Snakes and Ladders' tool brings home women's experiences of economic empowerment

Multiple factors can create opportunities or pitfalls on the journey towards women’s economic empowerment. This was highlighted through a panel and an interactive ‘Snakes and Ladders’ activity at ‘From participation to power: mapping economic pathways to women’s empowerment’, a side event held in the margins of the 14th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women convened by the Pacific Community (SPC) in April 2021. The side event was convened by the Pacific Women Support Unit in partnership with CARE Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu Skills Partnership and attended by more than 650 participants.

Speakers shared their insights about successful, practical approaches used by partners in the Pacific to ensure that women don’t just earn more money, but are also empowered to make decisions about themselves and their income, and have a greater say in their homes and communities. They also discussed how it is important for those working in the development sector to learn about how diverse women in the Pacific navigate economic pathways to empowerment – all the more so given women and girls are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.