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Gender and social inclusion
Gender inequality is one of the key factors hampering wealth creation, poverty reduction and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in many developing countries. While international policy has made some progress towards addressing gender inequality, it needs to be converted into concrete changes on the ground, especially at the local level.
The resources available on this page all address the capacities required at the local level to address gender inequalities effectively. Sub topics include:
Decentralization: Decentralization increases the power of local governments and, by extension, their capacity to boost gender equality. What can local actors do to ensure that local governments actually mobile their powers to promote gender equality?
Leadership and power: Addressing gender inequalities starts with leadership and political will. One way to mobilize political will for gender equality is to get as many women as possible in leadership positions. Another way is to enhance gender sensitivity among male leaders.
Generating and analysing evidence on gender inequality: Evidence of gender inequality is a powerful resource for generating gender sensitivity and essential for developing effective gender policies. Monitoring mechanisms and gender analytical tools are therefore core capacities that local governments need to acquire.
Featured Article
World Development Report 2012: Gender equality and development
Policymakers and practitioners still face gaps in knowledge both in how gender equality
matters for development and how best to incorporate these links in policy design. The World
Development Report 2012 aims to bridge these gaps by building upon the growing body of
multidisciplinary theory, evidence, and data on these links while highlighting the knowledge gaps
that remain across the world in the context of the development process. The Report argues that
closing gender gaps is not only a core development objective in its own right, it is also smart
economics.
Recent Articles
Women Leading Change: Experiences promoting women's empowerment, leadership, and gender justice
13 April 2012
Published in March 2012, this publication features, four case studies describing experiences
from Cambodia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Indonesia in promoting women's political and economic
empowerment and leadership. The case studies describe the context in which women live, what
leadership means and how to achieve it. Attention is given to working within existing institutions
and cultural norms, and also to creating new institutions. The final section summarizes common
lessons and considerations for future policy and practice aiming to promote women's empowerment and
leadership.
Empowerment: A journey not a destination
19 January 2012
The DFID-funded
Pathways of Women’s Empowerment
Programme launched a synthesis report based on the findings and recommendations from five years
of research in London on 13th January. The report, entitled 'Empowerment: A Journey not a
Destination' draws on the collective works of 60 academic-activists in 12 countries on four
continents. With six companion policy papers and case studies, the publication shares the latest
learning and analysis on what works to enhance women’s empowerment in different parts of the
world.
World Development Report 2012: Gender equality and development
03 October 2011
Policymakers and practitioners still face gaps in knowledge both in how gender equality
matters for development and how best to incorporate these links in policy design. The World
Development Report 2012 aims to bridge these gaps by building upon the growing body of
multidisciplinary theory, evidence, and data on these links while highlighting the knowledge gaps
that remain across the world in the context of the development process. The Report argues that
closing gender gaps is not only a core development objective in its own right, it is also smart
economics.
Case study: Mainstreaming gender in local governance processes in Afghanistan
09 September 2011
To minimize gap between the Community
Development Councils and Provincial Government Organizations, Afghanistan’s National Area-Based
Development Programme (NABDA) started to establish District Development Assemblies (DDAs) in
2006. This case study describes the process used to mainstream gender in these local governance
processes and some of the concrete results achieved so far.
Social Equity and Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)
10 August 2011
This paper from the Global Water Partnership explores what it calls the least understood of the 3 E’s (equity, economic efficiency and environmental sustainability) in the concept of integrated water resources management. The paper sets out an overarching framework to guide decision makers in designing policies, interventions, and programmes aimed at the equitable distribution of benefits from water resources.
MoreWomen's leadership and participation
17 June 2011
Hoare, Joanna and Gell, Fiona,
Practical Action Publishing, 2009
Women are often denied the right to participate in decision-making, whether as active citizens, or as leaders. In particular, women living in poverty often have little opportunity to influence decisions and policies that will have a direct impact on the welfare of themselves, their communities, and their livelihoods. This book brings together lessons and experience in building up womens involvement from Oxfam GB and its partners.
MoreOther Topics
Essential Readings
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Rajesh Tandon (2010) "Voice, Values and Exclusion in CapacityDevelopment Processes: Experiences from India" in: Ubels, J., N. Acquaye-Baddoo and A. Fowler (eds) Capacity Development in Practice, Earthscan, pp. 93-100
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Gender equality for smarter cities: Challenges and progress (UN-HABITAT 2010)
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Assessing gender responsive local capacity development in Indonesia
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Helen O'Connell (2010) Preserve status quo or promote gender equality? Capacity.org Issue 40 (August 2010)
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Gender mainstreaming in local governments: Best practices (UN Habitat 2008)
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