Global challenges
Social & Economic Inequality
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Enabel strives to ensure equal access to quality basic services and social protection mechanisms, to provide sustainable business opportunities and decent jobs and to address discriminating practices and gender stereotypes that are detrimental to inclusion.
We adopt a rights-based approach aiming at strengthening the capacities of duty bearers and empowering those in marginalised situations, who face the biggest barriers.
Our approach
Sustainable business opportunities and decent jobs
Enabel focuses on shaping and building inclusive markets that foster women entrepreneurship and digital entrepreneurship that empowers young entrepreneurs. We support partner countries in maximising employment impact of investments and economic growth by focussing on decent jobs for youths through technical and vocational education and training and employment promotion.
Fair and sustainable agricultural value chains
We empower small-scale producers and their organisations to capture a more significant part of added-value along the value chain. Making value chains fairer and more inclusive for every actor and particularly the weakest ones is key. Enabel also works towards equitable access and control over land as a human right.
Closing the digital divide
Enabel works on strengthening digital literacy, digital skills and digital rights awareness to ensure that the effects of the digital divide on inequality are addressed effectively. We also empower our partners to reduce the gender digital divide through projects promoting women’s political leadership, entrepreneurship and legal empowerment and the fight against gender-based violence.
Addressing conversion factors: SRHR and family planning
Many socio-cultural and environmental factors determine the degree to which people can realise their full potential. Rapid demographic growth is one of these structural problems as well as the gender divide in access to quality, affordable, accessible healthcare and jeopardises sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of women and adolescents. Providing for SRHR and access to quality family planning services are strong levers to change power relations that institutionalise inequality.
Education and health services and redistribution through social protection mechanisms
Equitable and affordable access to quality public services like education and health are the first redistribution measures for (fragile) countries. Investing in education, including technical and vocational education, and affordable qualitative public health facilities is crucial in reducing inequalities.
More on social & economic inequality
The world is facing huge challenges in realising the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Enabel wants to contribute with its experience and expertise in five specific domains: Peace and Security, Climate Change and the Environment, Social and Economic Inequality, Urbanisation, and Human Mobility. In our search for adapted solutions we take into account the inevitable ongoing population explosion and we strongly believe in empowering women and youths.
This brochure describes how we address social & economic inequality in our projects.
Download the brochure
News & Events
News
04 December 2025
Boosting agri-entrepreneurship in Mbeya
Léonie, former Junior Expert at Rikolto, worked on an agri-entrepreneurship programme, supporting young innovators across Mbeya, Tanzania.
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News
02 December 2025
Enabel and Hogeschool VIVES join forces to strengthen education and health care in Ukraine and East Africa
Belgian collaboration boosts education and healthcare in Ukraine, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania with new training programmes and AI integration.
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News
26 November 2025
Safeguarding biodiversity in Burundi: scientific collaboration in the service of nature
Scientific research and local action drive biodiversity restoration in Burundi’s Kibira and Rusizi National Parks.
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News
19 November 2025
Young voices in Burundi improve Enabel’s work
In Burundi, where over 65% of the population is under 35, Naomi Omowumi Gideon is leading Enabel’s first Youth Advisory Committee to ensure young voices genuinely shape international cooperation projects.
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News
19 November 2025
Enabel and Red Cross-Flanders will help Ukraine rebuild blood system
The partnership aims to modernise Ukraine’s blood supply system, strengthening its quality, safety, and compliance with European standards.
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Resources
13 November 2025
Digitalising civil registration to accelerate inclusion
Read our position paper to explore Enabel’s key insights and recommendations for inclusive digital civil registration.
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