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Gendered Governance

Implementing Gender Policy to Improve Aid Effectiveness

Advancing gender equality in developing countries is not simply about increasing the number of women in wage employment; the quality of work, level of pay and competing domestic priorities are not considered from this approach.  It’s not simply about development focused only on women; engaging positively with both men and women is equally an effective way to improve women’s standard of living.   Focusing on health and education indicators provides only half the picture; increasing women’s access to and ability to control economic and political resources without fear of violence or coercion is equally important.

Celebrating 30 years in existence, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) has made a significant contribution to increasing gender equality across the globe. 2005 was a significant year for reflection on progress: a 5-year review of the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) and a 10-year review of the progress towards the Beijing Platform for Action were conducted.  UNIFEM advocates that increasing gender equality is critical to achieving all of the MDGs ; it’s a vital element of poverty reduction and national development.   However, in order for the third MDG to be achieved by 2015, there are still many challenges to be overcome.  Unfortunately, the impact of development efforts can be undermined if there is a lack of political will and accountability at the international and domestic levels, in both developing and developed countries, to implement gender policies. 

Seeking to improve aid effectiveness, the Paris Declaration on Partnership Commitments underpins the “new” international aid architecture.   Targets and progress indicators were set and endorsed at international and national levels in 2005.  The “newness” of this global good governance framework is based on a “shared understanding” of thinking about achieving results at every stage of development initiatives and continuous monitoring progress.   The Paris Declaration focuses on guiding the process or mechanism for achieving results; the content or direction of aid is guided by the MDGs.   In a recent discussion paper, UNIFEM points out that gender equality is not well mainstreamed into this new aid agenda.  This is a critical point as without clear political commitment and accountability, gender equality will not be advanced. Australia’s new strategic framework for aid is clearly committed to promoting gender equality, stating that its integral to good governance.

But how do you ensure that promises made in 2005 are delivered?  What are the tools for capturing positive changes in women’s status and gender relations? Commitment to gender equality is demonstrated by appropriate financial and human resources, stakeholder support and accountability, and gender mainstreaming at all stages of development. Key tools (such as gender budget analysis, gender organisational analysis, gender statistics and indicators) can be used to rectify gaps in the global governance framework to ensure gender equality is prioritised.  

As a major sponsor of the International Women’s Development Agency’s (IWDA) 2-day symposium in Canberra, 15 -19 June 2006, HAI demonstrated commitment to prioritising gender equality. The symposium, facilitated by the lead author of the UN Millennium Project Task Force report , aimed to stimulate dialogue and ‘buy-in’ across the sector on key gender indicators that would track progress in ensuring gender equality is at the heart of aid and development.  

HAI has also demonstrated its commitment to reducing the gap between policy commitments and implementation of gendered governance initiatives. The following articles on gender initiatives, under the Indonesia Australia Specialised Training Project Phase III (IASTPIII) and the China Australia Governance Program (CAGP), are both commended for good practice. They demonstrate examples of the “how to” in addressing the MDG3, which is key to the continuous improvement in quality and effective aid delivery.

For further information about CAGP and IASTPIII, please visit our website: www.hassall.com.au

Antonia Kaucz akaucz@hassall.com.au

Thomas, P 2006, ‘Does Women’s Share of Wage Employment Indicate Gender Equity and Empowerment’ in Measuring Gender Equality, Development Bulletin No. 71 September 2006, Development Studies Network, Canberra.

AusAID Gender and Development Review, 2001, found that Australian aid programs had a mixture of WID and GAD approaches.

UNIFEM 2006 http://www.unifem.org/campaigns/30th_anniversary/achievements.php. (accessed 1/11/06).

UNIFEM 2006, ‘Promoting Gender Equality in New Aid Modalities and Partnerships’, UNIFEM Discussion Paper – March 2006, p.3.

MDG3 is the promotion of gender equality and empowerment of women.

The five principles of the Paris Declaration (2005) are: ownership; alignment; harmonisation; results; and mutual accountability. Accompanying the principles are related indicators, action plans and guidelines.  <http://www.mfdr.org/sourcebook/2-1Paris.pdf> (accessed 1/11/06). 

Boer, J and Purdue, B 2006, Managing for Development Results. Principles in Action: Sourcebook on Emerging Good Practice.

Op.cit., UNIFEM 2006, p. 3; Op. cit., Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, p.v.

Op.cit., UNIFEM 2006.

AusAID 2006, Australian Aid: Promoting Growth and Stability. A White Paper on the Australian Government’s Overseas Aid Program, Canberra, p.22.

Grown, C., Gupta, G. R., Kes, A 2005, Taking action: Achieving gender equality and empowering women. Progress report on achieving gender equality and empowering women, Millenium Project, New York. 

Crawford, J 2006, ‘Introduction: Measuring progress towards gender equality: Developments, issues, challenges and directions’ in Measuring Gender Equality, Development Bulletin No. 71 September 2006, Development Studies Network, Canberra, p.8.