Banyan Global implemented the global Women’s Economic Empowerment and Equality Technical Assistance (WE3 TA) task order, awarded under the Advancing the Agenda of Gender Equality (ADVANTAGE) indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract. Under the direction of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Development, Democracy, and Innovation’s Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Hub (DDI/GenDev), Banyan Global provided advisory services to stakeholders to better analyze, design, implement, and monitor interventions addressing women’s economic empowerment and equality constraints and opportunities in support of USAID’s Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy.

The USAID Center for Environment, Energy, and Infrastructure (EEI)/Green Cities Team launched USAID’s new global air pollution program – Clean Air Catalyst (CAC). The CAC aims to develop a data-to-impact methodology to accelerate inclusive clean air action in cities in low- and middle-income countries. DDI/GenDev requested that Banyan Global work with the EEI/Green Cities and the CAC team on a women’s economic empowerment and gender equality analysis to ensure that CAC’s clean air solutions are effective and inclusive. Women and girls are extremely vulnerable to the negative effects of air pollution due to biological differences, socioeconomic disparities, gender norms, and power imbalances. It is critical to understand the gender issues to determine which challenges and negative impacts should be prioritized, which solutions will reach women and girls and other vulnerable populations, and exposure patterns. The gender analysis aims to obtain an understanding of gender differences in issues, concerns, barriers, and opportunities in potential pollution reduction strategies, specifically, reduction of the impact of vehicular emissions on women and girls. The report provides specific opportunities and recommendations for gender integration and women’s empowerment in the CAC Workplan.