Description
The purpose of the original Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) model is to increase vulnerable women's economic empowerment whilst serving as a platform for increasing awareness on different human rights-related topics as well as increasing self-esteem and confidence. Building on this, the VSLA+ model, developed in 2013, facilitates the creation of VSLA networks at higher levels, up to the national arena, whilst providing different kinds of support to women based on their specific demands (leadership training, institution-building, conflict resolution, etc.). Each level is enabled to become the natural counterpart of the local, district, provincial and national authorities to foster women's social and political participation.
In the Promoting Opportunities for Women’s Economic Empowerment in Rural Africa (POWER Africa) project in Côte d'Ivoire, CARE has added gender action groups in each village, made up of village leaders, women, men and others, to discuss gender generally and to act on village issues as identified. This leaves the VSLAs to still discuss some gender issues but to focus on savings, loan and business whilst the process of community change is done in the gender action groups, similar to Ethiopia where VSLAs and Social Analysis and Action groups run in parallel. Specifically, VSLAs that focus on food, water and nutrition security often engage women through household businesses such as farming, the creation and expansion of small businesses and the improvement of supply chains and collective marketing for households reliant on agriculture.
Overarching commitment (for commitments submitted pre-2025)
Title
Strengthening social protection
Description
CARE will fulfil this commitment by strengthening social protection; building efficient, inclusive local structures and systems; and assisting vulnerable households to find sustainable pathways towards food, water and nutrition security, including in times of crisis or in contexts of chronic poverty where additional support is required. Interventions in this space will include implementing in-kind food transfers, school feeding, vouchers, unconditional and conditional cash transfers, and seed and input vouchers; strengthening shock-responsive safety nets; and building citizen and provider accountability mechanisms and relationships. The aim is to use such support to stimulate markets, promote good practice and improve sustainable community capacities, motivation, resources and, where feasible, linkages to market or governance systems, enabling households to graduate from safety net schemes as livelihoods are transformed.
We will build on successes to influence governments to develop, reform and implement policies and strategies that ensure social protection as a human right and as an instrument to reduce food, nutrition and water insecurity.
GNR assessment
| Verification status |
Unverified
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| SMARTness index |
Low
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Details
| Target population characteristic |
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| Nutrition Action Classification(s) |
Policy >
Consumer knowledge
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| Linked event(s) |
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| N4G Summit theme(s) |
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Measurement
| Key indicator | Percentage of programme participants in VSLA or similar financial collection |
|---|---|
| Measurement plan | Unknown |
| Value | Measurement date | |
|---|---|---|
| Baseline | TBD | 2021 |
| Target | TBD | November 2030 |
Progress
| Value | Measurement date | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Progress report | As of FY23, 17.6 million people in 64 countries were Village Savings and Loan Association (VSLA) members, with 1 million annual growth in membership. 296,000 women used formal financial services, and 13.7 million women were members of VSLAs. | November 2023 |
Progress not able to be assessed
Despite the commitment maker’s active participation in the process, they were unable to provide the required information about the baseline data or the progress indicator's updated (latest) level or status, or the data provided were not in a format allowing calculation of progress.
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