In this 3rd episode of our UNICEF GBViE podcast, Catherine Poulton from UNICEF and Joy Anderson from Criterion Institute talk about how financial systems can help addressing GBV, looking more specifically at mitigating the impact of COVID-19 pandemic. Finance is one of the most powerful systems on earth, and investment decisions about private and public funds are based on an analysis of risk and return over time. UNICEF and Criterion Institute have been exploring pathways to engage systems of finance in addressing GBV in crises, on how GBV can be understood as material to investment decision-making, including several actions investors can implement now. Criterion Institute and UNICEF have partnered and recently creates a due diligence tool for investors to identify and mitigate the investment risks gender-based violence poses. This was done in response to addressing adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on women and girls.

Resources linked to the podcast:

• Article: Recovery investing to reimagine the GBV pandemic
• UNICEF Blog: Flattening the curve: Finance and the pandemic of GBV
• Report: The material risks of gender-based violence in emergency settings