic.

A country with a large informal economy, and an even larger export manufacturing sector it is highly dependent on, the Bangladesh government had tough decisions to make when it came to saving and protecting the lives of millions, as well as ensuring continued economic activity to save livelihoods.

To strike a balance between protecting both these important factors, the central government adopted a unique approach of mobilising and enabling the local government to implement a lot of measures. Their approach was area centric, in that the local government recognised the needs of their districts, and that looked different for different areas of the country, whether rural or urban, agricultural or industrial focused.

This policy brief outlines some of the local measures and responses that worked in minimising the impact of Covid-19 on the dense Bangladeshi population.

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