UN Women released a report highlighting the widening gender gap in social protection. The report reveals that an alarming two billion women and girls are without access to any form of social protection.

Despite some progress since 2015, gender disparities in social protection coverage have widened in most developing regions, suggesting that recent gains have disproportionately benefitted men.

The report paints a stark picture of gendered poverty, showing that women and girls are overrepresented among the poor at every stage of life, with the largest disparities seen during their childbearing years. Women aged 25 to 34 are 25 per cent more likely than men in the same age group to live in extreme poverty. Conflict and climate change continue to exacerbate this inequality, with women in fragile environments being 7.7 times more likely to live in extreme poverty compared to those in stable regions.

Globally, over 63 per cent of women still give birth without access to maternity benefits. This lack of financial support during maternity leave, not only places women at an economic disadvantage, but also compromises their health and well-being as well as that of their children, perpetuating poverty across generations.