LocationsWhy women’s economic empowerment matters most
Ending sexual violence in crisis
June 30, 2025
Members of the Omid Farda (Hope for the Future) savings group gather for their weekly meeting in Herat, Afghanistan to count savings and check in with one another.
Photo: UNDP Afghanistan
In war and conflict, we fear many things: that we may not survive, that we may lose loved ones, our homes, our sense of safety. But no woman should have to fear sexual violence in addition. It is not inevitable. It is not acceptable.
In Ethiopia, I met a former combatant who was first forced to fight, then forced into silence through sexual assault. The injustice of her experience was overwhelming. And yet, she endured. She spoke.
Her courage demands not only our respect—it demands action.
Meeting war survivors in Ethiopia.
Photo: UNDP Ethiopia
Globally, crises arising from conflict and climate change impacts are increasingly fuelling sexual violence in the form of rape, forced marriage, and exploitation. In South Sudan, studies show that nearly 70 percent of sexual assaults happened during active fighting. Such statistics are similar in far too many conflicts.
Survivors carry scars that no medical report can fully capture. They face physical injuries and deep psychological wounds – often compounded by social stigma and isolation. In many places, women who have experienced violence struggle to find work or even a place to live. Their children, too, bear the weight of this exclusion, missing out on education or basic healthcare.
Ending sexual violence and supporting survivors to heal and rebuild their lives is essential for peace and development.
When a woman can earn her own income, she gains not just financial security but also a voice in her household and community.- Shoko Noda
Economic insecurity is both a consequence and a driver of sexual violence in crisis. By prioritizing women’s economic empowerment, we are not only supporting survivor’s recovery but also preventing sexual violence in crisis settings. When a woman can earn her own income, she gains not just financial security but also a voice in her household and community. She is better able to make decisions about her own life and her children’s futures. In many cases, economic empowerment helps survivors overcome the stigma of violence, find social acceptance again and become much less vulnerable to sexual violence.
But reintegration is not easy. Many women face strong resistance from within their own families or communities. Traditional gender norms can be deeply entrenched and change often comes slowly. That is why UNDP’s approach combines economic support with community dialogue, legal aid and psychosocial counselling.
Inaam, a student in Diyala, Iraq, launched her mobile food truck, serving food to her community.
Photo: UNDP Iraq/Hamza Ahmed Hamza
Marwa, 35-year-old engineer from Diyala, Iraq, produces natural fertilizer from organic waste.
Photo: UNDP Iraq/Hamza Ahmed Hamza
In Iraq and Lebanon, UNDP trained Syrian refugee women and local women in business skills and grants. These programmes, paired with community dialogues involving their partners, shifted perceptions. A male participant said: “I became more understanding towards women’s roles outside the household and also more sensitive towards my wife’s needs and rights to be active in the society and economy.”
Similarly, Women’s Safe Centres in Syria, established by UNDP and the local authorities, are helping survivors of conflict and the recent earthquake. Women are supported to work in emerging sectors like renewable energy and receive access to micro-loans, combined with professional mental health support and nonviolence communication training with their family members to strengthen personal safety networks. One graduate, Iman, now has her own business in installing solar panels. Together, she and her peers are not only providing for their children but also defying entrenched gender stereotypes, speaking out, and better protecting themselves.
In Afghanistan, cash grants to 400 survivors of sexual abuse and harassment enabled them to support their families. At the same time, 1,700 women-led self-help groups were created where 25,000 women receive financial as well as emotional support. On top of this, UNDP works with local agents of change to inspire a shift from harmful gender norms and behaviours in their communities and prevent sexual violence.
Madeleine from the Democratic Republic of the Congo runs her own farm.
Photo: UNDP Democratic Republic of the Congo
Meanwhile, UNDP in the Democratic Republic of the Congo helped survivors of gender-based violence in conflict become financially independent. After receiving medical care and livestock management training, Madeleine started a farm, now pays her children’s school fees, and bought a plot of land where she built her house. With a stable home and income, women like Madeleine are not only transforming their lives but also breaking the cycle of sexual violence for generations to come.
Real change happens when economic support is combined with community dialogue, counselling and access to justice. Together, these efforts help reduce harmful gender norms and create safer, more equal societies.- Shoko Noda
All these efforts are part of a broader movement. The UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict network is a group of 26 UN entities working to end sexual violence in conflict. It recognizes that women’s economic security is vital for survivors’ recovery and reintegration into society and has established a working group on economic empowerment. Legal or medical help alone is not enough if survivors are ostracized from their community or remain financially dependent on others. Women impacted by conflict are especially vulnerable if they cannot provide for their families.
This demands collaboration.
Governments, development partners, private sector and civil society must invest in multi-sectoral programmes that place women at the centre. Real change happens when economic support is combined with community dialogue, counselling and justice. Together, these efforts help reduce harmful gender norms and create safer, more equal societies.
Private sector partners can offer jobs, apprenticeships and market linkages. Community leaders can challenge harmful norms and development organizations can support national and local authorities to deliver the care and counselling support that survivors need. Only by working together can we build systems that protect rights as fiercely as they provide livelihoods.
By centring women’s empowerment in our crisis response, we go beyond repairing individual lives. We build stronger, more resilient communities, where every mother, every daughter, can walk with her head held high as a valued contributor to peace and prosperity without fearing violence.
We must stand with survivors like the woman I met in Ethiopia to confront impunity, shift power, and support their right to heal, rebuild, and start a new chapter in life.
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