Innovision Consulting’s policy brief “Mitigating Emerging Gendered Risks from COVID-19 and Recent Natural Disasters in Bangladesh” shows that hard-won progress on gender equality remains under threat despite Bangladesh ranking as the top South Asian country in the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Index 2021.
Commissioned by the Department of Women’s Affairs under the National Resilience Programme (NRP), the study highlights the disproportionate burden on adolescent girls, married women, marginalized women, sex workers, and transgender persons. Women and girls faced sharp rises in unpaid care work, livelihood losses, acute food shortages (reported by over 85%), depleted savings, and heightened risks of gender-based violence and child marriage. To cope, 36% liquidated savings and 26% took loans, often from informal sources. Many limited meals to protect children, triggering long-term nutrition and social risks.
Innovision Consulting recommends integrating economic support with education to prevent child marriage, targeted safety nets and soft loans for the most vulnerable, strengthened GBV protection in shelters, private-sector partnerships for WASH and health services, and revitalizing local NGOs for frontline delivery. These steps will safeguard gender gains and build lasting resilience across Bangladesh.
Read the full policy brief here: Link
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