AGENT Gender and Urban Services Webinar: Access, decision making, and economic empowerment

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Over 55% of the global population live in urban areas and rapid urbanization shifts social, economic, and political dynamics, with particular impacts on women’s empowerment and gender equality. Despite the important roles and responsibilities of women as household and community decision makers, women in cities, especially in slum areas, often face specific legal and societal restrictions that limit access to equal economic opportunities, property rights, healthcare, education, mobility, and decision making, which create significant barriers to accessing adequate urban services or benefitting from urban development interventions.

Understanding the gender-related issues in urban service delivery support successful interventions in urban planning and service delivery that can accelerate sustainable development outcomes and contribute to women’s economic empowerment and gender equality across communities, decision-making levels, and sectors.

This webinar will highlight two recent USAID-supported knowledge products on gender and urban services: Advancing Gender in the Environment: Gender And Urban Services and the Women’s Economic Empowerment and Equality in Waste Management and Recycling Assessment. The webinar will address major gender-related issues in equitable and sustainable delivery and use of urban services, including lack of access to resources, infrastructure, and decision-making spheres. It will also address considerations for integrating gender into urban service delivery and highlight successful urban waste management and recycling interventions that advance gender equality, increase women’s economic empowerment, and contribute to sustainable urban development.