This document discusses financing gendered food systems. It notes that women play key roles throughout food value chains but face unique constraints shaped by structural inequalities in food systems. To address this, the document outlines several intervention considerations for focusing financing on gender, including desired outcomes, target populations, and instruments. It recommends investing in programs for both women consumers and women producers to promote equal gender norms, leadership training, and women's access to resources. The document also discusses channeling public and private funding in gender-focused ways through expenditures, programs, development aid, and impact investment funds. Financing food systems with a gender focus, the document concludes, has great potential to empower women and strengthen food security.

1. Financing Gendered Food
Systems
Florencia Paz
Research Analyst
Poverty, Health and Nutrition Division
International Food Policy Research Institute
September 24, 2021

2. Gendered Food
Systems
Source: Njuki et al. 2021
▪ Women are key actors in food
systems throughout the value
chain but also on the
consumer end.
▪ Women face unique
constraints and limitations
that are shaped and
reinforced by structural and
social inequalities built into
the food systems.
▪ Inequality cycle: stark gender
inequalities are both a cause
and outcome of unsustainable
food systems and unjust food
access, consumption, and
production.

3. Gender and financial flows – Intervention considerations
▪Gender focus:
oDesired outcomes
oPopulation objective.
oInstrument.
oSpillover effects.

4. Gender and financial flows – Population Objective
▪ Consumers
o Invest in targeted programs of
education on nutrition, use of
technology. Interventions to promote
equal gender norms in the household,
community and systemic changes.
▪ Producers/operators in value
chains
o Training in financial tools, leadership
and group organization. Investments
targeting women’s access to
productive, financial resources.
o Policies addressing norms and
governance (GBV, required collaterals,
development of tools with a gender
approach).

5. Gender and financial flows – “Public” Funding
▪ Special considerations:
o Gender-related expenditures.
o Gender specific programs.
o Education, Ag R&D, Extension, Land
and water programs,
o Social safety nets: nutrition
programs, Health Programs, Child
and dependent care.
▪ International Development Agencies
▪ Governments

6. Gender and financial flows – “Private” Funding
▪ Banking system
o Gender-based statistics on financial
inclusion
o Gender-positive regulations
o Dedicated lines of credit and financial
inclusion programs
▪ Capital markets
o Thematic impact investment funds
o Gender bonds

7. Financing food systems transformations
with a gender focus has great potential
to both booster women’s empowerment
but also build resilient food systems and
strengthen food security.
Thank you!