The Cost of Exclusion

Conflict is no longer something that happens “somewhere else.”

It creeps into our daily lives—through headlines, social media, and conversations that remind us of suffering just a click away. In those moments, many of us wonder: what can we actually do? Donations, protests, and social posts are part of the answer, but awareness is where it starts.

The UN reported that in 2024, 614 million women were living in conflict-affected regions. That number is almost certainly higher today. And the truth is, women pay an additional price in war. They endure gender-based violence, miscarriages, and the loss of partners who were often the family’s main income earners. They also lose access to everyday essentials—sanitary products, clothing, medication—that rarely make it into aid convoys. While bombs destroy buildings, funding cuts quietly erode the fragile safety nets women need to survive. A UN survey found that 90 percent of women-led organizations working in crisis zones have already faced these cuts.

This brings us to a bigger point: women-led organizations are not just support groups. They are critical systems of resilience. They provide healthcare, education, food distribution, safe spaces, and counselling—services that keep what’s left of society functioning. They are also peacebuilders, mediating local disputes, creating dialogue, and pushing for legal reforms. Yet they remain drastically underfunded and often excluded from the very peace talks that determine their future.

Take Sudan. Since April 2023, the Peace for Sudan Platform has united nearly 50 women-led organizations, demanding urgent reforms: criminalizing sexual violence, building safe spaces, and ensuring women’s equal participation in peace processes. One activist, Israa, put it simply: “These secure community centres are critical—they offer privacy, counselling, legal aid, and comprehensive support services.” Without them, millions of Sudanese women remain at risk of wartime rape and gender-based violence.

The pattern repeats worldwide. In Gaza, within just two months of the current genocide, 39 million tons of debris and toxins had contaminated the air, water, and soil. For more than 500,000 women, access to reproductive care collapsed overnight. In Sudan, women walk further for firewood and water, putting themselves in danger of assault. In Ukraine, women and children make up 80 percent of the refugee population. In Kashmir, women face decades of militarization—from sexual violence to losing husbands and sons to enforced disappearances.

And yet, despite being hit hardest, women remain almost invisible in peace negotiations: globally, they account for just 16 percent of participants. Which means policies, aid packages, and reconstruction plans rarely reflect their lived realities.

So why should Money Matters readers care?

Because this is also a financial question. Women-led organizations do more with less. They stretch every dollar, embed themselves in communities, and find solutions that outsiders often miss. Economists will tell you that investing in women is one of the highest-return “assets” in development finance. Societies that empower women recover faster from crises, show stronger long-term growth, and are less likely to relapse into conflict.

Let’s look at examples. In the Congo, feminist organizations backed by the Global Fund for Women have, for decades, supported survivors of sexual violence, taught women their rights, created income streams, and built pathways into politics. In Myanmar, women have been at the heart of the Civil Disobedience Movement—organizing protests, pooling resources, and sustaining grassroots democracy efforts. These are not just survival strategies; they’re investments in future stability.

But here’s the catch: funding isn’t keeping up. Bilateral aid to women-led organizations in crisis zones dropped from $191 million in 2019–2020 to just $142 million a year in 2021–2022. That’s 0.3 percent of total aid. Think about that: less than one percent of financing goes directly to the very organizations holding communities together. Instead, money gets funnelled through international NGOs, where efficiency and local reach are often much lower.

The business case is clear. Supporting women-led organizations is about efficiency, sustainability, and long-term return. But it’s also about principle: who deserves a seat at the table when decisions about survival and rebuilding are being made?

what can we do?

We don’t all run foundations or control government budgets—but we do have influence:

Read beyond the headlines – Follow platforms like UN Women, Women for Women International, or Global Fund for Women for verified updates. Subscribing to their newsletters or even reading one in-depth report a month is a simple way to understand what’s really happening on the ground. Reports from Oxfam, Amnesty International, and the International Women’s Development Agency are also excellent for context and accountability.

Support directly where possible – Many women-led organizations now accept small online donations through verified portals (for example, Women for Women International for Ukraine and Afghanistan, or MADRE for Latin America and the Middle East). You can also look at larger funds like the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund that channel resources directly to grassroots groups. Even $20 pooled across a community of readers has more impact than we realize.

Shop and invest consciously – Look for businesses and funds that allocate part of their profits to women in crisis zones. Do your research and, where possible, explore country-specific women’s entrepreneurship initiatives. For example, Canada has its Women Entrepreneurship Strategy Fund, which invests in women-led businesses. Supporting these initiatives keeps women in business and sustains livelihoods through times of crisis.

Use your professional skills – Lawyers, teachers, finance professionals, translators, and tech workers can often volunteer remotely. Platforms like Catchafire or UN Online Volunteering match skilled volunteers with grassroots organizations—including women’s groups in conflict-affected areas.

Amplify stories responsibly – Instead of resharing only graphic images of war, highlight the work of women peacebuilders and grassroots initiatives. For example, sharing an article about Sudanese women pushing for legal reform does more to build awareness than a fleeting news post.

Hold institutions accountable – If you work in finance, development, or corporate strategy, bring these questions into the room: Are we investing in women-led organizations? Do our CSR funds actually reach local actors, or just big intermediaries? These nudges matter more than we think.

Educate yourself on the money flows – Aid and financing are rarely transparent. Explore OECD’s gender aid tracker or UN Women’s peace and security funding updates. Knowing the numbers helps us cut through vague promises and focus on where support is truly lacking.

Conflict may feel overwhelming, but money does matter here. Every dollar redirected toward women-led initiatives is an investment in survival, recovery, and peace. The real question is not whether we can afford to support them—it’s whether we can afford not to.

About the Author: Noha Fazili’s personal journey, shaped by growing up in a conflict zone, has fueled her deep passion for promoting financial literacy, particularly among women. She is driven by her belief that education is the foundation for personal and collective empowerment. Noha earned her MBA at Smith School of Business at Queen’s University in Ontatio and works in Wealth Management at Royal Bank of Canada