Gender
The Belgian Development Cooperation regards gender equality as a matter of fundamental human rights and of social justice, and integrates it as a transversal topic in its policies, strategies and actions.
The mission of BIO is to contribute to sustainable human development in its countries of intervention by supporting the private sector via direct and indirect investments to develop targeted enterprises. BIO’s Theory of Change integrates the Sustainable Development Goals (“SDGs”) and deliberately focuses on SDG5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls), and SDG10 (Reduce inequality within and among countries, among other priority objectives).
The Gender Strategy
BIO’s 2024-2028 gender strategy presents BIO’s renewed mandate and mission towards gender equality and highlights BIO’s progress and contribution to SDG5 since the first adoption of a Gender-Lens Investing (GLI) strategy. The Strategy reflects BIO’s catalytic role and operational approach to mainstreaming and promoting gender equality from risk to impact across its interventions, building on its Strategic Impact Framework and on the transformative ambition of the 2X Challenge initiative.
By focusing on their roles as users and consumers, workers, leaders, entrepreneurs and stakeholders, BIO’s first gender strategy outlined the challenges faced by women and girls globally and specifically in BIO’s contexts of intervention. The strategy discussed the main risks and opportunities related to gender equality in BIO’s activities and presented the approach and action plan for BIO’s contribution to gender equality over its 2019-2023 mandate.
GLI - according to 2 X Global
Gender lens investing (often abbreviated as GLI) has been around for over a decade. It is the integration of gender analysis into a new or existing investment process for better social and financial outcomes. Gender finance is the field of finance viewed from the perspective of gender-smart and gender lens investing.
The term gender-smart reflects the larger ethos of those who understand that gender is material to financial, business, and social outcomes. Gender-smart investors recognise that financial systems engage with and benefit men and women differently, and are actively committed to using finance as a tool to promote gender equality.
While different approaches exist and are increasingly emerging within the field of GLI, they all have an explicit objective to promote gender equality and women’s economic empowerment in common. With the launch of the 2X Challenge (see below), GLI has emerged as a strategic priority for Development Finance Institutions (DFIs).
Timeline of major gender equality steps at BIO
Partnership for the goals
BIO is a member of 2X Global, a global organisation dedicated to unlocking gender-smart capital on a significant scale. It brings together gender experts from development finance institutions and other leading investors to support the development of shared financing principles, definitions and methodologies that promote the integration of gender-smart decision-making into investment processes and operations.
An essential part of this agenda is the 2X Challenge, an initiative launched at the G7 Summit in 2018 which seeks to inspire DFIs to concentrate their financing efforts on advancing women's economic empowerment and fostering gender equality. This challenge calls for directing resources towards initiatives that enable women in developing nations to access leadership opportunities, quality employment, financial support, enterprise resources, and products and services that promote the inclusion of women and girls.
Since its inception, the 2X Challenge has collectively raised US$ 33.6 Billion in gender lens investments from 2018 to 2023, with its 2X Criteria embedding today the global standard for gender finance.
BIO is a participating investor in the present round of the 2X Challenge, which brings together public and private capital providers to commit to invest and mobilise at least US$ 20 Billion over three years under the 2X Criteria over the 2024-2026 period.