Why do we need gender responsive and inclusive cash programming?

Across Asia and the Pacific, intensifying climate disasters and armed conflict are disrupting access to essential health and protection services, placing women and girls at greater risk. Those already marginalized, including adolescent girls, transgender individuals, and persons with disabilities, are often the most affected, with limited access to the care and support they need.

UNFPA is committed to achieving four Transformative Results by 2030: zero unmet need for family planning, zero preventable maternal deaths, zero gender-based violence and harmful practices, and adapting to demographic change for more resilient societies. Cash and voucher assistance (CVA), integrated into Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) programming, plays a vital role in achieving these commitments, giving women and girls the means to access life-saving services when they need them most.

Through anticipatory action, emergency response, and nexus programming, UNFPA’s CVA ensures that women, girls, and other marginalized populations, including individuals with diverse SOGIESC, persons who sell or exchange sex, older persons, and persons with disabilities, can access essential SRH and protection services, including maternal healthcare and GBV support, as well as menstrual health products, contraception, HIV treatment, and other essential services. This reduces reliance on harmful coping mechanisms and enables timely access to life-saving care. CVA shifts power to recipients, enabling them to make their own decisions regarding their health and well-being.