UN Empowers Asian Rural Women with Innovative Bonds

Rural women in Asia suffer discriminatory restrictions that limit their access to resources and opportunities. Women farmers are disproportionately affected by climate change, yet they hold the key to revolutionary change. According to research, providing equal access to women smallholder farmers may increase yields by 20-30%, alleviate hunger for 100-150 million people, and reduce carbon emissions by 2 billion tons by 2050.

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) collaborated with Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) in response. Their ground-breaking program, the IIX Women's Livelihood BondTM (WLBTM) Series, which is publicly traded, assists rural women entrepreneurs in gaining access to inexpensive financial services.

Since its beginning in 2017, the WLBTM Series has mobilized $128 million, affecting 1.3 million women across Asia and Africa. Recognizing the multidimensional influence of gender connections, the WLBTM Series covers industries such as clean energy and sustainable agriculture, supporting climate change solutions and reaching cross-cutting SDGs.

Beneficiaries' success stories, such as those of Cambodian farmers Lian and Chhorn, demonstrate the transforming influence. They received sustainable agricultural training through the WLBTM Series, which resulted in higher yields, income, and empowerment. The Orange Bond Principles-compliant project complements ESCAP's Catalyzing Women's Entrepreneurship program, using $89.7 million to grow new financing options.

The newly founded Orange MovementTM hopes to unleash $10 billion as the program grows, empowering 100 million additional women like Lian and Chhorn. The program not only removes financial obstacles, but it also establishes new benchmarks for meaningful gender-lens investing, assuring quantifiable good consequences. The WLBTM Series is a beacon for inclusive, sustainable development because to ESCAP's devotion and private sector partnership.