Supporting Gender Equity through CDD Interventions

Uzma Hoque 21 June 2011

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this paper are the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), or its Board of Governors, or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this paper and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The countries listed in this paper do not imply any view on ADB's part as to sovereignty or independent status or necessarily conform to ADB's terminology.

Outline of Presentation
Why is gender important for CDD? How can CDD promote gender equality and womens

empowerment?
What are the key issues to consider to mainstream

gender in CDD projects?

Gender in CDD: Why is it Important

Poor women more at risk of exclusion than poor men less access to opportunities and resources and limited voice in community affairs. Gender cuts across different forms of exclusion. Specific gender sensitive approaches needed to ensure participation of both women and men. Failure to take womens issues into account in projects have negative impacts on women as well as the social and economic sustainability of projects. Gender sensitive CDD: women and men have equal voice in and gain equal benefits from the communitys development decisions. Gender aware CDD projects more effective and sustainable:

- meet the needs of different groups of men and women. - build ownership - a stake in the success of the project.
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CDD and Womens Empowerment

Well designed CDD projects empower women and

promote gender equality.

- Respond to womens practical needs - Increase potential for womens economic activity and support womens economic empowerment. - Increase womens participation in local planning/ decision making and mobilise positive social capital for women - break down barriers and support political and social empowerment of women.

Key Issues to Consider in Designing Gender Sensitive CDD projects

Importance of Gender analysis. Rules and procedures to promote womens

participation:

- Affirmative action / quotas for womens participation in meetings, decision- making bodies, preparation of proposals, etc.
- Separate meetings at convenient times; awareness raising on project and related benefits for women.

- Issue of elite women v poor women & separate proposals v mixed process.

Key Issues to consider in Designing Gender Sensitive CDD projects

- Additional transparency tools:

(i) social mapping of all community HH by socioeconomic status and sex of HH head to ensure infrastructure is located to benefit poor and FHH. (ii) community proposals evaluated against poverty impact, potential sustainability and majoritys preference. - Over time, project rules and requirements help to: Normalise womens participation and change cultural norms/attitudes; institutionalize affirmative action and womens roles within community bodies.

Key Issues to consider in Designing Gender Sensitive CDD projects

Promoting Womens Economic Empowerment:

- Civil works and O&M generate employment for women and sometimes increase womens entry into non-traditional fields (eg., technicians, meter readers, etc). - Credit for women needed but needs to be linked to appropriate training and services.
- Credit / training often reinforce womens traditional roles /marginal occupations and trades, eg., cooking, tailoring, handicrafts. - Need to support womens training and livelihood in locally marketable occupations/trades to increase womens income and reduce poverty .

Key Issues to consider in Designing Gender Sensitive CDD projects

Promoting Womens Political and Social Empowerment:

- Quotas/rules increased womens participation. But, additional efforts needed to support womens participation and leadership in community decision-making.
Training on citizenship and rights, leadership and team work, local

governance, public speaking, constituency servicing, etc., to build confidence and capacity of women to engage in local governance.
Provision of gender awareness and analysis training for local male

leaders to build support for gender issues.

Make linkages between the project and village planning processes.

Key elements/ issues and challenges to consider in designing gender sensitive CDD projects
Overall Project Design and Implementation

- Integration of gender strategies and gender action plans within government project guidelines and implementation manuals. - Gender indicators integrated into overall M&E

- Provision of gender training to staff to ensure basic understanding of the need for gender mainstreaming.
- Gender Specialist to guide implementation

THANK YOU