About Us

About Us

About us

Enabling an Equal
and Inclusive World
for Women

Institute for What Works to Advance Gender Equality (IWWAGE)  is an initiative of LEAD at Krea University, an action-oriented research centre housed at the Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR), a not-for-profit society which is also the sponsoring body of Krea University.

IWWAGE aims to build and deepen evidence for improving women’s engagement in the economy and enable pathways for supporting and implementing gender inclusive policies and programmes

OUR STORY

From Initiative to Institute

IWWAGE’s Journey of Strengthening Women’s Economic Empowerment and Enabling an Equal, Inclusive World

Every organisation begins with a simple question.

For IWWAGE, it was: What truly helps women and girls participate fully in the economy?

Vertical Timeline
2018
This question became the starting point for an initiative focused on understanding the barriers holding women back. IWWAGE brought together people who often worked separately - policymakers, practitioners, and communities to learn what works and how to make systems work better for women.
2018 – 2023
Over time, IWWAGE grew beyond its original role. It became a connector linking research to action, ideas to policy, and data to meaningful change. Our work helped shape national conversations on women’s labour force participation and supported governments in building gender-responsive programmes and systems.
2023
As we completed five years, we moved into a new phase transforming from an initiative into an institute. This shift reflects our growing scale: building deeper partnerships, engaging more with the private sector, and continuing to push for gender equality across all areas of work and life.

Today, the Institute for What Works to Advance Gender Equality (IWWAGE) remains committed to the same core belief: that knowledge, collaboration, and determination can help create a future where every woman has the opportunity to learn, work, grow, and thrive.

Vision & Mission

Our Vision is to create an equitable and just world where all individuals have equal opportunities to access resources and realise their full potential

Our Mission is to be a Centre of Excellence on Gender Equality and a Partner of Choice for driving gender transformative change through evidence generation, policy engagement, capacity building, and community leadership development, particularly focusing on women and girls

Vision & Mission

Our Vision is to create an equitable and just world where all individuals have equal opportunities to access resources and realise their full potential

Our Mission is to be a Centre of Excellence on Gender Equality and a Partner of Choice for driving gender transformative change through evidence generation, policy engagement, capacity building, and community leadership development, particularly focusing on women and girls

Theory of Change

Policymakers and key stakeholders utilize evidence and data to enhance policies and programme delivery

Effectively anchor the South-

Effectively anchor the South-South collaborative and dialogue on gender equality, supported by national-level insights

Effective gender-transformative solutions scaled up and adapted in other contexts

Policymakers and key stakeholders utilize evidence and data to enhance policies and programme delivery

Effectively anchor the South-South collaborative and dialogue on gender equality, supported by national-level insights

Effective gender-transformative solutions scaled up and adapted in other contexts

Policymakers and key stakeholders utilize evidence and data to enhance policies and programme delivery

Effectively anchor the South-South collaborative and dialogue on gender equality, supported by national-level insights

Effective gender-transformative solutions scaled up and adapted in other contexts

Be the one-stop knowledge and data hub on gender equality via WEE

Enhance domestic footprint and build international presence for advancing WEE

Develop sustainable pathways for WEE to achieve gender equality in collaboration with governments and other stakeholders

Just, equal, inclusive and resilient communities and economies that enable women and girls to achieve their full economic and social potential

Theory of Change

Ideation, Research conceptualisation, Policy landscaping, Implementation Action Plans, Proposal submissions, project cycle management, financial planning, recruitment, training.

Working papers, factsheets, white papers, Peer-reviewed, publications, reports, policy papers, ready-reckoners/cheat sheets, conferences

  • Internships/ and Fellowship
  • Women Leadership programme
  • Community of Practices on Gender Equality
  • Engagement in Networks & Coalitions, and Roundtable Discussions
  • Proof of Concept
  • Monitoring, Evaluation & Knowledge Management Framework
  • Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Framework
  • Gender Knowledge Base- Training Modules and Curriculum

Enhancing the evidence base by generating and synthesizing gender- transformative research

Identify champions, allies and advisors comprising of industry leaders, academicia, government and practitioners

Design, pilot and test context-specific gender inclusive solutions

Policymakers and key stakeholders utilize evidence and data to enhance policies and programme delivery

Effectively anchor the South-South collaborative and dialogue on gender equality supported by national level insights

Effective gender-transformative solutions scaled up and adapted in other contexts

Be the one-stop knowledge and data on gender equality

Enhance domestic footprint and build international presence

Develop sustainable pathways to achieve gender equality in collaboration with governments and other stakeholders

Just, equal, inclusive and resilient communities and economies that enable women and girls to achieve their full economic and social potential

Leadership

Talent

Funding

Systems & Processes

Theory of change

Theory of Change

Developed communities and economies that are just, equal, inclusive, and resilient, enabling women and girls to achieve their full potential

Theory of change

Theory of change

Developed communities and economies that are just, equal, inclusive, and resilient, enabling women and girls to achieve their full potential

What we do

Our Thematic Focus

Our Thematic Focus

IWWAGE works across the following thematic areas to advance Women’s Economic Empowerment

Women’s Economic Empowerment

Women’s Economic Empowerment is our central pillar through which we promote women’s active participation in economic activities for better access to resources, social protection, and decision-making, vital for gender equality.

Care Economy

We aim to foster a robust care economy supported by strong policy and financing frameworks to reduce women’s unpaid care burden and recognise the role of paid care workers, thereby enabling higher and sustained participation of women in the economy.

Climate Change

We address the gendered impacts of climate change by identifying pathways to expand women’s livelihoods, access to clean energy, and leadership in climate mitigation and adaptation.

Women in Leadership

We work towards advancing women’s leadership across economic, social, and political spaces to drive women’s economic empowerment, equitable decision-making, and sustainable development.

Health

We are committed to building a portfolio on women’s health, which is a critical yet underexplored enabler for women’s economic participation.

Women’s Economic Empowerment

Women’s Economic Empowerment is our central pillar through which we promote women’s active participation in economic activities for better access to resources, social protection, and decision-making, vital for gender equality.

Care Economy

We aim to foster a robust care economy supported by strong policy and financing frameworks to reduce women’s unpaid care burden and recognise the role of paid care workers, thereby enabling higher and sustained participation of women in the economy.

Climate Change

We address the gendered impacts of climate change by identifying pathways to expand women’s livelihoods, access to clean energy, and leadership in climate mitigation and adaptation.

Women in Leadership

We work towards advancing women’s leadership across economic, social, and political spaces to drive women’s economic empowerment, equitable decision-making, and sustainable development.

Health

We are committed to building a portfolio on women’s health, which is a critical yet underexplored enabler for women’s economic participation.

Women's Economic Empowerment

Women’s Economic Empowerment is our central pillar through which we promote women’s active participation in economic activities for better access to resources, social protection, and decision-making, vital for gender equality.

Care Economy

We aim to foster a robust care economy supported by strong policy and financing frameworks to reduce women’s unpaid care burden and recognise the role of paid care workers, thereby enabling higher and sustained participation of women in the economy.

Climate Change

We address the gendered impacts of climate change by identifying pathways to expand women’s livelihoods, access to clean energy, and leadership in climate mitigation and adaptation.

Women in Leadership

We work towards advancing women’s leadership across economic, social, and political spaces to drive women’s economic empowerment, equitable decision-making, and sustainable development.

Health

We are committed to building a portfolio on women’s health, which is a critical yet underexplored enabler for women’s economic participation.

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