Updated monthly, this list contains articles and blog posts from various publications and other online sources. Views expressed in these articles are the authors’ alone and do not necessarily represent the views of Investing in Women or its partners.
If there is a story, report or any other document that you think should also be included, please email communications@iwa.asia with your suggestions.
February 2021
- Legal gender equality slips in the Philippines (BusinessWorld)
- Women inch towards equal legal rights despite COVID-19 risks, World Bank says (Reuters)
- In Brief: Women in Asia-Pacific focus of new report on COVID-19 response (Devex)
- BOE’s Tenreyo Says Covid May Be A Setback for Women’s Pay (Bloomberg)
- Want a stronger world after COVID-19? Choose more women leaders (Reuters)
January 2021
- Women work the COVID frontline but lack a voice, poll shows (Reuters)
- U.K. Withdraws Covid Ad Showing Women Working, Men Lounging (Bloomberg)
- Neglecting women to tackle COVID-19 is a losing business plan, firms told (Rappler)
- Women Have Lost a Disproportionate Number of Jobs Due to Covid-19. Here’s How We Can Start to Fix a Broken System (TIME)
- COVID-19 has created flexible work for women but it has also brought more stress: Panel (The Straits Times)
- Ensuring Malaysian women and girls’ wellbeing during MCO 2.0 and the Emergency – UNFPA Malaysia (Malay Mail)
- Pandemic sees rising violence against Indonesian women, but few report to the police (The Jakarta Post)
- A Better Normal for Women and Girls After COVID-19 (ADB)
December 2020
- Will working women recover in 2021? Six experts share their predictions (Fortune)
- 2020 was a remarkably good and remarkably bad year for Australian women (The Conversation)
- COVID She-Cession: The Pandemic Doesn’t Have to Hurt Women Most (Bloomberg)
- Cyber harassment of female scientists will not be the new norm (The Lancet)
- Pandemic puts extra toll on working women, study shows (Inquirer.net)
- Unequal burden: how the COVID-19 pandemic is adding to women’s workloads (World Economic Forum)
- Female leaders make a real difference. Covid may be the proof (The Guardian)
- Pandemic showcases Indonesia’s systemic gender inequality (The Jakarta Post)
- Its Been a Tough Year for Women Founders. Here’s How They’re Handling It (Inc.com)
- Even women in the C-suite are burning out during the pandemic (Fast Company)
- Mastercard report: COVID-19 crisis may set back a generation of women in business (Inquirer.net)
- End the ‘shadow pandemic’ of violence against women (The Myanmar Times)
- Female founders under fire: Are women in the startup world being unfairly targeted? (Fortune)
- The world needs more women leaders — during COVID-19 and beyond (The Conversation)
November 2020
- Coronavirus and gender: More chores for women set back gains in equality (BBC)
- COVID-19 pandemic inflames violence against women (The Straits Times)
- Women hit hard by COVID-19 impact on garment sector (ILO)
- COVID-19 has deepened Indonesia’s gender inequality, says Sri Mulyani (The Jakarta Post)
- Women and Leadership: Looking Beyond Global Health Crisis (The New York Times)
- Women, Leadership and the Post-Pandemic World (The New York Times)
October 2020
- Stuck-At-Home Moms: The Pandemic’s Devastating Toll on Women (NPR)
- UN report exposes women’s vulnerability to economic shocks amid COVID-19 pandemic (The Jakarta Post)
- Why the pandemic is forcing women out of the workforce (The New Yorker)
- The pandemic is driving moms out of the workforce, COVID-19 child care crisis persists (USA Today)
- Women have a vital role to play in post-pandemic recovery (International Trade Centre)
- Even The Most Successful Women Pay A Big Price (NPR)
- COVID-19 Explodes the Myth That Women ‘Opt’ Out (Bloomberg)
- More Myanmar businesses need to address the gender gap (The Myanmar Times)
- Why women are more worried about COVID-19 than men (Inquirer.net)
- COVID-19: When a Contagion Comes, Women Bear a Heavy Burden (The Wire Science)
- New U.N. Tracker Looks At How Countries’ COVID-19 Responses Are Helping Women (NPR)
- 1 in 4 women are considering stepping back from their career because of COVID-19 (World Economic Forum)
- Mothers’ Careers Are at Extraordinary Risk Right Now (The Atlantic)
- Women are feeling more pressure at work due to COVID-19 crisis than men are (McKinsey & Company)
September 2020
- Ten things to know about gender equality (McKinsey & Company)
- Covid-19: Women bear the economic brunt the most (TBS News)
- Leading businesswomen urge for gender-inclusive post-pandemic recovery (Forbes)
- 45% of women business leaders say it’s difficult for women to speak up in virtual meetings (MSN)
- How Lakshmi Baskaran tackles the extreme work life balance of being a woman business leader during COVID-19 (Authority Magazine)
- WTO How Lauren Silbert of The Balance tackles the extreme work life balance of being a woman business leader during COVID-19 (Authority Magazine)
- Generations of progress for women and girls could be lost to COVID pandemic (Modern Diplomacy)
- Pandemic is widening poverty gap between women and men, new UN findings show (Devex)
August 2020
- Working Moms Will Find Covid-19 Layoffs Hard to Fight in Court (Bloomberg Law)
- The science behind women leaders’ success in fighting Covid-19 (Forbes)
- Covid-19 substantially reduces incomes of households, businesses (IntellAsia)
- Women feel less supported by bosses amid pandemic (Consultancy UK)
- WTO report draws attention to impact of COVID-19 trade disruptions on women (Scoop World)
- UN urges South East Asia to tackle inequality worsened by COVID-19 (Latin American Herald Tribune)
- Calculating COVID’s impact on women’s financial health (RMIT University)
July 2020
- COVID-19 has increased inequalities in the media (International Federation of Journalists)
- COVID-19 is a disaster for mothers’ employment. And no, working from home is not the solution (The Conversation)
- Fight ‘shadow pandemic’ by overhauling funding strategy, women leaders say (Devex)
- Sharing the care work load (Inquirer.net)
- A once-in-a-generation challenge to save the Philippine startup ecosystem (Business World)
- Launching rapid response gender lens financing: The story of RISE (Gender Smart Investing)
- Study says women work longer hours, face greater risks amid COVID-19; men take more work at home (Inquirer.net)
- COVID-19 is the biggest setback to gender equality in a decade (The Mandarin)
- Why impact investing remains a key focus for investors in the post COVID-19 era (The Investor)
- Pandemic leaves HK women stressed by caregiving, household chores and husbands who say ‘that’s your job, not mine’ (ImtellAsia)
- Commentary: Look behind stereotypes to understand the success of women leaders amid COVID-19 (Channel News Asia)
- Women can help Myanmar emerge stronger from COVID-19 if they are given a chance (Relief Web)
- Pandemic further tightens funding for women (Business World)
- Coronavirus pushing gender wealth gap backward at a faster pace (Yahoo News)
June 2020
- An unexpected upside to lockdown: men have discovered housework (The Guardian)
- Filipinas’ unpaid care work was already worth $40 billion. The pandemic is forcing them to do more (VICE)
- Chairman Press Statement of ASEAN leaders’ special session at 36th ASEAN Summit on Women’s Empowerment in Digital Age (Vietnam Net Global)
- Robredo: Women leaders handling pandemic ‘more inclusive’ (CNN Philippines)
- Op-ed: Build back better: women at the centre of decision-making (UN Women)
- Duterte seeks more roles for women in Asean (MSN News)
- Female leaders absent from global response to coronavirus, study finds (The Independent)
- Where are the women? The Conspicuous Absence of Women in COVID-19 Response Teams and Plans, and Why We Need Them (Relief Web)
- Australia’s gender equity push ‘to be maintained during crisis’ (Times Higher Education)
- ‘Global absence’ of women in leadership roles in response to coronavirus, research reveals (The Telegraph)
- Women in the big boys’ club (The Opinion Express Group)
- Robredo urges women: Show strength amid COVID-19 crisis (Manila Bulletin)
- COVID-19, economic crisis and gender equality in Asia (East Asia Forum)
- Do women make better leaders? (ICAEW)
- How Julie Shafiki of Kryon tackles the extreme work-life balance of being a woman in STEM during COVID-19 (Authority Magazine)
- Female founders rise up during COVID-19 (FOX 40)
- The Covid 19 crisis threatens the lives of millions, accelerates geopolitical transformation and kindles the flame of social upheaval (International Viewpoint)
- India’s painful “shecession” (ANZ Bluenotes)
- Gender disparities deepen pandemic’s fault lines (The Tribune)
- How Covid-19 invisibilises concerns of women, girls (Khmer Times)
- Dads, moms are still exhausted taking care of the kids, quarantine or not (Smart Parenting)
- A once-in-a-generation challenge to save the Philippine startup ecosystem (Business World)
- VC funding in 2020: What investors look for in startups (Apostz)
- Gender actors discuss female youth involvement in COVID-19 war (IPP Media)
- A conversation on women in the workplace (Business World)
May 2020
- The pandemic’s gender imperative (Australian Strategic Policy Institute)
- ‘I had to choose being a mother’: With no child care or summer camps, women are being edged out of the workforce (The Lily)
- Global feminist organisations release policy priorities for COVID-19 Response (Feminist Majority Foundation)
- Call for a feminist COVID-19 policy (Feminist Alliance for Rights)
- Justice for women amidst COVID-19 (Pathfinders)
- Gender balanced boards to drive future growth (CNBC TV)
- Global Impact Investing Network launches COVID-19 coalition (Pensions & Investments)
- Women face job losses, abuse, and more in the pandemic. (The Chronicles of Philanthropy)
- Fears COVID-19 could have a long-lasting impact on women’s safety (Pro Bono Australia)
- COVID-19’s disproportionate impact on women raises tough questions for a philanthropic community wary of applying a gender lens to its investments (The Philanthropist)
- Why women leaders are excelling during the coronavirus pandemic (The Conversation)
- Congress must act on child care crisis (Common Wealth)
- Impact investor networks collaborate to tackle Covid-19 fallout (Barrons)
- COVID-19 is prompting a global response from impact investors (PhilanTropic)
- Women are stepping up COVID-19 relief efforts—despite a lack of leadership opportunities (Forbes)
- Mars and Venus: Unlocking the power of diversity (Human Capital Leadership Institute)
- STEM equity and inclusion (un)interrupted? (Inside Higher ED)
- Gender equality in a post-pandemic world (Rappler)
- Women leaders are doing better, but not for the reason you might think (The Irish Times)
- COVID-19 exacerbates gender inequality (The Kingston Whig Standard)
- COVID-19: G7 nations need to get gender equality right for a better future for women at work (ILO)
- AnitaB.org study finds women in tech are facing a greater burden than ever before (Fast Company)
- How the coronavirus is killing the middle class (The New Yorker)
- Our recovery from the coronavirus crisis must have gender empowerment at its heart (World Economic Forum)
- Looking at the pandemic through gender lens: Women are facing the brunt of Covid-19 with more job cuts, less pay (The Economic Times)
- Why women make better crisis leaders (The Jakarta Post)
- Post-pandemic ASEAN must bridge digital gender divide (The Jakarta Post)
- Press Release: Gender equality experts recommend key actions for COVID-19 response and recovery for G7 leaders (UN Women)
- Will covid-19 lead to men and women splitting care work more evenly? (The Washington Post)
- Parents hoping to get back to work face a child care crisis (Yahoo)
- Snap Forward Feminist Policy Network: Submission on COVID-19 (Broad Agenda)
- Coronavirus has left Australian women anxious, overworked, insecure — and worse off than men again (ABC News)
- Will covid-19 lead to men and women splitting care work more evenly? (The Washington Post)
- There’s a price to pay for being afraid of women’s leadership, especially in a pandemic (NJ)
- Covid 19 coronavirus: $1 million Govt fund for supporting women (NZ Herald)
- Women executives demand three-month extension of free childcare (The Sydney Morning Herald)
- Where was female representation on pandemic committee? (Stuff NZ)
- Time to prepare to mitigate COVID-19 impact on women (Global New Light of Myanmar)
- On the front lines of COVID-19, women’s organizations provide vital services as first responders as violence against women spikes (UN Women)
- COVID-19 digital response data is not gender neutral (ICT Works)
- Millions at risk of gender-based violence if COVID-19 pandemic is prolonged (Council on Foreign Relations)
- Lessons for COVID-19-era CEOs (IFC)
- Pandemic set to derail female breadwinners (The Independent)
- COVID leads to a pink collar recession (Forbes)
- Why are women leaders excelling during coronavirus? (The Independent)
- What COVID teaches us about women leaders: Being risk-averse finally pays off (New York Daily News)
- Covid 19 coronavirus: Nations with female leaders winning pandemic battle (NZ Herald)
- Gender equality experts recommend key actions for COVID-19 response and recovery for G7 leaders (Ethical Marketing News)
- Australian households with children & a female main income earner are twice as likely to live in poverty (Women’s Agenda)
- Deputy Secretary-General warns against shifting resources from gender equality initiatives, in remarks to ‘Women’s Participation in Peacebuilding’ event (Relief Web)
- What 17 female entrepreneurs are doing to support their clients and help their businesses survive the pandemic (Business Insider)
- Ten things you can learn from women’s resilience that will help you stay strong in the time of COVID-19 (Medium)
- How women leaders are rising to the unique challenges they’re facing from the pandemic (Forbes)
- Ten prominent women spotlight the need for women’s leadership during the pandemic and beyond (Forbes)
- Women’s empowerment in agriculture is essential to COVID-19 survival and recovery (Agri Links)
- Chores and childcare: Who bears the brunt in lockdown? Women (ABS-CBN News)
- Women’s labour and C-19 (International Viewpoint)
- Let’s make women’s economic empowerment part of the ‘new normal’ (Investing in Women)
- Women startups fear funding will rely on old behaviors during coronavirus crisis (Bloomberg)
- Melinda Gates: How rethinking caregiving could play a crucial role in restarting the economy (The Washington Post)
- Amid this pandemic, women CEOs share that leadership and culture matter most (Forbes)
- How coronavirus has changed the roles in the family home (MSN)
- Remember the forgotten millions who are risking their lives (Medium)
- Women leaders eschew ‘macho-man’ politics in COVID-19 response (The World)
- Will COVID-19 derail empowerment from Time’s Up and MeToo? (Financy)
- Marginalised women are being left behind in the coronavirus pandemic (Above Whispers)
- COVID-19’s impact on women of color (Forbes)
- Five actions governments can take to protect women and girls (Ms)
- Interview with Melinda Gates: How revolutionizing our caretaking system is ‘the key to reopening the economy’ (Forbes)
- Restorative Investing: How The Impact Investing Model Could Be Used To Support Vulnerable Communities In The Time Of COVID-19 (JD Supra)
- More resources must be allocated to address gender discrimination in COVID-19 national response plans: UN roundtable (China.org)
- Innovation, reinvention and inclusion: Businesses responding to COVID-19 (Investing in Women)
- Việt Nam’s COVID-19 crisis response can increase opportunities for the country to emerge as a leader at regional and global levels (Viet Nam News)
- Coronavirus: The end of sexist economics? (The Lowy Institute)
- Coronavirus is giving us a glimpse of the future of work – and it’s a nightmare (The Guardian)
- Opinion: We cannot allow COVID-19 to reinforce the digital gender divide (Devex)
- Coronavirus: The end of sexist economics? (Abt Associates Governance and Development Soapbox)
- Women bear biggest job losses from coronavirus, latest ABS data shows (ABC News)
- WAO: Six tips for Malaysian govt with post-MCO’s likely crisis for ‘invisible’ caregivers juggling work, family care (IntellAsia)
- Gov’t agency heads can combine, adopt own alternative work arrangements amid COVID-19 emergency — CSC (GMA News)
- Tracking COVID financing with a gender lens (Gender Smart)
- The Disproportionate Effect of COVID-19 on Southeast Asian Women: Case Studies From Malaysia and Indonesia (Investing in Women)
- Small business solutions for pandemic challenges (ADB)
- RISE Fund – A COVID-19 recovery response to support women’s SMEs in South East Asia (Investing in Women)
April 2020
- Surveys show that COVID-19 has gendered effects in Asia and the Pacific (UN Women)
- From where I stand: “Stay home and stay safe—but what if home is where she feels unsafe?” (UN Women)
- Opinion: Tech companies can support women in the COVID-19 response, too (Devex)
- Coronavirus should drive businesses to unleash the full value of women’s talent (Line Today)
- COVID-19: For Investors, Time to Double-Down on Gender Lens Investing (FinDev Canada)
- Doubling down on Gender Lens Investing: What can investors do right now in the face of the COVID-19 crisis? (Investing in Women, Value for Women)
- Will the coronavirus crisis make or break impact investing? (Campden FB)
- Challenging the ‘household dividend’ at Austrade (BroadAgenda)
- We are all in this together: Human rights and COVID-19 response and recovery (United Nations)
- Women bear a greater burden during MCO, says group (IntellAsia)
- ITC, CARE Enterprises ready to boost gender justice with the CARE-SheTrades Impact Fund (News Ghana)
- COVID-19 pandemic forces Indonesian mothers to do it all IntellAsia)
- Putting women, girls at heart of COVID-19 response and recovery in ASEAN: Turning challenges into opportunities (The Jakarta Post)
- Gender-based violence in the COVID-19 pandemic (Outrage)
- COVID-19 puts focus on social responsibility in Asia Pacific (The Jakarta Post)
- How gender norms play out in the COVID-19 response (Align Blog)
- Malaysia’s coronavirus lockdown advice for women sparks sexism backlash (ABC News)
- Addressing the gendered impacts and economic implications of COVID-19 (Investing in Women)
- Bill seeks to protect frontliners, patients from discrimination (Philstar Global)
- Who will look out for women? (Inquirer.net)
- As COVID-19 Situation Evolves, Health and Safety of Women and Staff Take Priority (Women for Women)
- Put women and girls at the centre of efforts to recover from COVID-19 (United Nations)
- Who will look out for women? (Inquirer.net)
March 2020
- Retaining talent in times of uncertainty: what to know (Global Web Index)
- Are businesses ready for remote working? (Global Web Index)
- United Nations Secretary-General launches plan to address the potentially devastating socio-economic impacts of COVID-19 (United Nations)
- Paying attention to women’s needs and leadership will strengthen COVID-19 response (UN Women)
- 2020 vision with a diversity lens (Inquirer.net)
- NSW domestic violence support groups warn coronavirus isolation is prompting surge in demand for services (ABC News)
- Gender issues in the face of COVID-19 (Investing in Women)
- The Coronavirus Is a Disaster for Feminism (The Atlantic)
- How the COVID-19 pandemic is fast-tracking digital transformation in companies (Forbes)
- The coronavirus fallout may be worse for women than men. Here’s why (World Economic Forum)
- COVID-19 is not gender neutral (BroadAgenda)
- Why Women May Face a Greater Risk of Catching Coronavirus (New York Times)
- Gender roles and the coronavirus: Why women may have higher risk of catching COVID-19 (Becker Hospital Review)
- Amid COVID-19 constraints, UN women’s commission meets to push gender equality forward (UN News)
- We can’t forget women as we tell the story of covid-19 (The Washington Post)
- Coronavirus Australia: Why women will feel the impact more than men (7News)
- Five ways the coronavirus is hitting women in Asia (MSN)
Latest Resources
Global Gender Gap Report 2021 (15th edition)
06 April 2021
Based on the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021, another generation of women will have to wait for gender parity. As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt, closing the global gender gap has increased by a generation from 99.5 years to 135.6 years. Gender-sensitive recovery strategies will be critical in making ...
Gender lens investing in Southeast Asia: A snapshot of progress in Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam
30 March 2021
This landscape report, co-authored by Investing in Women, an initiative of the Australian Government, and Value for Women Ltd. (VfW), presents gender lens investing (GLI) trends and insights from investors operating in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. It draws on extensive interviews—conducted before and during the COVID-19 pandemic—with more than 30 investors and ecosystem ...
A fresh look at paternity leave: Why the benefits extend beyond the personal
25 March 2021
McKinsey & Company research on the impact of COVID-19 on families shows that women bear significant social and economic fallout from the crisis, even considering downshifting their careers or leaving the workforce entirely. In a new survey, McKinsey addresses the question of how men can be supportive to their female partners and use time off ...
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