Financing for gender equality and women’s rights: the role of feminist funds

Overview

Progressive funders played an important role in supporting feminist movements to organise nationally, regionally, and transnationally, create feminist knowledge, research, and analysis, and influence both the official Beijing Conference and NGO Forum. Due to feminist organising both within and outside governments and United Nations bodies, the Beijing Conference was a landmark event for global commitments to gender equality. To capitalise on the promise of Beijing, funders need to provide more and better resources for feminist movements addressing the roots causes and systemic changes needed for gender equality and women’s and girls’ human rights to become a reality. This article focuses on the critical role of feminist funds in providing strategic funding, supporting intersectional movements, and shifting power in the philanthropic and development landscapes. It examines new partnerships and funding modalities designed to resource global South feminist movements better and provides recommendations for the creation of a feminist ecosystem of funding that redistributes resources in more connected, transparent, and impactful ways.