An Assessment of the Cash for Work Component of UN Women’s Project “Protection, Response and Preparedness to Address Needs of Displaced and Vulnerable Women in Gaza”

Through its project ‘Protection, Response and Preparedness to Address Needs of Displaced and Vulnerable Women in Gaza”, funded by Japan, UN Women offered 125 cash for work (CfW) opportunities to women who are most vulnerable in Gaza including women IDPs, women with disabilities and women survivors of violence. Overall, the Cash for Work intervention was assessed to be highly relevant and to have achieved its objectives. The women beneficiaries clearly appreciated the cash for work opportunities, the elevated social status they gained, the level of autonomy and the additional freedom to make their own decisions regarding household expenditure. A broad finding from this assessment is that providing cash for work opportunities provides vulnerable women, including women survivors of violence, women with disabilities, and elderly women, the dignity to choose what best suits the individual needs of their households. The benefits to women of CfW were found to be numerous: dignity, empowerment, involvement in decision-making, and increased asset control and promotion of women’s mobility.