Income Generating Activities

People that may be more at-risk during disasters, such as women, persons with disabilities and older persons, face barriers to participation in the economic sector, which puts them at a disadvantage when it comes to achieving livelihood resilience, safeguarding their economic assets and diversifying their income portfolios.

To support equal participation in income generating activities (IGA), start with the assumption that people from at-risk groups can engage in the same types of income generating activities as others in the community:

• Analyse and address barriers to market access/market linkages for different at-risk groups in consultations with the representatives of these groups. Specifically consider institutional barriers with regard to business regulations (permits, licensing, etc.) and access to financial services.
• Collaborate with representative organizations of at-risk groups in all phases of IGA development, from the assessment and design to the implementation and monitoring.
• Ensure inclusion and accessibility when delivering livelihood cash transfers.
• Provide business and vocational trainings inclusively.
• Provide support to individuals for investments in accessibility of business implementation (like the physical accessibility to shops or offices, computer software, Braille manuals etc.).
• Promote group livelihood activities/enterprises of persons with diverse backgrounds, e.g. men and women, persons with and without disabilities, intergenerational or intercultural groups. In some contexts, women might prefer to work together for cultural reasons.
• Raise awareness and provide technical support to cooperatives, business associations, financial service providers, social security, savings groups etc. to improve inclusion.
• Empower persons from at-risk groups as economic actors, through training and social mobilization, and promote entrepreneurs from at-risk groups as role models engaging in resilient IGA.