What We Do
Gender Action is the only organization dedicated
to promoting gender justice and women's rights in all International
Financial Institution (IFI) investments such as those of the
World Bank and the International Monetary Fund - two of the
largest public sources of development financing in the world.
Gender Action's goal is to ensure that women and men equally
participate in and benefit from all IFI investments.
Our Vision
Gender Action's vision is a World Bank and other IFIs with
mandatory gender policies and strategies that are implemented
to increase women's economic empowerment opportunities and
eliminate their human rights violations.
Our History
Gender Action was established in 2002 by Elaine Zuckerman.
Throughout her career as economist at the World Bank and the
Inter-American Development Bank, Elaine was inspired by the
dynamic and powerful influence of civil society organizations
(CSO) in addressing development issues. Elaine noticed that
not one CSO was dedicated to holding the Bank accountable
on meeting its promises to promote women’s empowerment
and gender equality. The impact of investments is the most
meaningful measure of progress and countless investments around
the world neglected gender issues and impacts. The World Bank
and other IFIs have created so many gender policies, strategies,
and action plans but what if they are not translated into
investments? Gender Action’s name reflects the need
to translate strong Bank rhetoric on gender
issues through action in investments.
  Did
You Know…
• Over a trillion dollars of IFI investments made over
the last 60 years have done too little to reduce poverty especially
that of poor women and girls.
• Studies claim that females constitute the majority
of the world's poor, and poverty continues to feminize.
• Despite massive IFI investments in developing countries,
per capita income has declined by over 50 percent in many
African countries.
Inspiration
 Gender
Action's agenda is inspired by the need to implement international
conventions including the Beijing Platform for Action formulated
at the 1995 Fourth International Conference on Women held
in Beijing and the United Nations Convention on the Elimination
of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). About
170 countries have ratified CEDAW, but few have implemented
this "Bill of Rights for Women" guaranteeing gender
equality and an end to violence and other forms of discrimination
against women. Gender Action is working to ensure that large
IFI investments in developing and transition countries do
more to promote these international conventions.
Our main programs comprise:
• Gender and Climate
Change
• Linking IFI-Watchers
and Gender Justice Groups
• Reproductive
Health and HIV/AIDS
• Gender and Economic
Reforms
• Global Food Crisis
• Gender Based Violence
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