GHANA HIV&AIDS NETWORK ( GHANET ) SGBV CAPACITY BUILDING SESSION 23 RD DECEMBER, 2013

Outline  Gender Terms and Definitions  Gender Integration Continuum  Gender Integration into the Program cycle

Gender Terms and Definitions Sex refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women. Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women.

Gender Terms and Definitions Sex roles are defined by biological differences between men and women. For instance, pregnancy and child bearing are female sex roles that cannot be assumed by men Gender roles are social differences between men and women determined by society. E.g. most cultures define child rearing as a female role, although there is no biological reason why it cannot be done by men.

characteristics of sex and gender roles

Gender identity refers to one’s sense of oneself as a man, a woman or transgender Gender Equity is the process of being fair to women and men. To ensure fairness, measures must be taken to compensate for historical and social disadvantages that prevent women and men from operating on a level playing field.

Gender Equality is the state or condition that affords women and men equal enjoyment of human rights, socially valued goods, opportunities, and resources. Gender Sensitivity is the ability to recognize gender issues, especially women’s distinct perceptions and interests arising from their gender roles. Gender sensitivity is the beginning of gender awareness, where you become more analytical, and more questioning of gender disparities.

Sexual rights include the human rights of women and men to have control over and decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality. Sexuality is a broad term covering sexual identity (if you call yourself gay, lesbian or straight), sexual orientation (who you are attracted to), sexual behavior (you may describe yourself ‘gay’ but you are bisexual in your behavior), and sexual preferences (with older or younger people or a particular racial group).

Gender stereotyping occurs when certain characteristics or roles are persistently attributed to men or women, thereby creating the belief that these are invariably linked to gender. For instance, the perception that all women are weak and caring and that all men are strong and able to make important decisions are frequently encountered gender stereotypes. Gender stereotyping reinforces gender inequality by portraying assumptions and conditions that maintain the inequality as biologically or culturally fixed.

Gender sensitivity is the ability to recognize gender issues, especially women’s distinct perceptions and interests arising from their gender role. Gender sensitivity is the beginning of gender awareness, where you become more analytical, and more questioning of gender disparities.

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Gender Integration refers to strategies applied in project/program assessment, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation to take gender norms into account and to compensate for gender-based inequalities. Gender Mainstreaming is the process of incorporating a gender perspective into policies and administrative functions, as well as into the institutional culture of an organization.

Integration Continuum To guide various projects on how to integrate gender into programs, the IGWG has developed a conceptual framework known as the Gender Integration Continuum. This framework categorizes approaches by how they treat gender norms and inequities in the design, implementation, and evaluation of program and policy.

G ENDER I NTEGRATION C ONTINUUM

Gender Integration into HIV&AIDS Programming The programme cycle consists of three main elements: planning (design) delivery (implementation and management) assessment (monitoring and evaluation) Reasons for mainstreaming gender in the HIV&AIDS programme cycle  To ensure that the project benefits men and women equitably;  To address gender-specific challenges for the successful implementation of the HIV and AIDS project;  To formulate strategies that ensure the full participation of men and women; and  To ensure that the project activities are aligned with women and men’s needs and conveniences.

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The gender integration continuum is a tool for designers and implementers to use in planning how to integrate gender into their programs/policies. Under no circumstances should programs take advantage of existing gender inequalities in pursuit of health outcomes (“do no harm!”)

Gender-focused goals, objectives and expected results Increased equal access and control over health services by Children, women and men, including services for HIV prevention and AIDS care; Increase in equal access and control over community and social support services by women and men, including counselling, mutual support and income-generation activities; Increased and equitable distribution income and employment opportunities for women and men; Decreased workload for women and men; Enhanced skills for women and men; Improvement and greater equality in the cultural perceptions and the social and legal status of women and men; Better and more equal access to social services (education, health); Changing legal frameworks on issues of gender violence, inheritance and land rights; Changing images about women and men;

Enhance d s elf-image and confidence of women and members of disadvantaged group s ; Politic al and public participation; Enhance d participation in public life by women and disadvantaged group s ; Enhanced decision-making at household level by women; Improve d physic al integrity for both women and men; Enhance d inter- spousal dialogue on sexuality ; Enhance d heath and nutritional status ; and Reduction of violence.

Gender-focused inputs Inputs are the resources – human, material (including information) and financial – that are required to facilitate and support the achievement of the programme’s goals and expected results. They should be defined within a gender perspective: They should ensure that the needs and concerns of women and men are considered. Roles to be played by women and men as technical experts, facilitators and advisors should be looked into. Financial resources for activities involving women and men should be allocated equally.

Gender-focused situational analysis HIV and AIDS programmes are affected by the socio-cultural, political and economic context within which they operate. It is important to understand the opportunities and constraints that may affect the programme’s ability to address gender relations and inequalities. Some factors to consider include: Macro-economic policies and their impact on different social groups; Privatisation of health and education services and impact on disadvantaged groups, especially women; User fees for health care may deter the poor from obtaining treatment for AIDS-related illnesses; and Women tend to be affected more than men because they generally have less access than men to funds to pay for medical care.

Gender issues in the delivery phase Programme delivery involves the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of project activities. The following are important considerations for gender mainstreaming in programme implementation: Ensure that the implementation plan is clear on how the gender oriented objectives and expected outputs will be implemented and monitored. Ensure that the programme should sensitize communities, institutions and policy makers on gender dynamics of HIV and AIDS. Consider whether the implementation focus of a programme is on women’s activities or whether it systematically translates the gender objectives to activities for involving and benefiting both women and men in a community or organization. Utilize strategies that promote an enabling environment for the successful implementation of activities with a gender perspective in the area of AIDS service delivery. Conduct activities that support ongoing advocacy work on gender issues at community, national and international levels.

Gender issues in the monitoring and evaluation phase It is important to develop a monitoring and evaluation plan with gender sensitive indicators during the planning stages of a programme. This plan should include procedures for collecting data that can demonstrate how different groups have benefited from the programme.

Develop gender-sensitive monitoring indicators. Develop a systematic monitoring plan that can trace the impact of the implemented activities, both quantitatively and qualitatively. Review monitoring tools to ensure they are able to collect and analyse the impact of the activities with a gender focus. When developing indicators, make sure that the data to be collected is disaggregated by sex, age and, if possible, class. Ensure that there are verifiable indicators that focus on the benefit of the programme to women, men and youth. Make sure that all monitoring data is collected and reported by sex, age and other significant variables.