U.S. nonprofits working to advance women’s and girls’ causes received $8.8 billion in philanthropic support in 2020, just 1.81 percent of total charitable giving, the fifth annual Women & Girls Index (WGI) from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute (WPI) at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy finds.

The report, Women & Girls Index 2023: Measuring Giving to Women’s and Girls’ Organizations (8 pages, PDF, research brief), found that while support for women’s and girls’ causes increased 9.2 percent on a year-over-year basis, the growth lagged the 11.3 percent increase in overall giving, and its share remained more or less unchanged from 1.84 percent in 2019. As in previous years, reproductive health and family planning organizations received the largest share of support ($1.6 billion), up 5.8 percent, followed by women’s and girls’ human services ($1.4 billion), and family- and gender-based violence ($1.3 billion). According to the report, the largest percentage increases in the first year of the pandemic were in the areas of women’s and girls’ education (21.6 percent, $1.2 billion), human services (17.9 percent), and family- and gender-based violence (17 percent). In 2020, contributions fell for organizations focused on women’s and girls’ international issues (-5.3 percent, $0.8 billion), gender equality and employment (-6 percent, $0.3 billion), and women’s and girls’ sports and recreation (-8.6 percent, $0.4 billion).

Funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the report also found that while women’s and girls’ organizations saw a 10.1 percent increase in government grant dollars in 2020, the growth fell far below the 36.6 percent increase in government grant funding for other charitable organizations.

“Women and girls have been shown to be disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, which generated greater giving to these organizations, but also greater—and sustained—demand for services,” said Una Osili, associate dean for research and international programs at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

“This year’s WGI confirms that while the pandemic catalyzed philanthropic action in the U.S. and around the world, giving to women’s and girls’ causes continues to lag other areas of philanthropy,” said WPI director Jeannie Sager. “The pandemic erased progress that had been made toward gender equity, and women and girls will need additional resources to continue to make gains. The WGI provides a powerful tool for identifying funding opportunities that address issues affecting women and girls.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images)