Abstract Women globally are faced with many challenges and obstacles which include poverty, disease, violence and inequality. Over the years, women through their own initiative, have organised themselves nationally and internationally to have their agendas taken seriously by governments. Donor agencies did not come to supporting women due to their own conscientiousness – rather it was because of the concerted will and commitment of the international women’s movement that brought attention to the need for assistance for women. In South Africa there are many donor agencies that provide funding for programmes and initiatives that address the challenges faced by women of lower socio-economic groupings. The arising question is how effective these initiatives have been in addressing poverty and inequality of women. This pilot study attempted to investigate how select donors and non-governmental organisations have fared in relation to their target group – ‘poor black women’. The study addressed the issues of empowerment and sustainable development of ‘poor black women’ through an analysis of the work of non-governmental organisations supported by donor agencies. The findings were that donors do attempt to address the empowerment and sustainable development of ‘poor black women’ through the funding that they provide.