Bangladesh has been registering impressive economic growth and progress in human development over the past decade. The country is expected to graduate from the group of Least Developed Countries (LDCs) by 2024, will achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, and become a developed nation according to its overarching Vision 2041. Despite achievements, vulnerable employment and increased frequency and intensity of disaster and climate risks are stalling further development. The COVID-19 pandemic has posed an additional socio-economic challenge to Bangladesh, exacerbating inequalities, and pushing millions of people into poverty. Women are enduring the most of these complex challenges, and the pandemic has mainly had gendered impacts, halting or even reversing much of the progress achieved in gender equality. Drawing on the encouraging poverty reduction experiences of the earlier UNDP assisted projects implemented in partnership with Local Government Division, the SWAPNO project intends to assist extreme poor women representing vulnerable households to move out of abject poverty.