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Towards a Gender Equal World: the EU Gender Action Plan III

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Gender Roads in Malawi

EUD Malawi

  • Gender marker: G1-Promotes gender equality as a significant objective 

  • Period of implementation: 2017 - 2025 

  • Amount: EUR 43,150,000

  • Geographical area: Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific

  • Implementing partners: EIB 

  • Link to the project:  

  • GAP III’s Areas: 

  • Economic and social empowerment

  • Equal participation and leadership

 

 

Infrastructure development - in this case, a road - that also builds up the career prospects of young women? It's possible, and it´s happening right now in Malawi with the M1 Road Rehabilitation project. 

While the economic development possibilities of major construction projects are very well known, adding a gender component can be an important additional aspect of success. With the EU investing heavily in infrastructure, it is only right that young women are involved at a professional level and given the opportunity to gain valuable project management experience. Getting that first job after graduation is one of the most difficult moments of a young career.  

With this in mind, the EU Delegation to Malawi recognised the need to proactively engage young women in the country´s infrastructure programmes. Young university engineering stude

nt interns were already recruited in 2018 under the Rural Roads Improvement Programme. To continue with this idea and achieve better results, the EUD Malawi commissioned a gender analysis of the infrastructure sector and is collecting gender-disaggregated data on an ongoing basis. 

Following this successful pilot with the Ministry of Transport, the EU and the EIB (implementing partner) decided to engage young women graduates in their jointly funded M1 Road Rehabilitation project, which is the largest EU blended finance project in Malawi. It is also part of the Team Europe Initiative “Green Growth for Malawi”. 

Working on such a large infrastructure investment provides an opportunity for young women graduates, exposing them to international expertise and greatly enhancing their future employment prospects. This head start gives them a major career boost, translating into long-term, transformative results by better integrating young women into the workforce. 

Improving food security, access to trade and essential services, increasing traffic safety and security, and giving young women an important helping hand is possible with this EU project. 

“I would like to encourage Malawian women to work hard and pursue whatever it is they want to pursue. We can do it. We can work just like men can. As women, we have the power to rule the world.” Jacqueline, Social Scientist working on the M1 road rehabilitation project.