Aligned to our global commitment to supporting localization, UNFPA prioritizes partnerships with local actors, particularly women-led organizations (WLOs). The delivery of cash and voucher assistance (CVA), which has been well integrated across UNFPA’s humanitarian programming in recent years, is no exception.
In the Asia Pacific region, UNFPA collaborates extensively with local partners to deliver cash assistance as part of its gender-based violence (GBV) and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) programming. This localized approach is the primary implementation model for cash assistance in the region, distinguishing it from partnerships with larger international NGOs or UN sister agencies. Up to 84% of UNFPA CVA project partners in the Asia Pacific are local organizations, including civil society organizations (CSOs) and WLOs.
UNFPA Myanmar has the largest number of CVA interventions implemented through CSOs and WLOs in the Asia Pacific region. These partners are community-based, with small but burgeoning capacity. Some of these community-based organizations were formed following the 2021 coup in Myanmar in response to growing humanitarian needs in the country. While they do not necessarily meet all of the operational requirements to become formal implementing partners of UNFPA, they are embedded at the community level and are valuable entry points to provide services for underserved women, adolescent girls, and other key vulnerable individuals such as persons with disabilities and people with diverse SOGIESC.
