- Gender Mainstreaming Tool

Gender Mainstreaming

Gender Mainstreaming - is the process of assessing the implications for women, men, boys and girls of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in any area and at all levels. It is a strategy for making the concerns and experiences of all an integral part of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres, so that women, men, boys and girls benefit equally, and inequality is not perpetuated. The ultimate goal of mainstreaming is to achieve gender equality."

Implementation of this target will go a long way in ensuring that the Government promotes gender equality and empowerment of women as per the existing commitments in the Constitution of Kenya, the Third Medium Term Plan of Kenya Vision 2030 and numerous regional and international commitments on Gender Equality and empowerment of Women.

MDAs will be expected to undertake the following activities;

Set up and operationalize a Gender Management System (20%)
Mainstream Gender in MDAs workplace Policies, Plans and Programs (40%)
Undertake capacity building on Gender (30%)
Submit quarterly reports using the prescribed format to the State Department for Gender with a copy to the National Gender and Equality Commission (10%)

The National Gender and Equality Commission in close collaboration with the State Department for Gender and Affirmative Action with the will analyze MDAs annual reports and issue certificate at the end of the Performance Contract Period

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19th Cycle Performance Contracting Guidelines

THE GENDER EQUALITY INDICATORS

PCs are gauged against an agreed set of indicators that provide a clear framework for establishing accountability.

Accountability

Indicators should be able to directly contribute to the better performance by an institution in particular areas e.g. recruitment and promotion of specific SIGs based on their needs- and especially the bottlenecks

Relevance

Indicators should be identified that clearly support the equality and nondiscrimination objectives of the Constitution and Kenya’s Vision 2030 blue print;

Verifiable

The data used to calculate the indicators should be verifiable both in terms of its accuracy and appropriateness for the purpose

Quantifiable

Ideally the indicators should be quantifiable so that they can be summarized and viewed objectively

Timely

Effective in informing decision making, they need to be prepared and reported at such a frequency that supports the particular measure concerned

Cost-effective

To collect the data needed to populate the indicators should be cost effective.

Reporting guidelines for Gender mainstreaming.

MDAs are required to submit Quarterly Performance Reports to NGEC by the 15th day of the month succeeding the ended quarter

MDAs are required to submit an Annual Performance Reports detailing actual performance against targets contained in their specific performance contracts

MDAs are required to explain the quarterly and cumulative variances in performance

Wherever possible MDAs are required to capture trends by comparing annual reporting on specific indicators

MDAs should embed the collection of disaggregated data (by sex, age, ability) into routine work.

General guidelines

Any queries during evaluation should be referred to the M&E officer (NGEC), before moderation is undertaken

Ranking

Ranking of public institutions after completion of evaluation will be carried out only after the moderation exercise is completed

Targets

Once targets have been negotiated and the PC signed, they cannot be changed midstream

Some of common questions.

The statements captures some of the most frequently used terminologies or questions

Includes any measure designed to overcome or ameliorate an inequity or the systemic denial or infringement of a right or fundamental freedom.

Is defined under Article 260 of the Constitution as ‘any physical, sensory, mental, psychological or other impairment, condition or illness that has, or is perceived by significant sectors of the community to have, a substantial or long-term effect on an individual’s ability to carry out ordinary day-to-day activities’.

The concept of mainstreaming disability issues refers to the assessment of the implications for PWDs of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in any area and at all levels. It is a strategy for making the concerns and experiences of PWDs an integral part of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres, so that PWDs can benefit equally, and inequality is not perpetuated.

The concept of gender refers to a social construct, based on societal beliefs and norms and influenced by biological differences. Understandings about ‘gender’ are changeable, but certain aspects have been difficult to change, resulting in persistent differences between the males and females (men and women, boys and girls) in terms of what is considered appropriate behaviour for males and females (relative to each other), and the differences in social, economic and/or political power.

The definition adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 1997 (ECOSOC, 1997) describes gender mainstreaming as: … the process of assessing the implications for women and men of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels. It is a strategy for making women’s as well as men’s concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated

The UN Statement of Common Understanding on Human Rights-Based Approaches provides as follows: (i) all programmes of development co-operation, policies and technical assistance should further the realisation of human rights as laid down in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments; (ii) human rights standards contained in, and principles derived from, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments should guide all development cooperation and programming in all sectors and in all 20 phases of the programming process; and (iii) development cooperation should contribute to the development of the capacities of ‘duty-bearers’ to meet their obligations and/or of ‘rights-holders’ to claim their rights. The human rights principles are: universality and inalienability; indivisibility; inter-dependence and interrelatedness; non-discrimination and equality; participation and inclusion; accountability and the rule of law.