SHEET 1 DEFINITIONS - PreventionWeb

DEFINITIONS

SHEET 1

What is «gender»? Gender is a socially constructed definition of women and men. It is not the same as sex(biological characteristics of women andmen) and it is not the same as women.Gender is determined by the conception oftasks, functions and roles attributed to womenand men in society and in public and privatelife.

Women as well as men shape gender rolesand norms through their activities and repro-duce them by conforming to expectations.Men as well as women can promote changesin gender relations. Gender relations arereproduced not only between but alsoamongst women and men (e.g. mother/daughter, father/son).

SHEET 1

DEFINITIONS

What are «gender relations»?In most contexts, women and men (girls andboys) play different roles at a household,community and societal level. To perform theirroles, they need different resources (natural,economic, political, social). Often however,women or men cannot play the roles theywant and/or access the resources they needbecause of their gender. Women in particularface difficulties accessing and controlling resources and their social and economic con-tributions are often undervalued.

To «identify gender relations» is to look at theattribution and organisation of roles, responsi-bilities, resources and values attached towomen and men in order to assess the differ-ences and inequalities between them and tomap out their specific interests, opportunities,constraints and needs in development.

What are key characteristicsof «gender relations»? Unlike biological characteristics of womenand men, gender relations are context-specific. They vary between and withincountries (e.g. rural/urban regions), but alsobetween households. Often, households pres-ent different patterns of male-female relationsdepending on their structure e.g. if they arewomen-headed, nuclear or extended. Because women and men interact in allaspects of life, gender relations are omnipre-sent in the private sphere (i.e. householdlevel) as well as the public sphere wherewomen and men interact as community mem-bers or colleagues.

Gender relations are not static. Even intraditional cultures, gender relations changeas a result of economic, legal, political orenvironmental conditions. Some changes areintentional and positive in terms of genderequality – for instance, many countries havetaken steps in laws to eradicate gender discrimination. Deliberate steps can also betaken to maintain/increase gender inequality(e.g. in Saoudi Arabia, women are not allowedto drive). Changes can be negative for equalityas in some countries of the ex-USSR whereunemployment amongst men is high as a resultof market liberalisation policies. Without theirtraditional role and status as household headsand breadwinners, an increasing number ofmen resort to domestic violence to expresstheir malaise and reclaim their masculinity.But changes can also be positive. There aremany women working in export processingzones, including traditional cultures such asBangladesh. Their recruitment has nothing todo with women's empowerment as all to dowith economic viability. However, whilst working conditions in these factories is questionable, there is growing evidence thatwomen can improve their status in the house-hold as a result of the financial contribution.Changes in gender relations can be slow orsudden. For in Rwanda, women acquirednew roles and responsibilities «overnight»after many men were killed in the 1994genocide.

DEFINITIONS

SHEET 1

Gender relations interact with othersocial relations. Not all women and allmen are the same: Age, class, ethnicity, reli-gion, sexual orientation and ability (physicaland mental) influence women’s and men'sactivities and responsibilities, as well as theirstatus, opportunities and constraints in life.Individuals carry multiple identities. In differ-ent circumstances, one identity may prevailover others. In India, a high caste womanmay have more power than a low-caste man,but she may still be subordinated to men inher own caste. However, rich or poor, youngor old, muslim or catholic, «people» arealways women or men, meaning that genderis an unavoidable relation. For instance,many conflicts are currently fought on ethnicor religious grounds, but women and men areundeniably affected and involved in theseconflicts in different ways.

Gender relations are power relations.Institutions in private (e.g. the family, marriage)and public spheres (e.g. religion, school,labour market) reflect and maintain genderrelations. Therefore, attempts to change themto improve gender equality are often per-ceived as threats to «traditions» and culture.Gains towards gender equality may be difficult to achieve, but they can easily belost. There are many examples of societiescalling for a return to traditional values, inclu-ding the subordination of women, when theyfeel «threatened» by external forces or ideas.Traditional gender relations, where women'sstatus is inferior to men's, are often flaggedup as a symbol of cultural identity.

DEFINITIONS

SHEET 1

What does «gender equality»mean?Gender equality is the aim of Gender andDevelopment. It does not simply or necessari-ly mean equal numbers of women and men(girls and boys) in development activities, nordoes it necessarily mean treating women andmen (girls and boys) exactly the same. Theaim is not that women and men become thesame, but that their opportunities and lifechances become and remain equal. Genderequality includes the right for women andmen to be different. It signifies an aspirationto work towards a society in which womenand men (girls and boys) are able to liveequally fulfilling lives and to equally contrib-ute to designing the society they want.

What does «mainstreaminggender» mean?Mainstreaming gender is a strategy to achie-ve gender equality. It means recognising thatwomen and men often have different needsand priorities, face different constraints, havedifferent aspirations and contribute to devel-opment in different ways. A key hypothesis isthat organisations and societies must be trans-formed to accommodate women’s and men'sneeds and treat them as equals. For instance,in 1997, with the victory of the LabourGovernment, the number of women parlia-mentarians in the UK increased significantly.Soon after they were elected, a group ofwomen MPs lobbied to change the workinghabits of the Parliament (e.g. all night sessions) to be able to reconcile their profes-sional and family life.

Mainstreaming implies that actors and institu-tions normally involved in development areable to incorporate a gender equality per-spective in the way they work (their institutionalculture, competence etc.), as well as in alltheir policies and programmes, at all levelsand at all stages of their planning cycle.

What does «integrating gender as a transversaltheme» mean?Working with gender as a transversal themeis one of the strategies for mainstreaminggender. It is a planning methodology. At aprogramme/project and sector level, itimplies that before decisions are taken, ananalysis is made of the effects on women andmen respectively. It requires the participationof women as well as men throughout theplanning cycle and the systematic integrationof their respective priorities and needs.

Gender relations are intrinsic to all aspects of life. Whatever our age, religion, ethnicity,class etc. we are always either a woman or a man, with the limitations and opportunitiesthat are associated with it in a particular context.

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

What are the gender stakes?Partnership is the cornerstone of SDC approach to development. SDC institutionalpolicy and commitments constitute an impor-tant leverage in any context. But ultimately, itis the commitment of partners at all levels thatholds the key to gender mainstreaming. A dialogue between SDC and its institutionalpartners is therefore essential to identify whyand what gender issues matter (see sheet 3)in a particular context. Defining the genderstakes is critical for the identification of pro-grammes that are relevant to both womenand men in the concerned groups and ownedby all stakeholders (sheets 7, 10). In this process, the views of women and menat all levels are valued and seen as comple-mentary.

Three approaches can be combined to main-stream gender in programmes and projects.There is no prescription or receipe. The goodstrategy is the most relevant, efficient andsustainable in terms of gender equality in aparticular context. The minimum requirementis to integrate gender as a transversal themein all planning phases and processes. Then,following the context (women and men'sneeds, partners' capacity and priorities, localdynamics etc.), gender specific programmesand/or measures to institutionalise gender inorganisations are implemented as comple-mentary strategies to reinforce gender as atransversal theme.

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

GENDER AS A TRANSVERSALTHEME

This is a minimumrequirement. It meansintegrating gender in theanalysis, implementationand monitoring/evaluationof all programmes andprojects.

HOW TO MAINSTREAM

GENDER?

ENGENDERING ORGANISATIONS

GENDER SPECIFIC PROGRAMMES

This requires measures to integrate genderin procedures, staff competence, budgets,indicators, partnerships, organisational cul-ture, as well as equal opportunities forwomen and men etc. These measures areoften necessary to support gender as atransversal theme.

These are initiatives/budgets addressingspecific gender issues. They are necessarywhen other programmes are insufficient toreduce gender gaps. Their implementationdepends on the context analysis and theprograrmme commitment to equality.

INTEGRATING GENDER AS ATRANSVERSAL THEME Objectives and approachIntegrating gender as a transversal theme is a planning approach, a methodology. It consists in engendering all steps and proces-ses of the Project or Programme CycleManagement (PCM). This approach increasesthe relevance, effectiveness and efficiency ofinterventions as it brings the respective needsof women and men to the heart of planning.

At different steps of the cycle, questions areasked to ensure that the processes and resultsintegrate gender needs (see diagram below).Particular care is taken to ensure that genderdoes not evaporate between different phasesand to translate the result of gender analysisinto gender-aware programming. This requiresthat SDC and its partners are committed toequality and have gender-aware mechanisms,skills and tools to do this (see sheets 7, 11).

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

Identify gender issuesand disparities inproblem analysis,

Situation GENDER EQUALITY in the global development of

Identification the region

Analysis

PL

AN

NI

NG

MO

NI

TO

RI

NG

I M P L E M E N T A T I O N

INTEGRATING GENDER IN PROGRAMME

GENDER in felt needs, key issues,

opportunities

Define gender awareand/or gender specific objectives

Monitor process, and outputs usinggender disaggrega-ted and/or specificindicators

Goal (s)

Objectives

Approaches

Expectedoutputs/results

Planned Activities

Planned resources/means

Monitoring/evaluation of impact

and relevance

Monitoring/evaluation of effective-

ness

Monitoring/evaluation of

efficiency

Achievedoutputs/results

Activities implemented

Used resources/means

Plan activities andallocate resources toaddress gender rela-tions

Analyse the genderdimension of pro-posed hypothesis,risks analysis andexpected results andindicators.

Impact

Outcomes/direct effects

Monitor SDC contri-bution to social change using genderdisaggregatedand/or specific indicators

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

Key questions to integrategender as a transversal themeIn analysis/planning process...■ Are women as well as men (target groups,

staff, partners) involved in the initial situa-tion analysis at all levels (e.g. policy dia-logue, community consultation)?

■ Are organisations working specifically ongender, or with women consulted?

■ Is qualitative and quantitative data disag-gregated between women/men?

■ Are gender stakes relevant to the pro-gramme/project/sector clearly high-lighted?

■ Are women/men's constraints, needs andviews reflected in the objectives, risk ana-lysis and impact hypothesis of the inter-vention?

■ Is the allocation of financial and humanresources appropriate to address equalityissues?

■ Are key processes (e.g. dialogue betweenkey stakeholders), procedures (e.g. Termsof Reference) and planning tools (e.g. log-frame) explicit on gender?

■ When participatory, are the processesand approaches participatory for every-body?

In implementation ...■ Do women and men participate in the

programme including decision-making?■ Does the programme have strategies to

involve women as well as men?■ Do women and men have equitable

access and control over programmeresources - e.g. are there criteria that discriminate against women or men?

■ Is the programme steered with a view to increasing women and men's equal benefits?

In monitoring ...■ Do women and men (target groups, SDC

staff, partners) take part in monitoring?■ Are collected data on the immediate

and/or longer-term effects of the program-me disaggregated for women and men?

■ Are changes in gender relations reportedas part of monitoring?

■ Are «best – and bad – practice» on gen-der mainstreaming analysed and dissemi-nated?

Measures to integrate gender as a transversal in the ATICA agricultural project (Bolivia)1. Municipal plans are approved in the Women’s Assemblies to ensure that their demands

are included as well as men’s, 2. Women’s specific demands are integrated in the projects (e.g. family gardens on

«reclaimed land»), 3. Women’s as well as men’s perspectives are included in the formulation of peasants’

hypotheses (the effects they wish to achieve with the project). For instance, this processhighlighted that children going to school is a measure of success for women, whilst formen success is increasing the surface of their arable lands.

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

GENDER SPECIFIC PROGRAMMES

Objective and approachSometimes, integrating gender as a transver-sal theme in general programmes is not suffi-cient to address disparities and specific pro-grammes are needed to positively affectequality between women and men.

Gender specific programmes are implementedat a macro or at meso level. They can be sector specific (e.g. reducing the enrolmentgap between girls and boys in education) orthematic (e.g. violence against women).Increasingly, gender issues are addressed aspart of human rights and good governanceprogrammes. HIV/AIDS and environmentalprogrammes often require gender specificactions.

A key factor to achieving gender equality iswomen's empowerment, in particular theirparticipation in decision-making in formal aswell as informal political structures. Genderspecific programmes strategically changeinequality factors and create the conditionsfor women to become the agents of their owndevelopment. For instance, they can:

■ Build women's awareness of their ownsituation (e.g. their rights)

■ Promote women's decision-making athome, in community and society

■ Reform legal frameworks (e.g. reviewfamily codes to integrate gender equality)

■ Sensitise men to accept women as equalpartners (e.g. in political processes)

Gender specific programmes are not the onlyway to address gender inequality. Theyshould not substitute themselves to sectoralprogrammes with gender as a transversaltheme. They should not be confused withWomen In Development type of projects (seebelow). They should be considered as short-term measures. In the long term, women’s/girls' needs and gender issues should betaken care as part of mainstream interven-tions, once critical disparities are addressed.

In Tanzania, gender is a transversaltheme in rural and health programmes,but there is a gender specific programmein defence of women’s strategic interests.In Niger too, all programmes are expect-ed to tackle women’s practical needswhilst a time-bound gender specific pro-gramme is implemented to address theirstrategic needs. In Benin, the lack offemale cadres gave impulsion to a «com-pensatory» programme to help womenobtain university degrees and get in-volved in development

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

Who to target: Womenand/or men?Gender specific programmes do not automati-cally or exclusively target women. Experiencehas shown that to improve the situation ofwomen (girls), it is often necessary to involvemen too. Working with men to change theirgender relation to women but also to themselves(e.g. challenging their own assumptions ofmasculinity) is essential for the promotion ofgender balanced development.

Gender specific programmes can also sup-port institutions that deal with women/genderstrategic issues, such as National machine-ries, NGO or networks.

What is the difference between women's projectsand gender specific programmes?During the UN decade for Women (1976 –1985), the Women in Development approach(WID) tried to provide answers to women'sneeds in all sectors (e.g. reproductive health,income generation, agriculture, violenceagainst women and women's political repre-sentation etc.). However, with limited resour-ces and support, WID rapidly became a sec-tor of its own, whilst sectoral policies and pro-grammes continued in a gender-blind way,only occasionally targeting women as a «vul-nerable» group – alongside «children, theold, the disabled, the unemployed etc.» – inspecial programmes and projects.

The Gender and Development (GAD) ap-proach tackles power relations between menand women and not only considers women'sproblems. It aims to get gender equalityissues out of their isolation (e.g. gender equa-lity machineries, women's projects etc.) toinvolve all actors concerned in building a bal-anced society and to promote gender equali-ty in all interventions and sectors.

Key differences between Women's projects and Gender Specific programmes:

■ Gender specific programmes arebased on a analysis of gender rela-tions, whereas women's projects tendto focus only on the situation ofwomen;

■ Gender specific programmes targetwomen and/or men to address equal-ity, whereas women's projects onlytarget women;

■ Gender specific programmes measurechanges on relations between womenand men, not only on women.

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

and/or

and/or

Planning Steps WID GAD

Analysis Women as main unit of analysis Gender relations as transversal theme in analysis,

in all sectors

Implementation Objectives, strategies, activities Objectives, strategies, activitiesand resources target and resources target either

women only women and/or men

Monitoring and Indicators measure changes in Gender disaggregated dataevaluation the situation of women only measure relative changes in the

situation of women and men and (in)equality as a transversal

theme in all sectors.

Women or/and men insectoral and/or specificgender programmes: a strategic choice

Required at the beginningof all interventions

Required at the end of allinterventions

INSTITUTIONALISE GENDER IN ORGANISATIONS

Internalisation of gender at a project/programme level takes consistent attention and support to ensure that gender sensitivity exists at all levels. Too quickly, the accent is onwomen, without reasoning from a gender perspective. The situation of female staff (e.g.household and childcare duties) requires special attention especially if fieldwork is a majortask. The challenge lies in translating concepts into practical approaches on a field level. SDC India Annual Programme, 2002

It is often necessary to developcapacity, procedures andmechanisms to work with gen-der. The institutionalisation ofgender in organisations sup-ports the integration of genderas a transversal theme. For more on «Gender and organisations», see sheet 9a.

GENDER APPROACHES

SHEET 2

HINTS TO DEVELOP GENDER STRATEGIES? ■ Develop a dialogue around gender within and between SDC and its partners around

four key questions: 1. What «gender» processes and results do we want to achieve?2. How do we want to achieve these processes and results?3. To what impact on gender equality do we want to contribute?4. What contextual factors influence gender equality in our context?

■ Discuss SDC new gender policy (2003) with partners, its relevance to national develop-ment/gender issues, policies and priorities.

■ Create a «space» for staff to exchange and reflect on gender. Internal forums – multisectoral or thematic – prove very efficient to build staff confidence and competence ongender.

■ Develop competence in a specific gender workshop or as part of a general workshop(e.g. on PCM or monitoring). Training is often a good catalyst.

■ Integrate gender issues in self-evaluation or evaluation processes.

■ Assess the Country programme and/or key programmes to see if and how gender istaken on board. A gender expert can be called upon if no expertise is available internally.

■ Carry out an organisational analysis to assess the integration of gender in key tools,procedures, organisational culture and identify the awareness and needs of staff.

■ Formalise the gender strategy objectives and processes in a document and clarify thecommitments, contributions and roles of different stakeholders in mainstreaming.

Gender mainstreaming strategy for SDC – Macedonia, 2001(key points)■ Develop relevant gender criteria and sector level gender objectives for individual

projects and priority sectors;■ Involve all partners in the «gender dialogue»;■ Develop gender competence of local partners;■ Explore potentials for collaboration identified through the gender assessment, including

networks and gender resources;■ Integrate gender into staff and programme development activities;■ Ensure resources for gender work, and engender existing budgets;■ Establish a gender-aware monitoring system for the Country program.

Integrating gender as a transversal theme in all interventions is a minimum requirement.Implementing gender specific programmes and institutionalising gender in organisationsare complementary strategies to mainstreaming gender in development.

GENDER ANALYSIS

SHEET 3

Why gender analysis?Experience shows that some interventions donot reach their objectives because they havenot taken enough account of social relations,including gender, in their context.

A gender analysis is essential to understandlocal dynamics (problems, opportunities, values),plan interventions that are relevant and bene-ficial to both women and men and assess thedifferent benefits/inconveniences of program-mes on women and men. In particular, it isnecessary to test hypotheses and assumptionsthat SDC and its partners unavoidably bringwith them because of their ideology, experience, and their approach to andexpectations of development. For instance ...

■ In many programmes, the participation oftarget groups is a key assumption. It isassumed that target groups will contributein terms of ideas, labour/time and, increa-singly, money (cost sharing). Women andmen's ability to participate (time availabili-ty, skills, decision-making, financial afford-ability etc.) and the impact of gender onparticipation is not systematically assessed,which can affect both the relevance andefficiency of the programme.

■ Many interventions aim to reduce thereproductive workload of women (e.g.water collection) so that they have moretime for productive activities and/or self-development (e.g. literacy). But women donot always control their time and income.In this case, a gender analysis is neededto assess whether the reduction of women'sworkload is efficient, or sufficient, toempower them.

Like any situation analysis, a gender analysisis concerned with two «scenes»: the localscene where endogenous social processestake place and the development scene, which concerns development programmes and pro-jects. «Gender lenses» are used to analyseboth scenes.

Endogenous social processes Planned interventions

Gender lenses

CONTEXT

SHEET 3

GENDER ANALYSIS

Integrating gender in thesituation analysis is oneof the key principles included in SDC GenderPolicy (2003).

1. Endogenous social processes: The analysisfocuses on the local scene. It identifieswhat women and men do and how, theirrespective needs/opportunities as well asthe gender relations and their possibleimbalance. It finds out how traditions, aswell as economic and social changes/pro-blems, affect women and men in differentsocial groups. Depending on needs, theanalysis may focus on:

■ Households and communities (sheet 5)■ Specific sectors (sheet 6)■ National policies (sheet 6)■ The country at large (sheet 6)■ Development actors/organisations

(sheets 9a, 10)

2. Planned interventions: The analysis focuseson the development scene. It examineswomen's and men's participation in devel-opment programmes, including thosewhich are supported by SDC and its partners, and assesses:

■ To what extent, how and why programmes, respond to women's andmen's respective gender needs (sheet 8)

■ SDC and partners as organisations (sheets 9, 10, 13)

■ The effects of SDC interventions on gender (sheet 12)

SHEET 3

GENDER ANALYSIS

What to analyse?A gender analysis examines culture, e.g. thepattern and norms of what women and men,girls and boys do and experience in relationto the issues being examined and addressed.Where patterns of gender difference andinequality are revealed in sex disaggregateddata, gender analysis examines why thedisparities are there, whether they are a mat-ter for concern, and how they are and mightbe addressed.

The range of development and gender issuesthat can be addressed in a situation analysisis very wide. To ensure the relevance of thecollected information and give the analysis arealistic scope, SDC and its key partners askthemselves:

«What do we need to know to ensure thatpolicy, programme and project planningaddresses the needs of women and men (girls and boys) and benefits both womenand men (girls and boys)?»

«Traditional diagnoses are not appropri-ate. Diagnosis must relate to the needs ofthe project and the use of anthropologicaltechniques (informal interviews, directobservation, key informants etc.) shouldresult in the production of «local images»,reflecting that not all communities andusers, women and men are the same. It isthen possible to capture heterogeneity(not only women/men differences) andallows a deeper and closer knowledge ofconcrete reality». SDC Coordination for the Latin AmericaProgramme, 2000

GENDER ANALYSIS

SHEET 3

Not all women and not all men are the same.The analysis reflects the social diversity of thegroups researched. This implies that answersto the question «who» are systematically disaggregated between different groups ofwomen and men (girls and boys) in terms ofincome group, age, religion etc, as relevantin a given context. However, the precise sex disaggregated data and gender analyticalinformation needed depends on the sectorand the context.

At a second level, sub-questions can helpfocus the analysis on specific target groups:

■ Who may benefit directly from the programme resources?

■ Who may be concerned or affected bythe programme activities, directly or indirectly?

■ Who may participate in and contribute tothe programme?

■ Who may be involved in decision-makingin the programme?

■ Who may find it difficult to participate/make decisions in the programme?

GENDER ANALYSIS

SHEET 3

«There are significant disparities reflectingdiversity along ethnic, religious, incomeand age groupings. For some groups ofAlbanian women, for instance, althoughprotective and non-discriminatorylegislation exists, customary practiceresults in them not claiming their rights –e.g. in inheritance. For groups of ruralwomen from Roma, Turkish and Albaniancommunities, there is the widespreadpractice of women not freely exercisingtheir right to vote. There are also indications of early marriages, multiplepregnancies and school leaving amongyoung women in these communities». Macedonia gender assessment, 2001

How to proceed with genderanalysis?There are three pre-requisites for the integra-tion of gender in an analysis:

■ A dialogue between SDC and its partnersto define the stakes and the focus

■ Gender-aware analytical frameworks andprogramming tools (sheet 4)

■ A gender aware and competent team(internal staff and/or external expertise)

Two approaches are possible, which are notmutually exclusive.

GENDER ANALYSIS

SHEET 3

■ Clearly request gender disaggregated information (qualitative and quantitative) in Termsof Reference and be specific about the gender information that is needed;

■ Revisit the analytical framework to adjust «old» questions or indicators with a gender perspective and/or create new gender specific ones (sheets 4, 5, 6);

■ Ensure the participation of different groups of women and men in the consultation (according to age, income, different household structures etc., as relevant) and facilitatethe free expression of their respective needs (e.g. talk to women and men separately).;

■ Include women and men in the research team so as to facilitate access to both women and men in the groups targeted in the analysis;

■ Include gender experts (women or men) in the team. Gender experts may need to workwith and/or train sectoral/programme research teams if they are not yet gender competent. It takes time to gain gender reflex.

1. Integrate gender as a transversal theme in a traditional analysis

Whenever possible, gender is integrated as a part of country, sectoral, community etc. analyses. All methods of data collection (e.g. community and household surveys, participatoryresearch, stakeholders analysis) are adapted to better integrate gender. Keeping in mind the«must know» questions (sheets 5 and 6 – analysis at micro/macro level), those in charge of theanalysis (SDC, partners, consultants) need to:

The integration of gender issues and the disaggregation of information along gender linesis a pre-requisite for all programmes and projects. Gender aware analysis at household,community, country or sectoral level makes a key contribution to the relevance, efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of development interventions.

Because gender is a cross cutting issue, the results of a specific gender analysis are used forprogramming in any sector, and not exclusively to plan gender specific programmes

2. Conduct a separate gender analysis

At times, it is necessary to carry out a specific gender analysis to complete a prior diagnosticand/or when specific gender data is needed for a particular geographical area, sector, or programme. A specific gender analysis is essential before implementing gender specific programmes. Local or international gender specialists may be hired, but competence is increasingly available locally amongst partners and SDC staff.

GENDER ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK

SHEET 4

Which analytical framework?Different analytical frameworks are now avail-able on the «market» (see list) and are veryuseful to inspire thinking. They can be appliedto review endogenous social processes (thelocal scene) as well as planned interventions(the development scene). Ultimately, genderframeworks are most useful when they aredeveloped to suit a particular context andlocal dynamics1.

All analytical frameworks, in one form oranother, try to establish:

■ The gender division of labour (genderroles and responsibilities)

■ Women's and men's access to controlover resources at all levels

■ Women's and men's gender needs (practi-cal and strategic)

1 A number of SDC programmes havealso created their own analytical frame-works, for example Niger and India.


SHEET 4

The gender division of labour:identifying gender rolesThe first question to answer is «who doeswhat»? The participation of women and menin each of the four roles must be analysedqualitatively as well as quantitatively. Theanalysis of the gender division of labourusing «gender roles» is the starting point ofvirtually all gender analysis. Because not allwomen and not all men are the same, it isnecessary to disaggregate the «who» betweenwomen and men in their diversity (age, class,religion, ethnicity etc.), as relevant in thecontext.

The reproductive role includes activitiesthat take place mainly at household level,such as domestic chores, caring for youth andold people, looking after the health of house-hold members, their education, etc. Theseactivities are unpaid because they are seenas «natural». The world over, women are moreinvolved than men in the reproductive role.

The productive role refers to activities ofwomen and men that produce economicresources, in cash or kind. In many contexts,women work at home and their productive

work is invisible (e.g. doing piecework forfactories from home) Subsistence farming orcontribution to cash crop farming, in whichmany women are involved, is a productivetask. In many contexts, men are involved inmore remunerative and formal forms of workthan women.

The community-managing role refers tovoluntary activities at community level to ensurethe provision and maintenance of collectiveresources and infrastructures (e.g. waterpoints, roads, health services). Women arevery involved in this role because deficientpublic goods and services affect them in thefirst place. Yet, they often have less access todecision-making than men.

The constituency-based politics roleincludes political and advocacy activities atcommunity, local, national and/or internationallevels, within traditional structures (e.g. villageheadship), party politics and/or civil society.Women's and men's participation in this roleis strongly influenced by their class, educa-tion, age, ethnicity etc. In most contexts, mendominate political leadership, except inwomen's organisations.


SHEET 4

Women's and men's access toand control over resources To complement the gender division of labour,the analysis must identify what resources arerelevant in each role, for example:

In the reproductive role, tangible resourcesare food, money, housing, clothing, cleanwater, transport e.g. to attend a clinic, infor-mation e.g. about social services. Intangibleresources include (health, education, repro-ductive rights, time, social networks).

In the productive role, tangible resourcesinclude land, equipment, credit, raw materi-als, transport. Intangible resources are skillsand knowledge, mobility, the right to work, tocontrol one's income, access to economicmarkets and networks and information etc.

In the community-managing role, access toinformation and decision-making are critical.Time is a key resource as «participation» consumes time that women and men couldotherwise spend on reproductive or productiveactivities.

In the political role, key resources are infor-mation, political education, rights (e.g. to par-ticipate in public debate, be candidates forelections, vote), physical mobility and self-con-fidence. Political and civic rights are keyresources for human rights and good govern-ance.

The analysis of resources within the existinggender division of labour identifies:

■ Resources that women and/or men needto play their existing gender role(s): Theycan be tangible or intangible, endoge-nous or brought in by programmes/pro-jects. Their use may be common or speci-fic to women and men. When resourcesare scarce, different groups of users maybe in conflict.

■ Factors that influence women's and men'saccess to and control over endogenous as well as programme resources

In Niger, women have access to land butthey do not control the fields their hus-bands lend them. Men can claim theirland back, particularly if they have beenimproved by the women’s work.Therefore, women do not invest too muchas they know that they can be evictedfrom their plot any time. This situationaffects productivity and farming outputs.

(availability/scarcity, affordability, right to).Factors influencing access to and controlover endogenous resources can be cultural. In the case of programmes, pro-cedures can be influencing factors (e.g. ifmicro credit can only be accessed bythose with collaterals such as land, accessis difficult for women).

■ Strategies used by women and men toaccess/control resources and potentialconflicts of interest between women andmen.

■ Changes that should take place in thelevel/conditions of access and controlover some resources to allow women ormen to engage into new roles they havechosen.

Points to remember■ (Most resources can be classified as need

or benefit. For instance, money may be aneed in the productive role (capital), anda benefit (income earned). In programmes,it is also useful to distinguish betweenresources (inputs) and benefits (outputs).

■ (The distinction between access to andcontrol over resources is critical in theanalysis. The continuum between the twois not automatic and often requires somelevel of empowerment for those excludedfrom decision-making.


SHEET 4

Addressing practical or strategic genderneeds?There is no right answer as it is the contextand the programme's objectives that orientthe strategies. Sometimes, it is necessary tomeet a practical need first (e.g. constructionof a clinic) to later on fulfil a strategic need(women's and men's shared control of the clinic). Other times, strategic needs are givenpriority, for instance when access to land(strategic need) is indispensable for womenand men to increase their farming outputsand income (practical need). Strategic needsare strongly linked to decision-making andempowerment. Because of their low level ofparticipation in politics, women cannot pro-mote their practical needs (e.g. better health,competence). Gender specific programmesare appropriate to tackle women's strategicneeds.

It is for the women and men in a specific context to define their priority gender needs.Women and men may not always agree onwhat these are. Age, income level, religionetc., not only gender, may influence howwomen and men prioritise their genderneeds.

Women's and men's genderneedsThe analysis of the gender division of labourand of women's and men's access and controlover resources must lead to the identificationof women's and men's gender needs.

■ When women and/or men demand moreaccess to some resources/opportunities toperform their existing gender roles better,they express a Practical Gender Need .Their demand does not aim to challengethe customary gender division of labour.

■ When women and/or men want to chal-lenge the customary gender division oflabour and power relations and when theywish to fight factors that create genderinequalities, they express a StrategicGender Need.

More programmes/projects respond to practi-cal gender needs because they are easier to diagnose than strategic ones. They alsocreate less resistance because they do notdirectly challenge gender-based power rela-tions. Practical gender needs are often per-ceived as social and identified in sectors suchas health or water and sanitation. In thesesectors it is mainly women (and children) whoare most visible as primary users of e.g.water or services. However, where gender isassociated with and limited to «the social»,linkages with power and the political can beoverlooked.


SHEET 4

In Mali, as in Madagascar, decentralisa-tion provides a flagrant example of thegender exclusion logic. Women are lessinvolved than men in the identification ofneeds at local level and very few areelected to municipal councils (strategicneed). As a result, local developmentplans do not reflect their practical needsappropriately. In particular, women’sneed for capacity building, informationand credit are given limited priority com-pared to infrastructures (schools, roads,markets…). The exclusion logic continuesas women are less involved in themanagement of community resourcesbrought by decentralisation. In Mali, thepolitical education of women is addressedin a gender specific programme.


SHEET 4

This framework can be used with sheets 5and 6 for gender analysis at different levelsand also with sheets 7 and 8 for planning atdifferent levels (eg. to define indicators,

bench marks). It can also be combined withsheet 11 to monitor programme outcomesand assess change in target groups.

The use of basic gender tools makes it possible to analyse the gender division of labour,women’s and men’s access and control over resources and decision-making and theirrespective needs and interests in any given context. It is crucial to obtain this informationbefore planning any programme or project.

Roles Reproductive Productive Community Politicalmanaging

Women Men Women Men Women Men Women Men

What are the existing tasks and contributions of women and men* in each role

Resources

What resources do women and men*:

Have access to

Have control over

What benefits, status, do women and men* get from each role

Gender inequalities and needs

What gender inequalities and needs are expressed in each role, by women/men?

What gender inequalities and needs are not so easily expressed by women/men?

What inequalities/needs are directly linked to the programme/project (e.g. accessibility criteria)?

What inequalities/needs are context-specific (e.g. cultural values, traditions etc.)?

* Disaggregate women/men according to socio-economic characteristics such as age, income level, ethnicity, religion, marital status, household structure, level of educa-tion, professional occupation etc. whenever and as relevant.

GENDER IN HOUSEHOLD AND COMMUNITY ANALYSIS

SHEET 5

Why analyse gender at household and communitylevel?Gender analysis at household and communitylevel is essential, as this is where women andmen «live» and experience the effects, positiveand negative, of development (see genderanalysis sheet 3).

Yet, many development programmes makeassumptions about the way women and menlive at household and community level. Theydo not sufficiently take into account the factthat women and men have different roles,responsibilities, rights/power, resources andneeds. The lack of knowledge of livelihoodsand needs of women and men in targetgroups is a key factor in the failure of pro-grammes and projects. Collecting genderaware data collection at micro level is essen-tial to constitute baselines and assess changeovertime.

Gender equity is also considered as one of the main values that form the basis ofthe SDC programme. It is a guiding principle of the country programme 2003-2007 and priorities for the coming yearsare identified. For example gender analy-sis to be undertaken for all programmecomponents and gender disaggregatedperformance indicators to be determinedand monitored.


SHEET 5

Endogenous social processes Planned interventions

CONTEXT

Household level

Community level

Reciprocal impact?

What to analyse?The general aim is of course to identify keyissues at micro level in different sectors (e.g.education or vocational training) or processes(e.g. decentralisation). It is to map out localdynamics and actors working at that level toinfluence or address problems. All this shouldbe done using gender lenses. The two-sceneanalytical framework (see sheet 3) can beused.

The starting point is to answer the question:«what information is useful to help designand run programmes and projects?». If theanalysis is carried out at the very beginningof an intervention, the focus cannot be nar-rowed down too much as researchers cannotdefine a priori that some information will notbe useful. Alas, gender issues are often exclu-ded through this process.

In the northern part of Madagascar, anNGO identified a good market for egg-plants, squash and pumpkins and pro-posed a gardening project to local women.Women were to receive land from theirhusbands to start the production. A yearlater, despite the promising market,women had done little and had receivedno support from men. A further round ofinvestigation on the part of the NGOrevealed that in that part of the island,these crops are believed to create maleinfertility, thus explaining the reluctant attitude of both women and men.


SHEET 5

How private is the household? Traditionally, micro level analysis has had an anthropological approach, implying thatresearchers/planners have no right toquestion/challenge the organisation of rolesand powers in the private sphere. They canonly describe it. What happens at householdlevel, and to a lesser extent at communitylevel in terms of gender, is often protected bythe «cultural argument». However, there is nodoubt that the household is political.

Gender relations in the private sphere havean impact on the public sphere (the communi-ty, the workplace, society at large). Over theyears, many issues have confirmed this andthe need to consider household-based genderissues as development issues in their ownright. A few examples from different countries:

■ Gender bias in the distribution of foodleads to higher mortality of girls and/or tonutritional deficiency in pregnant women.

■ Unequal decision-making power oversexual rights between women and mencontributes to the HIV/AIDS pandemics.

■ Domestic violence against women contra-venes human rights as well as affectingvictims' physical and mental ability towork and perform in society.

■ Women's lack of control of financialresources affects the success of their microenterprises and credits get used up bymen.

■ Household domestic habits/needs (e.g.cooking, sanitation) affect the environmentand public health (water contamination).

Of course, macro policies and interventionsin the public sphere also impact gender relations at household and community level.In some countries ...

■ The privatisation of health services hasincreased prices and reduced the numberof women attending ante natal clinics.

■ One-child policy (China) leads to highinfanticide of girls.

■ The construction of roads has led to betteraccess to work and markets for womenand men, but also to migration and familydislocation (more female headed house-holds).

■ In some cases, new roads led to the com-mercialisation of agricultural producebeing taken over from local women bymale intermediaries with better access totransport, information and capital.


SHEET 5

How to gather the information? 1. From the start, it is important to include

gender in the definition of the focus of theanalysis. This means both:

■ Involving women and men (policy makers,professionals, community workers, commu-nity leaders etc.)

■ Involving staff (women and/or men) fromorganisations working on gender/womenissues

2. It is essential to review existing researchmethods and frameworks (e.g. PRA,household surveys, community profilesetc.) to engender them (sheet 3) usinggender tools and indicators.

3. Potential obstacles to women's and men'sparticipation in the analysis must be pre-identified e.g:

■ Can women speak openly in public?■ Are women likely to talk freely in a mixed

group?■ Is it desirable to run separate discussion

groups for women/men, and/or differentgroups of women/men (e.g subgroups byage)?

■ Are women and men likely to be availa-ble at the same time for the consultation?

■ If doing a household survey, when areboth women/men likely to be at home?

■ If planning a public meeting, when arewomen/men most likely to attend?

■ If travel is needed to attend the meeting,will women as well as men come?

■ If only «leaders» are invited to the meet-ing, how gender representative will it be?

■ If the place selected for the meeting isassociated with men, or women, may itaffect a gender-balanced participation?

■ Are communication channels chosen toinvite women and men to participate inthe consultation gender aware?

■ Etc.These questions can be applied to ensurethe participation of women and men bothfrom target groups and developmentorganisations in the analysis.


SHEET 5

4. Based on this gender-aware preparatorywork, the teams must plan strategies toensure that women and men will be ableto express themselves freely on what theyexperience and perceive as their genderneeds and what they think are key genderissues and inequalities to address in theircontext.

5. Household and community analysis cantake time and resources (financial andhuman too). There is often a temptation toshort circuit the process to go to the«essential», i.e. planning, and/or to putmore emphasis on programme/projectanalysis (sheets 8, 9). Yet, micro analysis,particularly if it follows a participatoryapproach, is a key process in empower-ment as it encourages women and men towork through their problems (individuallyand/or collectively), provokes self-reflec-tion and creates ownerships of objectivesand strategies.

As this process also raises issues of (gender)power at household and community level, itmay also create conflicts of interests that mayrequire mediation/negotiation between dif-ferent community groups, including betweenwomen and men. But it can also offer aspace for dialogue.

Thanks to a project designed for the management of a forest producing wood for the cityof Bamako, mechanical equipment was brought in to facilitate large-scale forest exploita-tion. Right from the start, the project discussion partners were exclusively men. When theproject was set up and a forest management committee was put in place, it too was uniquely composed of men. Only during the on-site visit of a gender expert did people realise that women had been exploiting the forest for a good ten years with only their armsand legs as equipment. Despite the markedly lower productivity which was registered, not only did they already have a management committee, but a solidarity fund as well.With the implementation of the project, the structure put in place by the women becameobsolete, and the women were reduced to simple labourers.

In the Gaya region of Niger, women hada tradition of cultivating and commerciali-sing the shoots of palm trees (called miri-chi) as a delicacy. A DDC agriculturalproject for women succeeded in increas-ing the mirichi production. Local marketssoon became saturated and the transportof mirichi to distant markets had to beorganised. Rapidly, richer men took overthe mirichi market from the women asonly they had access to transport andcapital to buy in large quantities.


SHEET 5

«Must have» gender information at household level (see analytical tools sheet 4)■ What reproductive tasks do women and men have in different household structures

(e.g. female headed, nuclear, polygamous, extended)?

■ What productive roles do women and men have? What benefits do they get?

■ How do women and men use their time and resources (in different roles/tasks)?

■ What do women and men contribute (value attached to contributions)?

■ What resources are accessed and controlled (decision-making) by women/men?

■ What factors (culture/traditions, laws) influence gender at household level?

■ How do gender relations improve/constrain individuals’ and household welfare?

■ What would women/men like to change in gender relations at household level?

■ What are women's/men's priorities for change?

«Must have» gender information at community level (see sheet 4)■ What initiatives target gender needs (what needs? practical and/or strategic)?

■ How do women and men participate in local activities/projects?

■ What roles are they fulfilling?

■ Who is involved in making decisions?

■ What community/development resources can women/men have access to?

■ Which are controlled by women/men?

■ What benefits do women/men gain from these development initiatives?

■ What factors (culture/traditions, laws) influence women's and men’s participation andgender relations at community level?

■ How do gender relations improve/constrain community welfare?

■ What would women/men like to change in gender relations at community level?

■ What are women's/men's priorities for change?

■ How do local development actors (women and men) perceive and work with «gender»?

GENDER IN COUNTRY, POLICY AND SECTOR ANALYSIS

SHEET 6

Why gender in country analysis?A gender-aware analysis of the national con-text, including policies, development sectorsand actors is critical to mainstream gender inprogrammes and projects.

A country analysis provides a social, econo-mic, cultural and political profile where therespective roles, contributions and needs ofwomen and men are thoroughly describedand analysed. The link between genderinequalities and other factors affecting devel-opment must be made to inform planning (seesheet 7: gender in country programme). Thisanalysis is important to help SDC confirm oridentify partners and alliances that are usefulto promote gender equality.

How?A two scene-framework is useful for this analysis (see sheet 3).

National scene Cooperation scene

Focus on gender and/in … Focus on gender and/in

� Key sectors and poverty � Donors initiatives� Decision-making � SDC initiatives� Culture/traditions � Partner/ships� Economic/social processes � Resources� Laws/policies COUNTRY� Local actors/institutions

Before starting the gender-aware country analysis, the following are in place:■ A gender-aware analytical framework■ Basic gender disaggregated gender data in the targeted area/sector ■ A gender competent, and, whenever possible, gender-balanced team■ A list of key interlocutors/respondents with a knowledge of gender issues


SHEET 6

It is important not to reinvent the wheel andto make the most of existing sources of infor-mation on gender. Of course, original re-search is not excluded and is particularly useful to identify qualitative gender issues thattend to be underanalysed.

All original research should involve womenand men at all relevant levels as part of theconsultation process. All this information isused to write up the «context» section of theCountry Programme. All sections of theCountry Programme must be gender-aware(see sheet 7).

There are two options to obtain agender-aware view of a country’ssituation:1. Gender is integrated as a transversal in a

«general» country analysis2. A specific gender profile (country, sector)

is carried out (sheet 3) if other relevantdiagnoses are incomplete in terms of gender.

Often, basic gender-disaggregated data (onhealth, education, political participation) already exist in the country (e.g. national statistics, UNDP human development report).In addition, a wide range of information ongender in development sectors in many diffe-rent countries/regions is now available on theInternet and often has the merit of being qua-litative as well as quantitative.

At country level, the analysis tries to identifymajor trends (economic, social, political, envi-ronmental etc.) shaping the context and SDCmain sectors of interventions. Trends affectinggender relations are included, inasmuch asthey represent a threat or an opportunity forequality between women and men.

Gender machinery: A key player at national levelThe Women’s World Conference in Beijing in 1995 reinforced the ideathat national mechanisms are needed in each country to catalyse andsupervise the process of mainstreaming gender equality. In most countries,there is a Ministry, Department or Bureau for Gender Equality, or for thePromotion of Women as it is often called. The political strength and thecapacity (human and financial) of these national mechanisms vary greatlyfrom country to country, and within one country, from Government toGovernment. However, the world over, national gender mechanisms tendto be under-resourced and politically weak. Yet, they are a key actor in thesearch for gender equality.

The work of national mechanisms is usually framed by a «national genderpolicy» and/ or supported by an action plan for gender. Increasingly,Gender Focal Points are in place in key line ministries to assist the imple-mentation of gender across sectors.

«Externally enforced political repositioninghas polarised modernist from traditionalistsectors in society. A first and major loser isthe gender factor: It is becoming increas-ingly difficult for women and girl orientedempowerment programmes to functionwithout threats». Pakistan Annual Programme, 2002


SHEET 6

Must have gender information in a country analysis

The national scene■ Participation and roles (qualitative/quantitative) of women's/men's in key (and SDC)

sectors■ Women's/men’s participation in decision-making at national level■ Gender and poverty (quantitative and qualitative data)■ Cultural practices/beliefs, customs affecting gender equality (positive/negative)■ Economic and social changes affecting gender equality (positive/negative)■ Key changes in gender relations (positive/negative) over the last 5 – 10 years ■ Gender in macro (e.g. PRSP) and sector policies ■ Gender specific policies/laws – objectives and means■ Local actors/institutions (government and civil society) and initiatives for gender

The Cooperation Scene■ Donors’ initiatives to support gender equality■ Main results, difficulties met by these initiatives so far ■ SDC past initiatives, difficulties and achievements to promote gender (see sheet 7)■ Commitment, experience, and competence of SDC current partners on gender■ Resources (human, institutional, financial) available to promote gender■ Potential for alliances (See sheet 11 for monitoring indicators at country level and list for internet sources)

Gender in a sector or thematic analysisPolicy makers and actors in social sectors(e.g. health, governance, environment, ruraldevelopment) tend to be more responsive togender than those involved in economic/macro issues (e.g. transport, infrastructures).Yet, these issues matter to gender too. In addition, it is now obvious that economic andinstitutional issues (e.g. structural adjustment,privatisation, trade liberalisation or reform ofthe state) have a different impact on womenand men.

However, local partners, particularly NGOand women’s organisations are becomingmore vocal in demanding a dialogue on gender with donors in «hard» sectors too.Sector wide approaches (SWAPs) and decentralisation are already offering newopportunities and challenges for SDC to workwith new actors and create new synergiesand alliances for gender.

In Burkina Faso, the com-plexion of the cottageindustry sector exhibitsenormous disparities infunction with the genderdimension. Women's pro-fessions are held in lowesteem by society, whichperceives a craftsman asa person vested with thestatus of a professional,while the craftswoman isfirst and foremost to beconsidered as a mother oras a wife, engaging in asecondary type of activityto earn money for subsi-stence needs.


SHEET 6

Key questions to integrate gender in policy analysis 1. Has the policy formulation process been

gender sensitive (gender in dialoguewith key actors and policy-makers, dia-logue with national gender machineryand women/gender organisations,participation of women and men«beneficiaries»)?

2. Are objectives of the policy gender-sensitive (based on gender-disaggrega-ted data and gender stakes, existenceof gender specific objectives, inclusionof gender in assumptions/risks andimpact hypothesis, capacity of pro-posed partners on gender)?

3. Are strategies relevant to women andmen (use of gender lessons from thepast, of arguments/documentation toillustrate gender issues/gaps, alloca-tion of budgets and resources)?

4. Is the policy implementation and moni-toring gender sensitive? (Commitmentof policy makers, institutional changesto support gender, use of gender-bal-anced budgets, to measure policyimpact on gender equality (sheet 11)?

Must have gender information in a sectoranalysis■ Qualitative/quantitative data on the

participation/decision-making of womenand men

■ Disaggregated data on the resourcesthat women and men have access to (e.g. skills, credit, information, legalprotection etc.) and the benefits theyobtain (e.g. income, status, informa-tion)

■ Gender imbalances in access to andcontrol over resources and benefits

■ Institutional as well as cultural factorsinfluencing gender in the sector

■ Treatment of gender in sector policy framework

■ Actors/institutions in the sector andthose promoting gender equality in thesector

■ Initiatives by national machinery (e.g. Women’s Ministry) in this sector

■ Changes (economic, legal etc.) in thesector and effects on gender

■ SDC past experience in the sector andlessons concerning gender

■ Role/choice of current/future partners to promote gender

Integrating gender in country analysis – including sectors, policies and stake holder’s ana-lysis – contributes to the recognition of women’s and men’s needs as part and parcel ofnational development issues and can influence the development agenda at the highestlevels of decision-making.

Policy analysis (by sector and or general e.g.Poverty Reduction Strategies Papers) is part ofcountry level analysis.

GENDER IN COUNTRY PROGRAMMES

SHEET 7

Why integrate gender inCountry Programmes?Very often, the context analysis in CountryProgrammes doesn't consider gender issues:In general, «women situations» rather than«gender relations» are observed and assessed.Not all key data are gender disaggregatedand gender data are more available in somesectors (social) than others (economic). Thereis limited analysis of development actors' andpartners' commitment and competencetowards gender equality.

Of course, this has a direct impact onCountry Programmes, and subsequently onindividual programmes and projects. Wheninitial analysis are not gender aware, work-ing hypotheses, risks and objectives cannotreflect the gender needs of women and men.Monitoring is affected too. How to monitorchanges on women/men and in gender relations, when there is no baseline? A limit-ed analysis of partners' capacity also makesit difficult to plan and monitor institutional change. Ultimately, it is the overall relevance,effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability ofCountry Programmes that is affected.

In the KyrgyzRepublic, a works-hop was held toassess the integra-tion of gender inthe projects imple-mented by SDCNGO partners.This led to the iden-tification of keyproblems andpotentials and ofshort to mediumterm solutions to beconsidered in thenext CountryProgramme.

Ultimately, it is a mat-ter for SDC and itspartners to decidehow, how far andhow fast they canproceed with gender,keeping their poli-cies, objectives andresources in mind.


SHEET 7

Shaping the Country Programme with genderAvoiding gender evaporation ...

It is critical to analyse the national contextthrough gender lenses, ensuring that both thenational (endogenous processes) and the co-operation scenes (development aid, includingSDC) are assessed (see sheets 3, 6). But thisis not enough as, in SDC and in many otherdevelopment organisations, experience showsthat a gender-aware country analysis doesnot necessarily lead to gender-aware CountryProgrammes. «Gender evaporation» can hap-pen when the gender needs and inequalitiesidentified in the analysis do not shape thestrategic orientation of programmes/projects.Gender equality gets «lost» in the multiplicityof challenges and problems targeted foraction. Defining clear responsibilities for gender is critical to prevent evaporation.

Defining stakes ...On the basis of the country or sector analysis,SDC and its partners identify the relevant«gender stakes» for the intended action orprogramme in the local/national scene andthe cooperation scene

■ What gender disparities are inherent toeach sector/priority area?

■ What gender inequalities are accentua-ted/accelerated by programmes (SDC,others...)?

■ Who is already addressing gender inthese areas/sectors and how?

■ What are the potential alliances for SDC?■ Do SDC and its partners have a

«comparative advantage» to address gender in these areas/sectors?

In SDC's programme in Tanzania, gender is a cross-cutting issue, but thereis also a specific gender programmeaddressing strategic gender needsthrough support to NGO's orGovernment offices' specific actions.


SHEET 7

Gender stakes are identified at three levels.What gender issues and inequalities affect:

■ Women and men in communities, house-holds?

■ Interventions (performance and sustainabi-lity of the programme)?

■ Partner organisations (approach to genderin the current programme, constraints andopportunities to improve practices)?

It is important to distinguish, but also to linkthese three levels of analysis to come up witha realistic view of stakes that the CountryProgramme can possibly address.

Selecting priority areas of intervention ...Because resources are limited and needs aregreat, partners make choices about what theywill, will not support. If the impact of a pro-gramme on gender equality cannot be the solecriterion for the selection of priority areas/sectors for SDC, it should at least influence it.In a gender mainstreaming process, there is aneed to identify if priority areas in the CountryProgramme offer scope to address genderrelations or if other areas could provide astronger leverage for gender equality. In otherwords, is it sufficient to integrate gender inexisting priority areas to really make a differ-ence on gender equality ... or is it also neces-sary to invest in different areas? To assess the gender potential of a priorityarea, or sector, four key questions are asked:

■ What benefit (financial, human) is work inthis sector likely to bring to women, tomen?

■ What cost might it inflict on women, onmen?

■ What potential for improving genderequality does it carry?

■ What potential risk of negative impact ongender equality does it carry?

Links between gender and interventions existin any sector. The challenge is to find thestrongest link, i.e. the area/sector that carriesthe greatest potential to influence mechanismsthat perpetuate gender inequality. In somecountries, education carries the strongestpotential, whilst in others, access to land orcredit is a key discriminatory process thatneeds to be tackled.

The question ... «is our choice of priorityarea/sector likely to impact on practicaland/or gender strategic needs?» is thereforecrucial. (see definitions of practical and strate-gic gender needs sheet 4).

Working on strategic gender needs is usuallymore difficult than working on practicalneeds. It requires more commitment, skillsand, at times, gender specific programmes.Using a twin-track approach, partners cangradually integrate gender as a transversaltheme in «traditional areas» whilst at the sametime developing innovative/pilot actions inareas with stronger gender equality potential.

Continuing the dialogue ...To ensure the link between analysis and plan-ning, the dialogue initiated during the analy-sis between SDC and its partners must conti-nue. The focus should be on drawing lessonson gender from previous Country Program-mes, programmes/projects and partnershipsand taking measures to ensure that the futureimplementation strategies consistently and

In Bangladesh, gender mainstreaming is being carried out at both programme and organi-sational levels within SDC as well as in work with partners. The Coordination Office makescontinuous efforts to increase gender competence and has put in place instruments aimingat integrating gender in all programme components (HID team + HID strategy). Concretely,support to develop gender strategies is provided to SDC staff and to SDC partners, com-mon gender seminars with selected partners are organised on a regular basis and genderis a key dimension of the SDC controlling system.


SHEET 7

Must have information in a gender-aware Country Programme

Context analysis■ Disaggregated data/information gender■ Gender aware analysis of key sectors and policies■ Information about key gender disparities in the country/sectors■ Information about local, national and international agencies working on gender■ SDC past experience and lessons learnt on gender

Proposed Country Programme■ Gender-aware working hypotheses, factors of influence and risk analyses■ Gender-aware (sectoral/thematic) and/or specific objectives (gender issues/gaps) ■ Context relevant impact hypotheses of the Country Programme on women and men

(relatively)■ Gender disaggregated and/or specific indicators (expected outputs and outcomes)■ Financial, human and technical resources planned for gender

The process of formulating a Country Programme is as important as its implementation. Theintegration of gender concerns from the start - i.e. in the analysis of the context, the defini-tion of stakes and the choice of sectors of interventions and partners – plays a major partin the mainstreaming of gender. However, Country Programmes are evolutive tools too,and efforts to integrate a gender perspective can have positive impact at different stages ofthe implementation.

explicitly integrate gender. If SDC or its part-ners do not have gender capacities, nationalor sector gender experts can be brought in.

Working with gender sensitive partnersPartnerships and alliances are key issues inthe elaboration of gender-aware programmes.Are we working with the best possible part-ners/alliances to mainstream gender? Whatcan be done to improve the capacity of existing partners? See sheet 10 on genderand partnerships

GENDER IN PROGRAMMES/PROJECTS

SHEET 8a

Negotiating gender in planningThe integration of gender in programmes/projects supposes some pre-conditions:

■ Gender in analysis, objectives/monitoring in the Country Programme ■ Tools and methodologies to address gender issues ■ Access to gender aware/competent partners, management and

«field» teams

Then, SDC and its partners have to define the goal of theprogramme/project and the specific objectives/effects it wishes to contri-bute to in terms of gender equality.

Dialogue with women and men in target groups

A dialogue is needed to allow women and men to reflect on their respec-tive priorities for change (self-awareness/consciousness-raising process)and formulate them. This must lead to the identification of how women,and men, would like the programme/project to be implemented andwhat they expect it to achieve (impact hypothesis).

The process must be as transparent and as inclusive as possible of differ-ent groups of women and men in order to create their adhesion to andownership of the intervention. It must be participatory, using public meet-ings, focus group discussions, interviews,


SHEET 8a

In Mozambique, a project supported bya European bilateral cooperation to reno-vate a market paid little attention to thewishes of women and men traders andmainly focused on the needs of theMunicipality to rationalise and control theinformal market and increase its tax-base.Organisations working with women trad-ers were not consulted. This lack of dia-logue angered beneficiaries who opposedthe project. Subsequently, a gender analysis was carried out. It confirmed theneed to improve communication, to workwith local gender/women organisationsand to support women (80% of traders)to be part of market committees in orderto have a voice in the project.

visioning exercises, deeper studies, (sheet 3on gender analysis). It is essential to facilitatethe expression of women's and men's needs(e.g. by organising separate focus groupdiscussions) and to disaggregate the data col-lected in terms of women's and men's differentreactions, wishes, future contributions, expec-tations etc.

Dialogue with women and menamong implementing partners The role of women and men working for SDCand its partners is to support and facilitatechange, including gender change. Theirvisions or beliefs should not «overrule» whatwomen and men in target groups wish to doand achieve. When formulating the pro-gramme/project, they must consider externalas well as internal constraints and opportuni-ties for gender:

■ External: What may be opportunities andproblems to women's and men's equitableparticipation, access to decision-makingand benefit from the programme/project?

■ Internal: A dialogue within and betweeninstitutional stakeholders must assess towhat extent SDC and its key developmentpartners are willing, able, equipped etc.to work with gender (see sheet 9 on gen-der and organisations and sheet 10 onpartnerships).


SHEET 8a

In a rural development project supportedby the Swiss NGO EPER in the RDC, onlyliterate members of the community can bepart of development committees. This isseen as a strategy to encourage womento join the literacy programme. In fact,women’s multiple roles prevent them fromparticipating in classes. Therefore veryfew are members of the committees andbenefit from capacity building activitieswithin the project. Yet, they are recog-nised as the engines of the community!

Gender in implementation

Working with women and/or men?

Women's participation is not equal to genderTo «include» women in a programme is notenough to claim that an intervention is genderaware. A women-only programme is gender-blind if it keeps women in traditional areasand does not offer scope for change towardsgender equality. A mixed women/men pro-gramme is also gender-blind if it does notoffer equal opportunities to women and mento participate and benefit according to theirneeds. A men-only programme (e.g. educat-ing men on family planning) is gender-awareif it aims to change gender relations betweenwomen and men.

Of course, strategies promoting equal num-bers of women and men in programmes/pro-jects, including quotas, can really boostwomen's participation (e.g. % of women onelectoral lists). But they are limited if women'sparticipation is «silent» (i.e. no decision-making power). Quotas are often interpretedas a maximum and efforts are not made toreach a real gender balance. To be effective,these strategies need to be supported withcapacity building and empowerment measures.

Women's organisations are not theonly partners Women's organisations, governmental orNGO, are key partners for gender. But theyare not the only partners. They are not neces-sarily gender competent, they may lack thecapacity, or the will, to work with men andthey may resist addressing strategic genderneeds which are too politically or culturallychallenging. Alliances must be created broad-ly across sectors and interests to generatenew synergies and bring new competences tothe gender debates.


SHEET 8a

Women are not the only actorsSo far, women have been the main actorsworking on gender (as trainers, activists,planners etc.). This area of work represents areal opportunity for women to develop asprofessionals. However, working only withprofessional women can marginalise genderas a «women's issue». It is essential to devel-op men's skills too in this area to gender-balance working teams and bring men'spoint of view into the gender debates.

Implementation through gender lenses During implementation, the participation ofwomen and men and their respective accessto decision-making and benefits must be ques-tioned. The point is not to create genderproblems where they are none. It is to ensurethat SDC and its partners keep a consciouseye on gender. It is also to avoid some«beneficiaries», women in particular, findingthemselves paradoxically worse off as a resultof «project» or feeling excluded from it (as isthe case increasingly with some men feelingthat «all projects go to women»).

Steering gender in annual planningAnnual planning is a key moment to reflecton how programmes/projects affect womenand men and how they may be improved tosupport gender equality further. It asks: «Are we doing the right thing and are wedoing it right?»1. Answering this supposes anassessment of gender changes in three main«spheres», or fields of observation (see sheet 12).

1 See SDC monitoring tools (controlling section, Berne)


SHEET 8a

In SDC-Peru, a gender planning work-shop for programme officers led to speci-fic activities in each project. The inclusionof a local consultant from the start provi-ded an important impetus to implementthe policy. A number of areas where agender perspective could be integratedwere identified in projects, and supportto the process was provided from thecore budget.

Dialogue is crucial in the formulation of gender aware programmes and projects. Womenand men in target groups as well as partner organisations at all levels of decision-makingmust be part of this process. Working on gender is an investment. The implications of inte-grating and of not integrating gender in programmes and projects must be assessed.Lessons must be learned from the past and for the future.

Focus on the contextAnnual planning requires a quick review ofmain socio-economic, political and environ-mental changes over the year and their imme-diate effects on women/men in the targetgroups. New policies, laws, political or eco-nomical events, programmes and actors thatmay affect gender in the sector or area of theprogramme are identified (see sheets 3, 11).

Focus on the programmeAnnual planning must take stock of new gen-der related issues/demands that may haveemerged during implementation (e.g. linkedto unequal participation, decision-making,and/or benefits). Monitoring and budgetsreviews are done through gender lenses.

Focus on the institution/partnersAnnual planning must look at staff and part-ners: Do they effectively support the integra-tion of gender in the programmes/projects? Ifthe answer is no, there are two reinforcingsolutions:■ Partnerships cannot be altered overnight,

if only for contractual reasons, but newalliances and synergies can be created toenhance the work on gender. Gendercompetent staff can also be hired to trainand support existing staff.

■ Internally, actions can be planned to buildthe capacity of existing SDC/partners'staff on gender, to integrate it as a trans-versal in procedures (training modules,tools, indicators) and to promote equalopportunities (recruitment, HRD etc.)

For more on gender in organisations, see sheets 9, on gender and monitoring, see sheet 11.


SHEET 8a

CHECKLIST FOR INTEGRATING GENDER IN PROGRAMMES/PROJECTS2

� Background and Justification: Is gender part of the context analysis for the interven-tion? Are there arguments for gender mainstreaming and gender equality?

� Goals: Does the goal of the proposed intervention reflect the needs of both men andwomen? Does it seek to address gender issues and gaps through addressing practical orneeds of men and women? Does it seek to address strategic gender needs by transformingthe institutions (social and other) that perpetuate gender inequality?

� Target groups: Except where interventions specifically target men or women as part of agender specific programme, do women as well as men benefit from the programme?

� Objectives: Do the intervention objectives address needs of both women and men?

� Activities: Do planned activities involve men and women? Are any additional activitiesneeded to ensure that gender perspective is explicit (e.g. gender training, additional research, etc.)?

� Indicators key question: Have key questions been developed to measure progresstowards the fulfilment of each objective? Do these indicators measure the gender aspects ofeach objective? Are indicators gender disaggregated? Are targets set to guarantee a suffi-cient level of gender balance in activities (e.g. quotas for male and female participation)?(Sheet 11)

� Implementation: Who will implement the planned intervention? Are these partners gender competent? Do they have tools and methodologies to implement in a gender-awareway? Will both women and men (professionals and target groups) participate in implemen-tation? (Sheets 9a, 10)

� Monitoring and Evaluation: Does the monitoring and evaluation strategy include a gender perspective? Will it examine both content and process of the intervention? (Sheets 11, 12)

� Risks: Have stereotypes or structural barriers preventing full participation of women or menbeen considered? Has the potential negative impact of the intervention been considered(e.g. potential increased burden on women or social isolation of men)? (8b)

� Budget: Have financial inputs been «checked» to ensure that both men and women willbenefit from the planned intervention? Has the need to provide gender training or to engageshort-term gender experts been included in the budget?

� Partners: Have plans been made to ensure the capacity of partners to work with gender?(Sheet 10)

� Annexes: Are any relevant research papers (or excerpts) on gender included as annexes?

� Best practice: Has a communication strategy been developed for informing variouspublics about the existence, progress and results of the project from a gender perspective?

2 Adapted from a handbook produced bythe Regional Gender Programme of theUnited Nations DevelopmentProgramme's Regional Bureau for Europeand the CIS (UNDP RBEC), by AstridaNeimanis, 2002

GENDER IN THE PROGRAMME CYCLE MANAGEMENT (PCM)

SHEET 8b

The current SDC's Programme CycleManagement concept1 corresponds closely tothe former PEMT concept. It is both result- andprocess-oriented. It allows stakeholders toimprove the quality of their activities throughjoint planning, implementation, monitoringand (self-) evaluation in the context of jointactivities. The focus is on partnership, mutuallearning and cooperation management. Agood basic understanding of PCM is neces-sary in order to integrate gender in it andanalyse it as part of usual quality criteria.

The present sheet is meant for professionalswho are already acquainted with the princi-ples of the PCM2. Its goal is to give someincentives on how to integrate gender in thelogical framework.

Gender and the logical framework (logframe)The logical framework is a basic manage-ment tool used by SDC. It allows to conceptu-alise development projects, to give a structurefor the analysis of complex realities. It helpsto clearly communicate a planning for actionbut also to monitor or evaluate the results of aproject/programme. One of the main princi-ple of the logframe is to develop a vertical,logical hierarchy of objectives. Those objec-tives are linked with a corresponding level of results.

In order to mainstream gender and integrateit as a transversal theme, its use has to becompleted by pre-planning gender analysishelping to improve the understanding of themain factors that affect women's and men'slivelihoods in a particular context (e.g. accessto assets, vulnerability, gender needs of targetgroups, policies, social development issues). For planning activities, the logic of the log-frame should be shared, as far as possible,with our partners, in order to encourageownership and allow an active participationby women and men in the process of plan-ning and production of a log frame. The finalplan has to fully reflect the principles andpriorities of each party. It is the result of anegotiation process.

The practice of filling the logframe withoutthis process and pre-planning activities isinsufficient and does not correspond to SDC'sconcept. People should remain at the centreof development and project/programmesshould be built on women's and men's practical and strategic needs but also on theirstrengths and potentials. For complex pro-grammes, several logframes might be neces-sary to capture the different implications ofinterventions.

1 See also «Guidelines evaluation & controlling», SDC, May 20022 For more information, refer to documents developed by E&C Units


SHEET 8b

Hie

rarc

hy

Leve

ls o

f re

sults

Key

ques

tions,

Ex

tern

al fa

ctors

obje

ctiv

escr

iter

ia,

indic

ato

rs(r

isk

s, p

ote

ntials

, ch

alle

nges

) and h

ypoth

esis

Conte

xt

1.

Goal (d

evel

opm

ent

1.

Impact

, lo

ng-t

erm

1.

Key

ques

tions

1.

Exte

rnal fa

ctors

obje

ctiv

e) t

o w

hic

h t

he

changes

/eff

ects

(rel

evance

), indic

ato

rs,

(ris

ks

and o

bst

acl

es,

pro

gra

mm

e is

inte

nded

in

form

ation s

ourc

e.ch

alle

nges

and d

rivi

ng

to c

ontr

ibute

(How

to a

sses

s our

forc

es...)

contr

ibution t

o...?

)

Spher

e of

2.

Obje

ctiv

es o

f a

2.

Outc

om

es2.

Key

ques

tions,

2.

Exte

rnal fa

ctors

infl

uen

ce,

part

ner

-pro

gra

mm

e/pro

ject

(eff

ective

nes

s),

ship

, co

oper

ation,

indic

ato

rs,

info

rmation

GEN

DER

AN

D T

HE

LOG

ICA

L FR

AM

EWO

RK

Cou

ld

partn

ers

expr

ess

thei

r vi

sion

con

cern

ing

gend

er a

nd d

evel

op-

men

t, eq

ualit

y be

twee

nm

en a

nd w

omen

?

Did

wom

en a

nd m

eneq

ually

con

tribu

te to

desi

gn th

e pr

ogra

mm

e/pr

ojec

t goa

ls?C

ould

wom

en a

nd m

engi

ve th

eir

poin

ts of

vie

wco

ncer

ning

the

exis

ting

prob

lem

s?

Wer

e ge

nder

ineq

ualit

ies

redu

ced?

D

id th

e pr

ogra

mm

e/pr

ojec

t con

tri-

bute

to th

e im

prov

emen

t of t

hesta

ndar

d of

livi

ng fo

r w

omen

and

men

?W

hat «

less

ons»

wer

e le

arnt

abo

utth

e in

tegr

atio

n of

gen

der?

Do

indi

cato

rs –

qua

litat

ive

and

quan

titat

ive

– at

all

leve

ls di

sagg

rega

te

gend

er a

s re

leva

nt?

Are

rel

evan

t gen

der

rela

-tio

ns, i

nequ

aliti

es a

nd/o

rre

sista

nces

to g

ende

r co

n-si

dere

d in

the

exte

rnal

fact

ors?

Hav

e th

e hy

poth

eses

and

assu

mpt

ions

bee

n te

sted?

Do

key

ques

tions

/ in

dica

tors

mea

sure

ch

ange

s w

ithin

dire

ctan

d in

dire

ct g

roup

s?

Do

they

add

ress

gen

der

issu

es/g

aps

thro

ugh

addr

essi

ng p

ract

ical

need

s of

wom

en a

ndm

en?

Do

they

add

ress

stra

tegi

cne

eds

by tr

ansf

orm

ing

the

insti

tutio

ns th

at p

erpe

-tu

ate

gend

er in

equ

ality

?

Spher

e of

dir

ect

3.

Dir

ect

oper

ational

3.

Outp

uts

3.

"Indic

ato

rs",

3.

Exte

rnal fa

ctors

and im

med

iate

obje

ctiv

esin

form

ation s

ourc

esre

sponsi

bili

ty

Act

ivitie

sIn

puts

Do

wom

en a

nd m

eneq

ually

ben

efit

from

the

proj

ect/

prog

ram

me

reso

urce

s?

Are

all

key

ques

tions

/ind

icat

ors

gen-

der

disa

ggre

gate

d?

Do

the

obje

ctiv

es ta

lew

omen

’s an

d m

en’s

poin

ts of

vie

w in

toac

coun

t?D

o th

ey r

efle

ct w

omen

’san

d m

en’s

spec

ific

pro-

blem

s/po

tent

ials/

inte

r-es

ts/de

pend

enci

es?

Wha

t stre

ngth

ens

or h

in-

ders

the

wor

k to

war

dsm

ore

equa

lity

amon

gw

omen

and

men

?

Is ge

nder

exp

licit

in th

eob

ject

ives

?Sh

ould

ther

e be

spe

cific

gend

er o

bjec

tives

?

Are

gen

der

issu

es a

ffect

i-in

g im

plem

enta

tion?

How

com

mitt

ed a

rew

omen

and

men

key

acto

rs (o

wne

rshi

p)?

Are

wom

en’s

and

men

’sstr

engt

hs a

nd p

oten

tials

equa

lly r

einf

orce

d?

Did

the

partn

ers

deve

lop

gend

er c

ompe

tenc

ies?

Did

they

tran

sfor

m th

eir

prac

tice,

cha

nge

atti-

tude

s?

Is ge

nder

mai

nstre

amed

in a

ll ac

tiviti

es?

Do

all a

ctiv

ities

pro

vide

equ

al o

ppor

tuni

ties

for

wom

en a

ndm

en to

par

ticip

ate

and

bene

fit?

Do

activ

ities

for

each

res

ult t

ake

wom

en’s

and

men

’s ne

eds,

oppo

rtuni

ties

and

cons

train

ts in

to a

ccou

nt, a

s re

leva

nt?

Shou

ld th

ere

be s

peci

fic g

ende

r m

ains

tream

ing

in th

e in

stitu

-tio

ns in

volv

ed?

Do

plan

ned

activ

ities

invo

lve

both

wom

en a

nd m

en?

Are

mea

ns/r

esou

rces

appr

opria

te to

sup

port

gend

er m

ains

tream

ing?

Shou

ld th

ere

be s

peci

ficre

sour

ces

to m

ains

tream

gend

er/r

educ

e ge

nder

gap?


SHEET 8b

EfficiencyEfficiency is a measure of how economicallyresources/inputs (financial, human, materialresources required for programme/projectimplementation, time, etc) are converted intooutputs. At his level, we look at the program-me/project immediate deliveries (goods orservices) generated by the activities. It alsorepresents the hard core of partnership andmutual commitments. To integrate gender atthis level, check if:

■ Partner identification includes gender criteria, SDC's partners are gender sensitive and gender competent or willingto learn

■ Women's organisations are well represent-ed among SDC partners

■ Agreements, contracts, procedures aregendered

■ There is mutual commitment on genderissues

■ Gender trainings and specific actions tomainstream gender (e.g. in institutions,procedures, etc.) are planned if necessary

■ The gender approach is integrated in allactivities and all tools are used

■ Operational objectives address/reflectwomen's and men's practical/strategicneeds

■ Activities are planned and resources areused to equally respond to women's andmen's expressed needs

■ Expected results focus on the roles, resour-ces and needs identified as priorities bythe beneficiaries, women and men

■ Women and men have equal access tothe programme/project means and benefitequally from the project

■ The work load issued from the project acti-vities is shared equally by women andmen. At this level, the programme/projectwill take care that women will not only be«used» to reach the expected results meet-ing practical needs, as it is often the case,but will also benefit from it to meet theirstrategic needs.

The three levels of resultsPCM distinguishes three levels of results incascades, which correspond to different spheres of responsibility and influence.

■ The first level compares the inputs/outputsof a project/programme and allows mea-surement of its efficiency (sphere of directresponsibility, what a programme has toguarantee).

■ The second level is today the principlelevel of results of the programme/project.It measures the obtained results and processes according to the project/pro-gramme objectives. The outcomes gives usinformation about the effectiveness of aproject/programme (domain of influence,partnership wager, mutual expectations).

■ The third level puts the focus on the impactof the project/programme and allowsanalysis of its relevance (to what the pro-ject/programme contributes, in relationwith the general context).

EffectivenessThis is the extent to which the programme/project's objectives were achieved. At thislevel, we try to identify to what extent the out-puts produce the desired outcomes, thatmeans the immediate or mid-term effects/results which are observable. Generally, several outputs are necessary to attain an out-come. They also depend on the quality of thepartnership, the contribution and commitmentof the main stakeholders. This last point isvery important to promote gender in pro-jects/programmes. To integrate gender at thislevel, check if:

■ Gender responsible and/or gender com-petent staff are implicated in planningactivities or other key-moments of the pro-ject/programme

■ The partners agree on the fixed objec-tives, participate to their formulation

■ Cooperation and collaboration on genderissues lead to changes of the practices, ofbehaviours and power relations betweenwomen and men in the partner organisa-tions, in the programme/project

■ Mutual gender expectations are met■ Programme/project objectives address/

reflect the needs of both men and women,that means that the objectives are engen-dered or there are specific objectives toaddress women's and men's needs.

RelevanceThis is the extent to which the goal or devel-opment objective(s) of a programme/projectis consistent with women's and men's practi-cal/strategic needs, country needs and glo-bal priorities. At this level, we try to haveinformation about the impact, that means thepositive or negative, intended or unintended,long term changes/effects on women andmen a programme/project has contributed to.To integrate gender at this level of analysis,check if:■ The project/proogramme has gender-

disaggregated results to be able to assessits relevance

■ The results are relevant to the beneficia-ries, make sense for them

■ All identified women's and men's needs/problems but also strengths and potentialsare reflected in the development objective

■ The programme/project is coherent withnational, sector and SDC gender politicsand priorities

■ The project/programme contributes tomore equality between women and men,girls and boys and has not reinforced orreproduced inequalities as developmentagencies sometimes did; opportunities andlife chances become/remain equal

■ The project/programme has no negativeeffects on women and men

■ The project/programme has identified andreinforced local positive gender dynamics

■ Whenever possible, the project/programmeinvolves in policy dialogue concerninggender issues or supports local organisa-tions working in this field, in order to create favourable conditions and changestowards gender equality.


SHEET 8b


SHEET 8b

SustainabilityThere are strong links between the effective-ness, the relevance and the sustainability of aprogramme/project. Experience showed thatintegrating gender and diminishing inequalitybetween women and men contributes tosustainable development. It is important toraise awareness among the responsible persons of a programme/project on this point.Here too, the partners should know the basicmethods to deal with the sustainability questionand integrate gender in them. The discussionis especially important concerning the effecti-veness of a programme/project, within thesphere of influence of the programme/projectand the partner institutions, on a medium-termtime horizon. The results/benefits should guarantee sustainable gender effects, thatmeans effects that last after the conclusion ofthe programme/project. Check if:

■ The different situation of women and menhas been taken into account (differentiatedgender approach)

■ The programme/project focuses on maininterests of women and men (ownership)

■ The user groups equally benefit from theprogramme/project and have increasedaccess to resources (income, education,health services...)

■ The project/programme takes «equitablebenefits for woman and men» as a keycriterion (social viability)

■ The effects of the programme/projectmake sense for women and men

■ Ecological effects for women and menhave been considered as well as the ecological context (e.g desertification context)

■ Partner organisations are learning-orientedand are willing to put gender issues in themainstream (gender institutionalisation).They have gender balanced practices

■ There are supportive framework conditions,e.g. supportive gender national politics,respect of human rights, dialogue andnegotiation culture...

GENDER IN ORGANISATIONS

SHEET 9a

Why is gender an organisational issue?No organisation is gender neutral.Government ministries, NGO, consultants,training organisations as well as privateenterprises etc. have their own institutionalculture, values and competence/experiencein their respective fields. Their «identity» greatly influences how gender is taken onboard institutionally. In addition, within allorganisations, there are individuals (womenas well as men) who support or challenge theprinciple of «gender equality». Often, thishappens regardless of the commitment oftheir organisation on the issue.


SHEET 9a

The implications of integrating gender inorganisations are complex and multi-level.Gender equality deals with power, so it is a political issue. Since we are all either awoman or a man, it is a personal issue.Mainstreaming gender requires tools andknow-how, so it is also a technical and a personnel issue.

Integrating (or institutionalising) gender inorganisations is a strategy to reinforce theawareness and capacity of SDC and its partners (to mainstream gender):

■ Integrate gender as a transversal theme inprogrammes and projects (sheet 2/8a)

■ Implement gender specific programmes(sheet 2/8)

■ Promote Equal Opportunities internally(sheets 9a, 9b)

Usually, prioritising gender equality leads to atransformation of organisational systems andof individuals within them. This transformationcan be both a pre-requisite and a result.Organisations set both tangible and intangi-ble conditions for women and men theyemploy. These conditions define not onlywhat women and men are expected to do(included in the contract, the job description)but, to some extent, how they are expected to behave. The latter is usually not explicitlydefined, but messages are sent.

In SDC central offices in Berne, women as well as men are challenging theview that those who work harder are those «working after hours». Womenand men with families, or simply with social commitments, think of otherways of organising their working time. This requires flexibility on the part ofthe organisation. The efforts – financial or otherwise – the organisation hasto make to accommodate these new demands are justified as the greatersatisfaction people get from a more balanced work/life is returned to theorganisation as higher productivity and commitment.


SHEET 9a

FRA

MEW

ORK

FO

R A

N O

RG

AN

ISA

TIO

NA

L G

END

ER A

NA

LYSI

S1

Org

anis

ational is

sues

to c

onsi

der

Com

mitm

ent a

nd p

olic

y

The

exte

nt to

whi

ch g

ende

r is

incl

uded

in th

e po

licie

s of

an

orga

nisa

tion

is a

stro

ng in

dica

tor

of m

ains

tream

ing.

So

is th

ele

vel o

f gen

der

com

mitm

ent o

f sen

ior

man

agem

ent a

nd it

s tra

ns-

latio

n in

to p

ract

ice,

The

par

ticip

atio

n of

wom

en a

nd m

en in

polic

y fo

rmul

atio

n an

d de

cisi

on-m

akin

g is

also

a u

sefu

l ind

ica-

tor

as w

omen

and

men

ofte

n br

ing

diffe

rent

poi

nts

of v

iew

s an

dse

nsiti

vitie

s to

the

proc

ess,

hen

ce e

nric

hing

it. T

he r

ole

of e

xter

-na

l inf

luen

cing

fact

ors

mus

t also

be

asse

ssed

.

Budg

ets

Gen

der

mai

nstre

amin

g ne

eds

finan

cial

res

ourc

es. P

rogr

amm

ebu

dget

s as

wel

l as

spec

ial b

udge

ts ca

n be

use

d to

org

anis

etra

inin

g, d

evel

op to

ols,

do

rese

arch

, org

anis

e se

min

ars

and

cam

paig

ns e

tc. T

he a

lloca

tion

of r

esou

rces

for

gend

er is

po

litic

al a

nd o

ften

requ

ires

som

e lo

bbyi

ng. P

rogr

amm

e of

ficer

sin

cou

ntrie

s an

d in

hea

dqua

rters

are

res

pons

ible

to e

nsur

e th

atre

sour

ces

are

plan

ned

and

used

for

gend

er.

Com

pete

nce/

capa

city

Build

ing

the

gend

er c

ompe

tenc

e an

d aw

aren

ess

of a

ll «s

take

-ho

lder

s» a

t all

leve

ls is

cru

cial

. Cap

acity

bui

ldin

g fo

r ge

nder

(e.g

. a w

orks

hop

to d

evel

op g

ende

r in

dica

tors

) sho

uld

be s

een

as p

art o

f pro

gram

me

deve

lopm

ent a

nd u

se e

xisti

ng b

udge

ts as

muc

h as

pos

sibl

e.

Diff

eren

t tra

inin

g ap

proa

ches

are

pos

sibl

e, fr

om th

e «p

rofe

s-si

onal

» to

the

mor

e «p

erso

nal»

app

roac

h. A

com

bina

tion

ofbo

th is

use

ful t

o m

ake

gend

er a

mat

ter

of a

ttitu

de a

nd n

ot o

nly

skill

s.

Proc

edur

es/t

ools

Key

ques

tions

to a

sses

s gen

der

■Is

ther

e a

gend

er p

olic

y? H

ow is

it m

onito

red?

■Is

gend

er in

tegr

ated

in o

ther

pol

icie

s? H

ow is

this

don

e, m

onito

red

(she

et 6

)?■

How

do

exte

rnal

fact

ors

(e.g

. fun

ders

) inf

luen

ce g

ende

r in

the

orga

nisa

tion?

■Is

seni

or m

anag

emen

t exp

licitl

y co

mm

itted

to g

ende

r? H

ow is

this

tran

slate

d in

prac

tice?

■W

hat r

ole

do w

omen

and

men

pla

y in

pol

icy

form

ulat

ion

and

deci

sion

-mak

ing?

■W

hat %

of p

rogr

amm

e/pr

ojec

t bud

gets

are

allo

cate

d fo

r m

ains

tream

ing

gend

er?

■W

hat %

of p

rogr

amm

e an

d hu

man

res

ourc

e de

velo

pmen

t bud

gets

is a

lloca

ted

toge

nder

mai

nstre

amin

g?■

Wha

t are

«ge

nder

bud

gets»

use

d fo

r?■

How

are

bud

gets

revi

ewed

for

thei

r ge

nder

sen

sitiv

ity?

How

are

they

mon

itore

d?■

How

is g

ende

r bu

dget

ing

incl

uded

in p

olic

y di

alog

ue a

nd d

ialo

gue

betw

een

partn

ers?

■W

ho in

the

orga

nisa

tion

is g

ende

r co

mpe

tent

(wom

en/m

en, w

ith w

hat

resp

onsi

bilit

y, in

whi

ch s

ecto

rs e

tc.)

and

wha

t is

thei

r le

vel o

f com

pete

nce?

■W

hat s

peci

fic s

kills

and

tool

s do

sta

ff ne

ed to

car

ry o

ut th

eir

job

in a

gen

der

awar

e w

ay?

■W

hat e

xisti

ng c

apac

ity-b

uild

ing

initi

ativ

es in

clud

e ge

nder

e.g

. gen

der

netw

ork?

Whi

ch c

ould

incl

ude

it?■

Whi

ch tr

aine

rs a

re g

ende

r co

mpe

tent

?■

Wha

t inc

entiv

es a

re th

ere

to m

otiv

ate

staff

to b

e (m

ore)

gen

der

com

pete

nt?

■

Whi

ch s

taff

have

gen

der

incl

uded

in th

eir

job

desc

riptio

n?


SHEET 9a

1A

dapt

ed fr

om C

.Le

vy's

«W

eb o

fIn

stitu

tiona

lisat

ion»

(DPU

, 199

4) a

ndD

fID G

ende

r m

anua

l(A

pril

2002

)

der.

Even

illu

strat

ions

and

lang

uage

(e.g

. the

use

of h

e/sh

e) in

man

uals

have

to b

e ch

ecke

d so

they

do

not s

tere

otyp

e ge

nder

rela

tions

. Exi

sting

tool

s an

d pr

oced

ures

ofte

n ne

ed to

be

re-

vise

d to

pro

vide

bet

ter

gend

er d

isag

greg

ated

qua

litat

ive

and

quan

titat

ive

data

. Som

etim

es n

ew o

nes

need

to b

e cr

eate

d.

Cul

ture

Org

anis

atio

ns e

volv

e w

ithin

nat

iona

l/re

gion

al c

ultu

res

and

are

influ

ence

d by

them

. But

they

are

also

influ

ence

d by

the

prof

iles

of th

e sta

ff, th

eir

pers

onal

and

pro

fess

iona

l bel

iefs

, the

ir m

an-

date

s, fu

nder

s et

c. O

rgan

isat

iona

l cul

ture

s ar

e m

ade

of

com

plex

and

inta

ngib

le c

ondi

tions

and

fact

ors

whi

ch n

eed

tobe

dec

rypt

ed a

s pa

rt of

a g

ende

r as

sess

men

t.

Hum

an r

esou

rce

man

agem

ent a

nd E

qual

Opp

ortu

nitie

s (E

O)

The

crea

tion

of a

saf

e an

d pr

actic

al e

nviro

nmen

t for

wom

enan

d m

en to

wor

k in

(e.g

. tra

nspo

rt is

sues

, wor

king

hou

rs, t

rave

lco

nditi

ons

and

com

mitm

ents

for

field

wor

k, to

ilets,

chi

ldca

rere

spon

sibi

litie

s) is

crit

ical

to g

ende

r m

ains

tream

ing.

It is

hyp

ocri-

tical

and

not

effi

cien

t to

prom

ote

gend

er in

pro

gram

mes

and

proj

ects

and

to ig

nore

it in

side

org

anis

atio

ns. P

ract

ical

and

stra

-te

gic

need

s of

wom

en a

nd m

en m

ust b

e id

entif

ied

as p

art o

f age

nder

org

anis

atio

nal a

sses

men

t.

Resp

onsi

bilit

y

All

staff

is r

espo

nsib

le fo

r in

tegr

atin

g ge

nder

wha

teve

r le

vel

they

wor

k at

. It i

s im

porta

nt to

ens

ure

that

gen

der

resp

onsi

bilit

yis

not

a)

gi

ven

to ju

nior

sta

ff w

ith n

o re

al p

ower

b)

give

n on

ly to

wom

enc)

lo

cate

d on

ly in

soc

ial s

ecto

rsd)

co

ncen

trate

d in

the

hand

s of

a fe

w p

eopl

e.

■W

hat i

nitia

tives

hav

e be

en ta

ken

so fa

r to

eng

ende

r to

ols

and

proc

edur

es?

■W

hat g

uide

lines

are

ava

ilabl

e to

sta

ff to

hel

p th

em tr

ansf

orm

thei

r ex

istin

g to

ols

and

proc

edur

es, o

r cr

eate

new

one

s?

■H

ow d

oes

info

rmat

ion

flow

in th

e or

gani

satio

n, fo

rmal

ly o

r in

form

ally

? To

wha

t ext

ent d

o th

ese

«flo

ws»

incl

ude

wom

en a

s w

ell a

s m

en?

■W

hat a

re th

e m

ain

shar

ed v

alue

s of

the

orga

nisa

tion?

How

do

thes

e re

late

toge

nder

equ

ality

?■

Is de

cisi

on-m

akin

g ce

ntra

lised

or

dece

ntra

lised

? To

wha

t ext

ent d

o in

divi

dual

wom

en a

nd m

en h

ave

acce

ss to

it?

■W

hat i

s th

e at

titud

e to

war

ds fe

mal

e/m

ale

staff?

■To

wha

t ext

ent a

re c

erta

in p

ract

ices

(e.g

. wor

king

late

) val

ued

and

do th

ey d

iscr

i-m

inat

e ag

ains

t wom

en/m

en?

■W

hat i

s th

e in

cide

nce/

perc

eptio

n of

sex

ist r

emar

ks, s

exua

l har

assm

ent?

■W

hat i

s th

e cu

rren

t gen

der

bala

nce

of s

taff

in d

iffer

ent p

osts?

■Is

ther

e an

EO

pol

icy?

Wha

t gen

der

issu

es/g

aps

does

it a

ddre

ss a

nd h

ow is

itim

plem

ente

d?■

Is ge

nder

a c

riter

ion

in th

e se

lect

ion

of p

artn

ers,

con

sulta

nts,

sta

ff –

wom

en/m

en(h

ow)?

■W

hat w

orki

ng c

ondi

tions

/req

uire

men

ts m

ay d

iscr

imin

ate

agai

nst t

he e

mpl

oym

ent

of w

omen

/men

in c

erta

in jo

bs/p

osts?

■Is

bein

g a

wom

an, o

r a

man

, con

side

red

an a

dvan

tage

or

an in

conv

enie

nce

for

certa

in jo

bs/t

asks

?■

To w

hat e

xten

t are

E.O

dis

cuss

ed in

rel

atio

n to

pro

gram

me

effic

ienc

y an

d su

stain

abili

ty?

■W

ho (w

omen

/men

) is

resp

onsi

ble

for

gend

er?

Wha

t dec

isio

n-m

akin

g sta

tus

doth

ese

peop

le h

ave?

How

are

they

per

ceiv

ed b

y th

e re

st of

the

staff?

Wha

t are

they

res

pons

ible

for?

■D

oes

staff

resp

onsi

ble

for

gend

er h

ave

term

s of

ref

eren

ce, s

kills

, res

ourc

es, i

ncen

-tiv

es a

nd m

anag

emen

t sup

port?

■H

ow a

re th

ey in

volv

ed in

pol

icy

and/

or p

rogr

amm

e pl

anni

ng?

■W

hat m

echa

nism

s en

sure

the

shar

ing

of g

ende

r le

sson

s w

ithin

/bet

wee

n SD

C a

ndits

par

tner

s (e

.g. n

etw

orks

)?■

Wha

t mec

hani

sms

ensu

re th

e pe

rform

ance

of g

ende

r re

spon

sibl

e sta

ff an

d ge

nder

adv

ocac

y co

mpe

tenc

e?


SHEET 9a

In many SDC coordination offices and part-ners organisations, equal treatment betweenwomen and men is an issue. Less womenthan men are heads of coordination, pro-grammes/projects. In the field, project work-ing conditions (e.g. security, distance to berun on motorbikes) limit women's recruitmentin the posts. Yet, there is a direct link betweenthe presence of women in decision-makingand teams in general and the treatment ofgender in programmes. The question iswhether women should always have the sameworking conditions as men in the name ofequality, or should organisations change toaccommodate specificities of women andmen? Finally, let's remember that appointingwomen, or men, is not only an EqualOpportunities issue. It is also a strategy toreach target groups better, women in particular.This aspect is crucial in regions where accessto women is difficult for cultural reasons.

«Project Consultants preferworking in mixed teams.Clients interviewed had dif-ferent preferences. Somewomen mentioned that dueto the cultural and traditionalaspects, they prefer workingwith male consultants sincethey tend to trust them more;some expressed preferencefor female consultants wholisten and understand specificwomen’s concerns better».Assessment of gender equali-ty in the Kyrgyz Republic(1997/1998)


SHEET 9a

What can gender indicators measure inthe organisation?

■ Quantity/quality of gender competentstaff (women/men in SDC/partners)

■ Changes to/creation of tools, metho-dologies, procedures to integrate gender

■ Initiatives/partnerships to create synergies on gender

■ Importance of gender in dialogue between partners

■ Use/recruitment of gender skilled staff (w/m)

■ Changes to implement equal opportu-nities

■ Budgets (financial/time) used formainstreaming in the institution (e.g. % of total budget)

Monitoring gender strategiesin organisationsIn SDC controlling terms, changes in institutio-nal procedures and capacities belong to thesphere of «direct responsibility» (see sheet 11on monitoring levels).

In this sphere, gender monitoring is «insidelooking». It observes and steers gender ininstitutional and human development. It focus-es on the efficiency of gender strategies,inputs and short term outputs. Indicators fol-low the progress of integrating gender ininstitutions and the effects this process has oninstitutions, actors and procedures.

What to monitor depends on organisations'gender strategies and objectives. It can includeactivities to change procedures (e.g. ToR,planning methodologies), to generate genderdata (research) or to build the capacity ofstaff to work with gender. It can also concerninitiatives related to partners, e.g. dissemina-tion of good practice and engendering theinstitutional environment (equal opportunitiesbetween women and men as members ofstaff).

Responsibility to monitor lies primarily withthe COOF country director and leaders inpartner organisations. Gender and program-me officers can provide technical assistance,as well as regional/thematic desks (HQ).

Introducing gender in an organisation proce-dure is an entry point to impulse sustainabletransformations in organisational culture andto modify staff attitudes towards gender.These transformations take time and may beobserved over a longer period.

In terms of gender, changes inside and outside are connected. Mainstreaming gender inorganisations helps mainstreaming in programmes and projects. It is hypocritical and counter productive to promote gender with partners and in its programmes without practi-sing it internally.

GENDER EQUALITY IN SDC

SHEET 9b

A part of gender mainstreamingIn 1990, the first working group on the pro-motion of women in SDC was implemented.The aim was to improve the representation of the women in the management positionsfollowing the directives of the Swiss federaladministration. An analysis of the situation ofthe women in SDC was conducted and firstproposals were presented. For 6 years, thegroup was working on setting objectives, trying to promote changes in the organisationby lobbying, sensitisation and education.However, due to the lack of institutional commitment and to the limited competenciesof the working group itself, implementationfailed. This showed the limits of a bottom up approachand evidenced that the process had to beanchored at the top level. In 1996 SDCdecides to allocate clear responsibilities andresources for gender equal opportunities withinthe headquarters, in order to concretise thepolitical will.A position for the advancement of women toadvise on/monitor/support and co-ordinatethe process was created (50%). Meanwhile,

the management took the responsibility toensure that the advancement of women inSDC would be a compulsory, permanentmanagerial task for superiors at all levels andpart of the management process. An internalpolicy on the advancement of women in theSDC was approved in 1997 and its imple-mentation is still going on.


SHEET 9b

Embodiment of the policy andits objectivesThe promotion of gender equality and theadvancement of women is an institutionalgoal as mentioned in SDC's guidelines andstrategy 2010. It is a transversal focus withconcrete objectives in SDC's human resourcesstrategy and is part of SDC's gender main-streaming policy.Overall goal: to give equal considerationto the needs and concerns of women andmen in its programmes and organisations inrespect of its staff and their families. Due totraditional structures, attitudes and values car-ried by men and women, the needs and con-cerns of women have not been given thenecessary attention to date. Accordingly, spe-cific efforts should be made to promote theadvancement of women by the year 2010. Specific objectives: equal representation of women and men, vertical and horizontaldevelopment potential, complementarity between career and family, gender equalityintegrated in corporate culture.Responsibility for ensuring the process isclearly at the management level. The officerfor advancement of women is in charge ofadvice, monitoring and support and is direct-ly answerable to the Director.

Strategy and Process ■ The conceptual framework for the

advancement of women in SDC is basedon a combination of systemic and process-led approach. The promotion andadvancement of women suppose changesin seven fundamental dimensions of theorganisation such as: strategies, functionpower positions, physical resources, pro-cesses/procedures, people/groups rela-tionships, structures/organisational sub-divisions and the identity.

■ Genuine advancement of women isbrought about through decision-makingprocesses combined with a process of culture and organisation such as changesin mentality, calling for appropriate lear-ning processes. A classical linear appro-ach (planning, analysis, design, imple-mentation) is not convenient, the imple-mentation needs a constant monitoring,flexibility and adaptation of strategies. It ismore complex than expected and looksmore like a spiral then as a straight lineprocess.

■ The overall strategy is gender mainstream-ing. It means that gender equity is impliedin internal (human resources) and opera-tional strategies as well as in all capaci-ties and skills building. To guarantee theequal representation of women and menfrom lower to upper management func-tions, considering the existing unbalance,a complementary women empowermentstrategy is necessary as well.

■ Equal opportunities for women and menare incorporated as a transversal issue inthe top management's programme and inthe annual programme of the differentdepartments, each one setting its ownannual objectives.

■ A continued controlling including the pre-sence of the officer of advancement ofwomen in all human resources decisions isstill imperative to guarantee the implemen-tation of the policy.


SHEET 9b

Some selected operational objectives and its implementation measures

Objectives:

Equal representation of womenand men from Programme Officerfunction up■ 50% women in newly recruited■ 60% women in Junior staff develop-

ment programme ■ 50% women in Management develop-

ment pool

Vertical and horizontal develop-ment potential■ Planning long-term carrier for women

and men■ Taking the specific feminine careers

development into account

Compatibility of career and family■ Creation of day nursery■ Modern and flexible working

conditions

Corporate culture in which equalGender opportunity is practised ■ 40% women in higher positions

Implementation measurements

In SDC women are under represented in all upper functions. Measures are■ to hire women as well as to promote young women to take over leading

positions tomorrow.■ to give preference to women with the same qualifications■ non-professional experience is taken into account in job profiles■ all selection committees should comprise women and men■ include women in the junior staff development programme■ Gender bias are analysed in all staff selection assessment

The development of women’s careers is not as linear as those of their male col-leagues. Women often have double engagement in profession and family andnot much time to invest in traditional career life.■ Women and men with family and professional engagement get a specific

career planning■ Determine which leadership and management experiences the employees

can obtain at their actual living situation.

The incompatibility of career and family is still a disadvantage especially for thewomen and men to make a career within SDC. Flexible models of work and theiracceptance help to overcome glass ceiling phenomena.■ Management should accept job sharing in senior positions■ Part-time employment must not result in career disadvantages

As long as women remain in the minority the organizational culture will not takethe so called more feminine culture into account.■ For higher positions SDC will give the preference to women with the same

qualifications■ To ensure gender sensitivity, management is trained in gender issues to

avoid gender bias in human resource management (recruitment, staff evaluation etc.).

■ Gender competence is a criterion for staff selection.


SHEET 9b

Call for actionSDC is committed to gender equality, which is the conditio sine qua non for a changetowards gender equity. Several results i.e.higher representation of women in lowermanagement positions some changes in thecorporate culture, day nurseries have beenobtained in the last ten years. At the sametime we can observe a change in the overallSwiss cultural context as well, which is alsoinfluencing the organisational culture of SDC.Nevertheless, implementation of gender equa-lity is a complex and long process.

Best practices■ The allocation of human and finance

resources to support the process of equalopportunity.

■ The presence of the responsible person forequal opportunity at all staff and decisionmaking process to guarantee the reflex ofremembering equal opportunity and cultu-ral issues.

■ The integration of equal opportunity objec-tives in the human resource strategy andpolicy.

■ The integration of the controlling of equalopportunity in the overall organisationstrategic controlling.

■ Setting of equal opportunity goals in theorganisation units as well as for the topmanagement.

1 Glass ceiling:

GENDER AND PARTNERS

SHEET 10

Is gender a criterion for selecting partners?Gender competence is part of the criteria forthe selection of partners, including contrac-tors. SDC increasingly gives preference topartners who are gender competent, or, atleast, open to gender equality. It goes againstSDC development policy to work with part-ners who do not support the principle of gender equality.

Therefore, building gender competenceshould be negotiated and explicitly mentionedin all contractual partnerships between SDCand Swiss/national organisations. Gendercompetence is increasingly becoming a criterion against which the performance ofpartners and contractors is assessed.

How to promote gender inpartnerships?Create a dialogue around gender

Gender is a «cultural issue» but it is also verypolitical. Mainstreaming social justice andequality issues in the development agenda is often controversial as it poses a challenge to the status quo around power at differentlevels. The fact is that it remains difficult toargue in favour of equality between womenand men as a right, including staff in development organisations (women as well asmen, from Swiss or other origins). This said,

the importance of gender in countries whereSDC works means that partners increasinglytake the lead to initiate a dialogue, andactions, on gender.

Questions that can be raised include:

■ What is the partners' view on «gender».Is gender equality an issue, why/why not?

■ What gender inequalities do they see asparticularly relevant to their work andwhy?

■ What is their experience (good or bad) ofworking with/without gender?

■ What gender skills/competence do theyhave?

■ How far are they interested in going withgender mainstreaming and why?

■ How aware are they of their own country'spolicies/commitment to gender?

GENDER AND PARTNERS

SHEET 10

Throughout this dialogue, it is necessary toassess to what extent the views of profession-al staff are representative of their organisa-tion as a whole and of women and men intarget groups. The participation of profession-al women and men in defining the terms andconditions of partnerships around gender isimportant in terms of women's/men's equalaccess to decision/policy making. But it isalso important since it can really influence theoutcome of negotiations in terms of gendercontent.

A gender charter between SDC and its partners■ SDC and its partners are aware of the roles, needs and priorities/aspirations of

different groups of women and men in the context where they work prior to makingdecisions about what sectors, resources and strategies they will implement. They areaware of particular inequality and discrimination issues negatively affecting women'sand girls’ development;

■ SDC and its partners select the areas/sectors of interventions on the basis of the identi-fied needs of women and men, including discrimination and inequality issues affectingwomen and girls. They give priority to interventions most likely to have a sustainableimpact on mechanisms responsible for gender inequality. They reflect these needs in theformulation of principles, objectives and the allocation of resources in CountryProgrammes and Annual Programmes.

■ SDC and its partners formulate Programmes and Projects that have a clear objective tohelp both poor women and men to reach a more equal access to and control overresources in the household and society at large, and, as much as possible, to reduceinequalities between women and men;

■ SDC and its partners implement Programmes and Projects in a way that ensures thatwomen and men have equitable, if not equal, access to and control over resources pro-vided by the interventions;

■ SDC and its partners facilitate evaluations (self and external) of Programmes andProjects that provide clear indication of the impact on women as well as men and onthe changes in power relations and inequalities between women and men in differentgroups of the targeted population;

■ SDC has alliances with partners who are gender aware and competent, working trans-versally in sectors and/or specifically around issues of women’s empowerment and/orgender equality;

■ SDC and its partners promote equal opportunities for women and men as workers intheir respective organisations, and ensure that relevant women and men are able toplan, implement and evaluate their actions with target groups in a gender-aware way.

We would like toencourage all partnersinvolved in SDC workin countries to formulateand own a joint charter.

To work together on gender, SDC and itspartners must identify common grounds,visions and strategies and decide jointly howthey are going to integrate gender in theirorganisations and programmes. The charterbelow is an example of what it could mean tointegrate gender in partnerships.

GENDER AND PARTNERS

SHEET 10

Capacity building of partnersToo often, gender training is used as themain, or only strategy for mainstreaming. Butthe integration of gender equality in develop-ment is not only a matter of having the rightskills and tools. It also requires positive beliefsand attitudes towards gender. Therefore,capacity building cannot be «reduced» to«gender training». Training should be part ofa broader gender awareness and capacitybuilding strategy, besides the analytical andplanning skills and tools that training can pro-vide, staff within SDC and its partners alsoneed:

■ Technical advice/follow up on site ■ Participation in gender networks■ Gender data to build arguments and feed

into advocacy for gender change■ Regular capitalisation/stock taking■ Dialogue/action to promote ownership of

the gender and development approach

In the CEI Division, the whole team hasdecided to take gender as a team buil-ding theme. The first steps was to cometo a common understanding of the con-cept by workshops, followed by trainingfor most of the programme officers, finallyplacing an emphasis on gender during akey event in each field office (planning ofa new programme, monitoring workshop,assessment of an health project etc..)

This said, training is important1. It can targetparticipants as professionals (focus on theirpractice) or as individuals, focusing on theirpersonal attitude towards gender (self-aware-ness), often both are needed because comple-mentary.

1 Every year, SDC organises two 3-daygender training workshops inSwitzerland, for its staff and partners.One is in French and one is in English.For more information, contact the training services from SDC or the genderunit.

In SDC-Asia1, as part of the Human andInstitutional Development approach, workersexamine their own personal gender bia-ses and experiences as women and men.Equal Opportunities and the advancement ofwomen in SDC and partners is seen as a keystrategy for mainstreaming. In Latin America,the capacity building approach is more tech-nical. Staff and partners are targeted as«professionals». The objective is to makethem more effective, efficient and relevant intheir work with beneficiaries through the gender approach.

GENDER AND PARTNERS

SHEET 10

Some hints to implement effective gender training

■ Carry out an organisational analysisand/or a training needs analysis (sheets9a, 9b)

■ Have a methodology for different targetgroups, including monitoring after training

■ For basic training, a «standard» pro-gramme can be used for all staff

■ For advanced training, aim for tailor-madeprogrammes as much as possible

■ As much as possible, use authentic docu-ments (case-studies, policy extracts etc.)and a participatory approach (with groupwork, practical applications)

■ Try to have a gender-balanced team includ-ing experienced male gender trainers

■ Aim to train in pairs, with gender and sectoral trainers working together

■ As much as possible, work with a local consultant in the training team

■ When training project staff, ensure thattrainers have field experience too

■ Train women as well as men, from different professional profiles and levels of responsibility. Mixing profiles/levelsshould be a strategic choice

■ Think of training existing trainers in gender (multiplying effect)

■ As well as implementing specific gendertraining programmes, do not forget to integrate gender in existing training pro-grammes and modules!

For training to have an impact, traineeshave to be supported to implement theirnew skills. In particular, they need politi-cal support from their managers to givelegitimacy to the organisational changesthey may wish to propose for mainstream-ing. They also need technical supportfrom gender officers or experts, so thatthey can do their work well. When peo-ple feel they have little confidence in theirskills and knowledge, they do not dare towork on gender as they fear that failureto deliver can discredit the approach.Finally, newly-trained people need resour-ces to implement their strategies (time,money, staff).

After initial training, more advanced and/orspecialised gender training can beimplemented. It can focus on the link betweengender and specific sectors or themes (e.g.environment, governance, human rights) or onthe PCM (gender in monitoring/evaluation).Gender can also be included in trainingaround participative methodologies such asPRA or advocacy training. Self-awarenesstraining on gender is also useful to helpwomen and men explore their own attitude tofeminity/masculinity, at home and/or in theworkplace.

In many SDC countries, internal gender networks provide a useful platform to reinforcegender confidence and competence. External networks (with other donors) are also useful.Regional networks can be created (there is a South America network and a similar idea isgerminating in West Africa )... Internet is a great tool to maintain contacts between traineesacross countries and share both happy and unhappy experiences working with gender!

SDC and its partners need to work out joint strategies for gender mainstreaming. Capacitybuilding of local partners should be a central objective of partnership and be increasinglyrecognised as a key factor in the selection and the monitoring of partners.

MONITORING GENDER IN PROGRAMMES

SHEET 11

Monitoring is the art of collecting the necessary information with mini-mum effort in order to make a steering decision at the right time. Thisinformation also constitutes an important and necessary data base foranalysis, discussion, (self-) evaluation and reporting. As a regular andsystematic process integrated in the cycle of projects/programmes,monitoring is different from evaluation. The aim is to see if pro-grammes are «doing the right thing and are doing it right» in order toimprove their quality.

Gender, as a transversal theme, needs to be integrated in all monitoring systems (engendering monitoring). It helps us to keep intouch with field reality and provides us with qualitative and quantitati-ve data about: a) the contribution and participation of women and men in the realisation of the objectives and b) the effects of the programme ongender relations and disparities. But a monitoring system can also put the focus on women and men equality in a programme/project (gender monitoring).

As for planning activities, beneficiaries and partners must be closelyinvolved in the monitoring process. Programme officers carry the mainresponsibility to ensure that gender is part of monitoring, under theoverall responsibility of the COOF coordinator.

Fields of observationWe can't observe everything at the sametime. We have to choose what kind of infor-mation is relevant for the project/programme.We might need different tools for the differentlevels1. The main involved actors (women andmen beneficiaries, partners, programme/project staff) at all levels have to be maderesponsible to collect regularly the necessarydata. It is to remind us that in a engenderedmonitoring system, it is not only women whoare responsible for collecting information concerning gender issues.

1 See «Monitoring – keeping in touch withreality», part II: Instruments and proceduresand III: Indicators and key questions, SDC 1997.


SHEET 11

We might be interested too in knowing howwe have achieved something or why we have – or have not – achieved the output oroutcomes. Or why, with similar environmentalconditions, we are successful in one place andnot in another. At all levels (output/outcomeor impact level), we need to understand theprocesses and try to correct what is in oursphere of responsibility/influence.

Process monitoringProcess monitoring can be done at eachorganisational level. Understanding whatSDC and/or our partners do well/not well ongender is important for «learning». ■ Are the form and dynamics of partnership

satisfactory for all parties?■ Have the roles and tasks regarding the

implementation of gender issues in theprogramme been defined?

■ Have the agreements, contracts, proce-dures concerning gender been respected?

■ Is there mutual commitment for genderissues? Are mutual expectations met?

■ What were the furthering/hindering processes in the project/programme toreach the planned gender results?

■ Has enough gender capacity buildingbeen done?

■ Have the partners, women and men, beenempowered?

■ Is the team functioning in a satisfactoryway?

■ Have the dialogue and negotiation between the main partners, betweenwomen and men in the programme/projectimproved/deteriorated?

■ Is there a capacity to focus on commoninterest of women and men?

■ Is there sufficient trust, respect, consensusand conflict resolution capacity among thepartners, among women and men in theprogramme/project?

Output monitoringA monitoring system at this level has to remainsimple and feasible. We have to check wheth-er we have reached the expected genderresults or not and whether we do control whatis in our sphere of responsibility. ■ What is the actual gender performance

of the programme/project? What «is»compared with what «should be»?

■ Do we have desegregated data forwomen and men?

■ Have the contracts, the formal agreementsbeen respected?

■ Is there financial accountability?

If the difference between planned and expect-ed gender results is too great, the course hasto be corrected.

Outcome monitoringFor SDC and its partners, this is the criticaland essential sphere to monitor. Here monitor-ing focuses on effectiveness, i.e. the achieve-ment of programme objectives and mediumterm outcomes.■ Have the relevant groups to make things

change, organisations or individuals, beeninvolved and reached by the programme?

■ Did the attitudes and behaviours, thecapacities, the practices, the social position of women and men change?

■ What were the desired/undesired effectsof the project/programme on genderequality?

■ Did the transfer activities bring the expected results (multiplication)?

■ Did the project meet the practical as wellas the strategic needs of women andmen?


SHEET 11

We must distinguish between monitoringgender as a transversal theme in pro-grammes within our sphere of competenceand influence as a cooperation agency(medium term), and the results of thisapproach on social transformation. Thistakes time and has to be led by local«actors» over whom our influence isextremely limited. Social changes can bemeasured over longer periods (5 – 10years) and our programmes can only makea modest contribution, at best facilitatethe creation of favourable conditions forchange. Results must therefore be observedprimarily at the level of the systematisationof the (gender) approach in all actions ofthe Swiss Cooperation. Social changewill come later. SDC Madagascar, PDR

Impact analysisImpact analysis is too complex to answer with monitoring and should be the subject ofa wider impact study or evaluation. It maytake place every 5 – 10 years. It requires«before/ after» disaggregated indicators. Atthis level, we analyse the programme/project'scontribution to changes in a given context, inthe long term. This is the most difficult sphereto analyse because it is mainly out of SDC's«control», i.e. the achievement of long termdevelopment goals. We can only monitorwhat is observable during a programme,register desired and undesired effects. To analyse the relevance of a programme/project, we need impact hypotheses whichshould be formulated and verified by signifi-cant partners and the main key actors (e.g. women and men concerned by a healthproject, programme/project officers, Healthministry officers).■ Did the project/programme contribute to

reducing gender inequalities?■ Could some changes of gender values be

registered? ■ What were the desired/undesired gender

effects of the project/programme?■ Are the results consistent with SDC gender

policy as well as the gender politicy of thehost country where we work?

At this global level, existing sources of infor-mation must be used. Responsibility to ensureanalysis at this level lies with regional andsector officers and with COOF country directors, working closely together with partners at national/policy level.


SHEET 11

What can gender general macro-indica-tors measure in the general context?

■ Mortality: Female/male, maternal mor-tality, infant (girls/boys)

■ Rates of unemployment/employment/self-employment in different sectors

■ Type/conditions of employment forfemale/male

■ Access to basic services (education,health, water) women/men, girls/boys

■ Access to productive assets (land, credit, vocational training)

■ Participation in politics (women/menin elected posts at different levels)

■ Inclusion of gender needs in macropolicies and processes (e.g. decentralisation)

■ Changes in substantive gender issues/gaps in key development sectors (+/–)

■ Changes in legislation/policy frame-work affecting gender equality (+/–)

■ Changes in national/sector budget allocation towards gender

Context monitoring Context monitoring shows risks and potentials.It is essential to follow the general context(economical, social, environmental...) inwhich the project/programme is implementedto a) check the evolution, the tendencies andchanges which can influence gender in theprogramme/project, positively or negatively;b) try to measure how the programme/projecthas contributed to changes in a particularcontext. Context monitoring is important forthe formulation of impact hypotheses.

Information collected with the help of generalmacro-indicators developed for instance byUNDP gives us relevant information for theprogramme/project. But it should not be confounded with the indicators of the pro-gramme/project (see chapter key questionsand indicators below).

Sustainability monitoringThe sustainability of gender results in a programme/project is an important issue.Momentarily attained benefits for specificgroups, e.g. women's groups are not relevantif sustainable effects cannot be guaranteed. At each stage of a programme/project,strengths and weaknesses regarding owner-ship of a programme/project and its sustaina-bility should be analysed with the partnersand appropriate measures to be taken tosustain the results should be agreed on.


SHEET 11

Key questions and indicatorsGender aware key questions and indicatorsare needed from the very start of projects/programmes in order to compare evolutionsof the situation of women and men.Formulating gender relevant key questionsaccording to the chosen observation field isan important step. Often, we can observe,count or have a direct answer to the key-question. In that case, no indicator is necessa-ry. If a direct answer to the key question isnot possible, only then do we need an indica-tor, i.e a variable that provides a simple and reliable means to measure – quantitative orqualitative- achievements and/or processes aswell as changes in the programme/project orthe context.

General macro-indicators (box above) andprogramme/project relevant indicators shouldnot been confounded. For instance, it isnecessary to know, in a HIV/AIDS preventionprogramme, the prevalence rate at nationallevel. But at programme/project level, otherkey questions or indicators need to be foundout. Often, the beneficiaries know best whatis relevant. During a discussion with benefici-ary groups in Uganda, we found out that thenumber of early pregnancies among younggirls is a very good indicator to measure theeffectiveness of HIV/AIDS prevention pro-grammes for youth.

To engender a monitoringsystem, it is essential to formu-late desegregated key ques-tions and indicators, in orderto reflect differences andinequalities between womenand men and correct them ifnecessary. Monitoring iseasier if gender is includedfrom the very beginning of aprogramme/project, e.g. inthe logical framework andoverall strategy from the start.But efforts must be made tomonitor the gender dimensionof results at all levels evenwhen/if the original formula-tion and indicators are gen-der blind.

Key questions at Country Programme levelare detailed in sheet 7. At programme level,the following key questions can be used:

■ Do women/men benefit from the pro-gramme in the same way?

■ Are some women/men negatively impact-ed by the programme?

■ Have gender relations of women/men inthe target group changed as a result ofthe programme? Have gender gaps beenreduced?

■ Do gender relations challenge workinghypotheses and/or influence the efficien-cy/sustainability (+/–)?

■ Are new gender issues emerging withinthe programme?

■ Are there new external factors/actorsaffecting gender besides the programme(+ or –)?

■ Are women/men supportive of the pro-gramme or do they wish to change it(partly/totally)? Who? Why? How?


SHEET 11

What can gender indicators measure in the sphere of directresponsibility?

■ Quantity/quality of gender competentstaff (women/men in SDC/partners)

■ Changes to/creation of tools, metho-dologies, procedures to integrate gender

■ Initiatives/partnerships to create synergies on gender

■ Use/recruitment of gender skilled staff(w/m)

■ Changes towards equal opportunities ■ Budgets (financial/time) used for

mainstreaming in the institution (e.g. % of total budget)

What can gender indicators measure in the sphere of influence?

■ Participation (quantity/quality) ofwomen and men in activities

■ Access to decision-making bywomen/men (%, ratio)

■ Access to programme resources/services by women and men (benefits)

■ Expected/unexpected outcomes forwomen/men (compared with objectives)

■ Met/unmet gender needs of womenand men (compared with expressedneeds)

■ Changes in gender relations and gender gaps (+/–)

■ Capacity (including tools) for SDC andpartners to work with gender

■ Appropriation of gender by SDC staff,partners, women/men in target groups

■ Changes in programme budget alloca-tion towards gender

Spheres of responsibility/influence and monitoring We can distinguish two main spheres ofresponsibility or influence for monitoring: ■ a sphere of SDC's direct responsibility■ a sphere of influence, partnership, coope-

ration and joint action.

Different monitoring matrices are needed toget information at the different levels and different persons will be responsible for collecting the information (e.g. user grouplevel, partner organisations, programme officer, COOF country director).

It is not useful to have long lists of indicators.Data collected and monitoring indicators2

need to be prioritised:

■ What do we need to be able to documentat different levels/in different spheres?

■ What would we like to be able to document at different levels/in differentspheres?

■ What would we like to simply discuss between partners (no need to document)?

■ Who needs what information?■ Of the information that is needed, which

is already collected in monitoring?■ What method is the most appropriate to

gather the needed data that is missing?

2 Adapted from “Outcome Mapping”,http://www.idrc.ca/evaluation/OmsummSheetsFinal.html (dec. 2002)


SHEET 11

In SDC–Tanzania, a gender training identified the need for integrating gender in monitor-ing. A workshop was held to develop gender tools and indicators for the rural roads andhealth sectors. This work fed into a parallel process of defining a poverty monitoring frame-work.

What do we want to know?(A) In general, both the communities and the project (SDC) want to know what

difference the project makes against the initial situation (before the project'sinterventions). This development focus concentrates on the positive changes, but wealso need to check whether the project has unintended, negative effects. Both arenecessary to learn whether the approach of the project is appropriate and effective.

(B) More specifically, the project (SDC) wants to see how the project affects specificgroups, what changes it brings to these groups, i.e. the observation of the changesshould be socially (poverty-related) and gender disaggregated. This part of themonitoring should provide evidence of the project's achievements related to SDC principles of poverty reduction and gender equality.

How to do it?A feedback from the poverty and gender-focused monitoring to the community will supportthe communities in assessing their social interaction, which in turn may enhance develop-ment objectives. The monitoring of outputs and results of the project (e.g. improved roads,improved organisational capacity of community) is part of the implementation management(steering). Responsibility for it is with the communities, beneficiaries.

The monitoring of objectives and impact (e.g. improved accessibility, time saved, opportu-nity to participate in decisions) is done at longer intervals and is of interest for the benefici-aries and the project. Considering that (a) the monitoring of objectives and impact is likelyto be more demanding (e.g. covering project area, define change assumptions) and (b) theproject in addition has a poverty and gender focus, the project will be the main agent forthis part of the monitoring. Monitoring framework for poverty, SDC Tanzania, May 2002

What to do to integrate gender in monitoring...■ Convince yourself, and others, that it is

not too late to integrate gender in monitoring, even in programmes that have already started. To begin, it may be sufficient to formulate key questions ongender at different levels.

■ Review existing indicators in differentspheres. Disaggregate them by gender(women/men of different age, householdtype, income level, ethnic groups, physicalability, etc.), as relevant, and/or createnew ones if needed.

■ (Re) formulate clear indicators for the gender mainstreaming strategy and planhow to review its progress as part andparcel of key moments.

■ Review monitoring mechanisms (who/howis data collected?) and the use of data(how are gender lessons learned and applied?) in different spheres.

■ Allocate clear responsibilities and resour-ces for gendered and gender monitoring.

■ Build the capacity of all partners to monitor in a gender aware manner.

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GENDER AND EVALUATION

SHEET 12

Evaluation is the assessment, as systematicand objective as possible, of an ongoing orcompleted programme/project, its policy orstrategy, its design, implementation andresults at different levels. SDC distinguishesseveral types of evaluation:

■ Self-evaluation, also called empower-ment evaluation, is a powerful tool toenhance and support programme/projectresponsible teams and improve the gene-ral functioning of complex programmes(multi-levels, multi-partners...)1

■ Reviews or evaluations, internal orexternal, lie inside the activities of the staffresponsible for programme implementation2

■ Independent evaluations are evalua-tions which are initiated and carried outby other persons than the one responsiblefor a programme3.

1 See «Mirror, mirror on the wall…», SDC, 1991 and «Manual on Self-Evaluation», SDC, 1996.2 See «External evaluation 1», SDC, June 2000.3 See «Guidelines evaluation and controlling» and «English glossary/SDC»,SDC, May 2002.


SHEET 12

(Self) evaluation can be done prior to action,during it or after completion of the program-me/project.

The present sheet is meant for evaluators, self-evaluation facilitators or any person in-volved in an evaluation action, who are wellacquainted with evaluation methodologiesand SDC's Programme Cycle Managementconcept. Its goal is to give some incentives onhow to integrate gender and address genderequality issues in a) any general evaluation;b) gender thematic evaluation, i.e. evaluationwhich is specially designed to evaluate gender equality, gender mainstreaming andwomen's empowerment efforts.

At present, few general evaluations havecomprehensive quantitative and qualitativedata about progress made for women andmen over the period evaluated4. General evaluations are often gender blind. Evenwhen some significant gender disaggregateddata has been collected, gender analysis ispoor and discussion on gender issues is limit-ed to considering the participation of women.Thematic gender evaluations still focus onwomen, and men are not present. The word«gender» is used as a synonym of women.Several reasons might explain those weaknes-ses, such as a) gender blind evaluationmethodologies; b) gender blind Terms ofReference (ToR); c) insufficient gender compe-tency and/or commitment among the evalua-tors; d) lack of gender disaggregatedmonitoring information.

Efforts have to be made to engender generalevaluations in a more consistent way on onehand but it might be important too, in future,to carry out more thematic gender evaluationsfor learning.

Evaluation methodologyA good gender focused evaluation is first ofall a good evaluation. That means that itsmethodology and used tools integrate gender.At present, there is a need for evaluationcapacity building with a strong focus on how toaddress gender equality issues in evaluation.Training might be necessary for all concernedstaff and consultants, including the partners.

The idea is not to treat gender mainstreamingas a goal, but as a means to reach the devel-opment objectives of achieving gender equal-ity. It has proven to be useful to find positive/negative gender results of intervention firstand then examine the factors/processes thatpromote good/poor performances. Problemswill arise if evaluations are designed basedon the assumption that mainstreaming auto-matically leads to gender equality outcomes.Institutional mainstreaming should not be evaluated without considering the extent towhich this leads to changes in gender rela-tions. Focus should be put on results as wellas processes and institutional practices.

In any evaluation action, check if:■ Participatory methods of data collection

are used, including women and men andwith adequate attention to gender issues

■ The questions and the indicators are gen-der-sensitive. This will lead to a higherquality of gender analysis and will tend to include more information on benefits (or no benefits) to women and men

■ Besides highlighting women's achieve-ments, focus also on gender relations andon the impact of development activities ongender equality

■ Focus on how gender relations mayinfluence women's capacity to participateto or benefit from the programme/project

■ Partnerships on gender equality and inother areas have been built

■ There is capacity and commitment of involved partners to work on changinggender relations (partner and donor organisations).

■ Accountability to gender equality policiesand strategies is ensured.

4 J. Hunt and R.Browers, Reviewon Gender andEvaluation, sub-mitted to the DACWorking Party onAid Evaluation,March 2003.


SHEET 12

Terms of referenceVery often, ToR do not include any or, if at all,only vague references to gender. No explicitgender questions are asked. In order toengender them, systematic attention to genderissues should be brought into any evaluationconcept and design. SDC staff responsible for preparing the ToR should be gender competent or call in expertise in this field. The collaboration of the Gender Unit to pre-pare the ToR might help to focus on relevantgender issues and represent a good practiceto guarantee that ToR are engendered.

In order to engender evaluation's ToR, checkthat:■ The gender issues are integrated in the

evaluation's objectives■ Precise reference to gender and appropri-

ate evaluation questions to investigate differences in participation, benefits,results at all levels between women andmen are included

■ The demand to assess the benefits forwomen and men, the results related togender equality is explicit

■ Institutional approaches and change strategies are included, e.g. furthering factors/obstacles to gender mainstreaming(often interpreted as obstacles to havinggender issues addressed)

■ The demand to assess changes in genderrelations is mentioned

■ As far as possible, the demand to makelinks between the inclusion of a genderperspective and successful or improvedprogramme/project outputs, outcomes orimpact is explicit.

Evaluators and evaluationteamsGender expertise on the evaluators or on theevaluation team is required. Gender compe-tency is today one of the criteria to mandateprofessional consultants. A good evaluationteam is composed of women and men, if possible from the North and from the South.Donors should work towards more joint evaluations (donor/partners, women/men) inline towards sector-wide approaches andincreased emphasis on national ownership.Local expertise is indispensable in most ofevaluation. The involvement of local evalua-tors has to be considered as a capacity building exercise. It might require adequateressourcing and training.


SHEET 12

The choice of an evaluator/evaluation team isessential for the quality of the evaluation.Check that:■ Gender expertise is available in the team■ The team is composed of women and men

evaluators■ Local expertise has been used (women

and men)■ The evaluators have the capacity to

identify and collect gender disaggregatedinformation using a mix of differentmethods, including the capacity to devel-op gender sensitive indicators

■ The evaluators have the capacity to ana-lyse data collected in relation to the activi-ties being evaluated in a systematic way.

Report writingAdd a sentence about women at the end of achapter or a chapter about gender is notenough to engender an evaluation report. AsToR and evaluation methodologies, report writing has to be engendered, i.e. conceivedand thought from the beginning with a gender perspective.To write an engendered report and ameliorateits quality in general, check that:■ The way the methodology and used tools

have been engendered is explicit■ Sound quantitative and qualitative data

about progress made for women and menover the period evaluated (no generalremarks unsupported by evidence) is included

■ Analysis of these data is consistent■ Recommendations and other comments

regarding actions needing to be taken toensure that gender issues are properlyaddressed are included.

The way a report is written is important too,as language is not neutral. Words as well as grammar are the mirror of society, in particu-lar of the status that women and men have.Language can evolve and is not bound toimmutable academic rules. Rules for engen-dered writing are language specific.

For report writing, evaluators should check,whatever language is used, that:■ Women and men are equally addressed

and are not excluded■ The word «gender» is not taken as a

synonym for «women», but highlights therelations between women and men

■ No sexist formulation or stereotypes areused

■ The way of writing is gender sensitive and respects the rules specific to the usedlanguage.


SHEET 12Rev

iew

s/Se

lf-e

valu

ation m

ain

focu

s w

ith a

gen

der

per

spec

tive

Pro

gra

mm

e/pro

ject

conte

xt

Sustainability

Impact

Effectivness

Efficiency

Hav

e th

e ge

nder

issu

esbe

en a

ddre

ssed

in th

epr

ogra

mm

e/pr

ojec

t? A

reth

e ob

ject

ives

eng

en-

dere

d? A

re th

ey s

hare

dby

the

partn

ers?

Is di

sagg

rega

ted

data

and

info

rmat

ion

avai

labl

e?

Do

the

partn

ers

have

th

e ca

paci

ty to

wor

k on

cha

ngin

g ge

nder

re

latio

ns?

Is th

ere

suffi

cien

t com

mit-

men

t fro

m p

artn

ers

and

dono

r or

gani

satio

ns?

Hav

e th

e ex

pect

ed g

en-

der

outp

uts

and

outc

omes

bee

n re

ache

d(a

ssum

ptio

ns v

ersu

sfa

cts)

?

Hav

e th

e lin

ks b

etw

een

bene

fits

for

wom

en a

ndm

en, g

ende

r an

alys

is,

gend

er m

ains

tream

ing

effo

rts a

nd d

evel

opm

ent

outp

uts/

outc

ome

been

focu

sed

on?

How

hav

e th

e ge

nder

issu

es b

een

addr

esse

d?

Hav

e str

ateg

ies

for

build

-in

g pa

rtner

ship

s on

gen

-de

r eq

ualit

y be

en d

evel

o-pe

d an

d im

plem

ente

d?W

ith w

hich

res

ults?

Relevance

Hav

e ro

les

and

resp

onsi

-bi

litie

s to

mai

nstre

amge

nder

bee

n de

fined

?H

ave

the

cont

ract

s be

enre

spec

ted?


SHEET 12

Exte

rnal/

Indep

enden

t ev

alu

ation m

ain

focu

s w

ith a

gen

der

per

spec

tive

Relevance

Impact

Effectivness

Are

the

deve

lopm

ent

goal

s en

gend

ered

? H

asge

nder

ana

lysi

s be

enun

derta

ken

in p

re-p

lan-

ning

and

pro

gram

me/

proj

ect p

lann

ing?

Hav

e th

e in

tend

ed/

unin

tend

ed im

pact

s fo

rw

omen

and

men

, for

grou

ps b

een

exam

ined

?

Wha

t im

pact

did

the

prog

ram

me/

proj

ect h

ave

on g

ende

r re

latio

ns?

Effectivness

Is th

e le

vel o

f inv

olve

men

t of

partn

er a

genc

ies

suffi

cien

t?Is

ther

e ca

paci

ty o

f cha

ng-

ing

gend

er r

elat

ions

? Is

ther

e en

ough

ow

ners

hip?

Are

gen

der

sens

itive

sta

keho

lder

s in

volv

ed

(e.g

. wom

en’s

grou

ps)?

Has

the

role

that

co

oper

atio

n de

vel-

opm

ent c

an p

lay

in c

hang

ing

gend

er r

elat

ions

in a

giv

en c

onte

xt(s

ocia

l, po

litic

al, e

cono

mic

al)

been

inve

stiga

ted?

Hav

e th

e lin

ks b

etw

een

gend

er e

qual

ity a

nd p

over

ty r

educ

-tio

n be

en a

ddre

ssed

?

Hav

e th

e lin

ks, a

t mac

ro-le

vel,

betw

een

the

incl

usio

n of

a g

ende

rpe

rspe

ctiv

e (o

r no

t) in

des

ign,

impl

e-m

enta

tion

and

prog

ram

me/

proj

ect

impa

ct, r

elev

ance

and

sus

tain

abili

tybe

en h

ighl

ight

ed?

To w

hat e

xten

t did

the

enge

nder

ed d

evel

opm

ent a

ctiv

i-tie

s im

prov

e th

e ac

hiev

emen

t of o

ve-

rall

resu

lts?

Has

acc

ount

abili

ty to

gen

der

equa

lity

strat

egie

s be

en h

ighl

ight

ed?

Are

the

prog

ram

me/

pro

ject

act

iviti

es in

line

with

gen

der

polic

ies

(nat

iona

l or

SDC

’s ge

nder

pol

icy)

?

Wha

t cha

nges

in th

e co

ntex

t, in

clud

ing

gend

er r

elat

ions

, sho

uld

bere

flect

ed in

futu

re in

terv

entio

ns?

Pro

gra

mm

e/pro

ject

conte

xt

GENDER IN MULTILATERAL COOPERATION

SHEET 13

SDC plays an active role in numerous inter-governmental bodies of which Switzerland isa member, e.g. UNDP Executive Board, WFPExecutive Board, United Nations GeneralAssembly, World Bank Board of Governors,the Regional Development Banks and the cor-responding Development Funds as well asIFAD. SDC officers also frequently participatein international conferences and events at theglobal, regional and national levels, e.g.major United Nations conferences andConsultative Group meetings. Gender can beincluded in multilateral work in several ways.

«... The equal rights and opportunities ofwomen and men must be assured.»United Nations Millennium Declaration(A/55/2)

Gender in debates, negotiations and partnerinstitutions

1. Multilateral policies/strategies/resolutions etc.: Do they include ananalysis of and take into account women's and men's respectiveroles, needs and rights as well as inequalities between them?

2. Multilateral programmes/projects: ■ Are gender relations/inequalities reflected in the documents

(to the extent possible also in budgets)?■ Implementation: How are women and men being affected by

the activities?

3. Goals/targets/objectives:■ Are they explicit about the reduction

of gender inequalities?■ Are women's rights implicitly at risk

of being jeopardised, e.g. access to health care?

4. Indicators: Are they appropriate to measure the progress of womenas well as men?

5. Equal opportunities: Is the multilateral partner institution committed to meeting the goal of gender equalityand gender balance?

GENDER IN MULTILATERAL COOPERATION

SHEET 13

Gender in Swiss delegationsand contributions

1. Gender-balance in Swiss delegations: Are competent women included in Swissdelegations?

2. Swiss interventions/statements/positionsetc.:■ Are rapid assessments/evaluations

undertaken in a gender-sensitive manner?

■ Are gender considerations (see Q8)adequately reflected?

3. Refer to the organisation's own genderpolicyMost of these international organisationshave their own gender policies, and some-times it is simple to refer to the organisa-tion's own policy during negotiations orwhen making comments on documentsand other policies.

«Policies and measures will be pursued in line with the following goals and targets: ... (j)Promoting child health and survival and reducing disparities between and within devel-oped and developing countries as quickly as possible, with particular attention to elimina-ting the pattern of excess and preventable mortality among girl infants and children; ...»Programme for Action for the Least Developed Countries for the Decade 2001–2010(A/CONF.191/11, para. 38) and reconfirmed in WSSD Plan of Implementation thanks toheavy lobbying on the part of the Swiss delegation

«... We share the view ofDenmark, Sweden and theUSA that UNDP's effortsin support of genderequality are not sufficient.Although we realise thatthe gender dimension isbeing mainstreamed ...we nevertheless have theimpression that the genderdimension is no longer atop priority for UNDP ...We would therefore urgeUNDP to clearly reconfirmgender equality as strate-gic priority of the organi-sation and to redouble itsefforts in this respect toadvance the status ofwomen. ...»extract from Swiss inter-vention at UNDPExecutive Board AnnualSession 2001

In Country Offices, Cooperation with multilateral and Bretton WoodsInstitutions■ In compliance with its status as a member, Switzerland is induced to take a stand on

various documents issued by the World Bank. These can comprise strategy documents,e.g. sector strategies, as well as Country Assessment Strategies (CAS's). In determiningthe Swiss position, the cooperation offices of the countries concerned are contacted anddrawn into the process, ever mindful of according due consideration to the aspects relat-ing to the equality of women and men. This holds equally true for the macroeconomicanalyses conducted within the framework of the IMF (Article 4 or HIPC).

■ In the course of the process leading to the finalisation of a PRSP, while fully aware of thefact that the country concerned is ultimately responsible for the unfolding of this process,those representing Switzerland can utilize their influence to assure that gender aspectsbe taken into account by invoking the national legal framework, international commit-ments, and the World Bank's strategy for the equality of men and women.

GENDER WEB-SITE

AWID Young Women and Leadership Programme http://www.awid.org/index.plToronto, ON (Canada)

Bridge, Development Gender http://www.ids.ac.uk/bridge Institute of Development Studies (IDS), University of Sussex, Brighton (UK)

DAC – OECD Gender Equality Homepage http://www.oecd.org/oecd/Paris (France)

DPU, Development Planning Unit http://www.ucl.ac.uk/dpu/University College London (UK)

Gender Information Exchange (genie) http://www.genie.ids.ac.uk/Hosted by Bridge at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton (UK)

IDS/ELDIS guide on Gender and Health documents http://www.eldis.org/gender/index.htm Hosted by the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton (UK)

ILO International Labour Organization – Gender http://www.ilo.org/dyn/gender/Equality ToolGeneva (Switzerland)

IUED Pole genre http://www.unige.ch/iued/new/Genève (Switzerland)

Syanda – Mainstreaming Gender Equality http://www.siyanda.org/Hosted by Bridge at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, Brighton (UK)

UN and Status of Women http://www.un.org/Conferences/Women/

UN Gateway on Advancement and Empowerment of http://www.un.org/womenwatch/Women (by DAW, UNIFEM, INSTRAW)

UNDP Gender in Development http://www.undp.org/gender/ New York (USA) http://www.undp.org/governance/gender.htm

UNESCO, Women and Gender Equality http://www.unesco.org/womenParis (France)

UNHCR Refugee Women http://www.unhcr.ch/cgi-bin/Geneva (Switzerland)

UNIFEM United Nations Development Fund for Women http://www.unifem.org/New York (USA)

UNRISD-United Nations Research Institute for Social http://www.unrisd.org/Development: Gender Justice, Development and RightsGeneva (Switzerland)

WHO World Health Organisation – Gender http://www.who.int/health_topics/gender/Geneva (Switzerland)

Women Ink. IWTC http://iwtc.org/New York (USA)

Worldbank GenderNet http://worldbank.org/gender/ Washington, D.C. (USA)

SHEET 1 DEFINITIONS - PreventionWeb

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