Empowering Women Through Rural Infrastructure

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Empowering WOMENThrough Rural Infrastructure

Mainstreaming Gender in Transport

Xiaohong Yang

Lead Transport Specialist

9 February 2012

The views expressed in this paper are the views of the author anddo not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the AsianDevelopment Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or thegovernments they represent. ADB does not guarantee theaccuracy of the data included in this paper and accepts noresponsibility for any consequence of their use. The countrieslisted in this paper do not imply any view on ADB's part as tosovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform toADB's terminology



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% of PRC average

• Over 86% of the road network is rural roads, out of which 85%

is unpaved (eastern, gravel, and stone-paved surfaces).

• The lack of routine maintenance has resulted in poor rural road

conditions.• Roads are located in mountainous terrain, and subjected to high

rainfall. During rainy season, landslides commonly block the

roads and are only cleared after the rainy season, leaving

communities without access for months at a time.

• Rural communities face considerable transport difficulties and

high costs to access goods and services, including for the

purchase of agricultural inputs and the sale of their produce.

Road Conditions in Yunnan

• Apart from agriculture, very few other incomeearning opportunities exist in the rural areas.Many men migrate to the cities in search of work, although they are not able to sendmuch money back to the household.

• Women cannot easily work outside their community due to their other responsibilitiesfor taking care of the children, livestock,

agricultural land and the household. They aretherefore very restricted in the type of workthey can access.

Income-Earning Opportunities

BackgroundBackground

GDP/capita Rural householdconsumption



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Leverage ADB unique advantages for results

Local people and local engineers are

being guided towards achieving

results

Local people are

making steps for

themselves. They are

making their own

plan and replicate it

in the whole Dehong

prefecture in the next

year to come!

Works in partnership

with local people:

women’s federation andlocal engineers.

Linkages of GDCF financial resources, ADB

experts in gender and social

development, our lending and learning

opportunities

GDCF funded the Pilot

and has been a strong

encouragementthroughout



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Impact and Outputs of GDCF 6143

Village and township leaders have expressed new understanding of women’s capacities(“men would have given up, but women continue and finish”)Earnings have increased decision-making in household (e.g. less quarrels about use of

money)Men have taken over some tasks (e.g. cooking)

Women Status has improved

Experience shows supporting women is the best way to support the entire community



• Average costs came to CNY 5,250/km, ranging from CNY 3,300/km to CNY 7,800/km

• 84% salary costs – creating incomes and employment for rural communities

• Activities go beyond routine maintenance (emergency and improvement)

• Tools and safety equipment and insurance purchased by the project

• Management burden considered high by CBs (2 staff members x 2 days each month)

• Introduction of performance-based contracts under the subsequent SSTA project.

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Maintenance costs



• 42% of costs for landslides

• 36% road surface and shoulder repairs

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Maintenance costs by activity



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Training and Capacity Building



• fotos

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Road conditions

Examples of gender mainstreaming to showcase “promising approaches”

Before After

Rural Infrastructure project can empower women



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Road conditionsBefore After

Seeing is believing.

Women provided great contribution to rural Infrastructure project



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Road conditions

Better to see once than to hear 100 times



• Spot improvements

• Stone paved repairs carried out

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Other repairs carried out



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Do you want to

ask interns to help

you working on

the monthly

checkups before

and during rainy

season?

Don’t worry, we

know these roads

better than you do. I

have lived here all

my life!

This manual

sounds pretty

simple, but I

wonder if she is

up to it!

No, I better go to

ask women

maintenance

group, they are

far much better!

In many projects, especially for routine maintenance, womencontractors have been more effective and produced a better

quality of work than male led contractors.

Source: DFID Research Scheme Number R6476 Community Participation in Road Maintenance

Assessment of Capacity Assessment of CapacityFrom

TO...

h h lE i W th h l



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Empowering Women through ruralEmpowering Women through ruraltransport infrastructuretransport infrastructure



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KPS: Guide, Manual and Brochure

WITH SPECIAL THANKSGCOP: Shireen Lateef, Bart W. Edes, Sonomi Tanaka, Sri

Wening Handayani, Samantha Hung, Aldrin Roco and other

peer reviewers.

EARD: Klaus Gerhaeusser, Edgar A. Cua, David Sobel, Scott

Ferguson, Malu Panlilio, Chenglong Chu, Lei Kan.

TCOP: Tyrrell Duncan, David Salter, Hideaki Iwasaki, Gloria

Gerilla-Teknomo, Jea Macrohon, Pamela Manalo-Nacpil

DER: Anna Juico, Cynthia Hidalgo Rodel Bautista, Celeste

Landicho, Priscila P. Del Rosario

OAS: Wyn Lauzon, Judy Yniguez

Two publications have been tested and validated under the project.1000 copies of publications have reached targeted beneficiaries.

Xiaohong,Perhaps, you can

produce

something like

this for Yunnan

project, Sonomi



• It is a good project, and we are being

guided towards achieving results.• It fosters team spirit.

• It makes our lives easier.

• We have stable income as we haveflexible work hours

• We also obtained maintenance skill-increased access to employment.

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Spotlights: More

W h a t i s m o r e

• Helped us to f inance education of our

children, some spent on buildings,refrigerator, etc.

• Had changes in our perception.

• We gained confidence.

• It showcased how it can help turnaroundour livelihood skills and our communities.

Advantages according to women It is empowering

Transport sector can provide opportunities for employment and skills, also EGM projects



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Good practice example of gender mainstreaming: Promising approaches

• Road nearly always open compared to rainy season closures under old system

• Road surface conditions improved

• Women with few employment opportunities provided with income and other

employment opportunities in construction and maintenance programs.

• Raise living standards of household members.

• Increase productivity through transport project.• WOMEN HAPPY, ROAD USERS HAPPY, AUTHORITIES HAPPY

Maintenance system successful

Conclusion

• Maintenance Funding provided by Dehong prefecture has been increased from CNY

2.8 million in 2010 to CNY 7.8 million in 2011.• Management system has been improved – performance-based contracting through

SSTA• Women's maintenance groups created have been contracted out to perform routine

maintenance of rural roads in Dehong prefecture• Yunnan Integrated Road Network Improvement Project - Rural road component to

scale up

THE SYSTEM IS REPLICABLE



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THANK YOU also to many women community champions, andlocal engineers. They work so hard to improve their transportand life of their communities!

Maintenance Song



Key Project Capacity Building Experience:

HEAR AND FORGET

SEE AND REMEMBER

DO AND UNDERSTAND

Confusius

Let’s work hand in hand with GCoP team to continue on more GEM projects!

Information website:

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Empowering Women Through Rural Infrastructure

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