Governance

Citation:

Ordoñez García, María Elena, Alexandra Pazmiño Montilla, and María Cristina Burgos Flores. 2012. Diagnóstico de la situación de las mujeres desde el enfoque de género en el ámbito organizativo, político y socioeconómico en nueve municipios del Departamento de Nariño. New York: UNDP.

Authors: María Elena Ordoñez García, Alexandra Pazmiño Montilla, María Cristina Burgos Flores

Abstract:

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: 

The law establishes that the territorial entities at all levels must promote policies, programs and projects of protection and integral promotion for women.

This transformative aspect that the municipality can have is relevant when we talk about one of the outstanding issues in the mayoralties of our country: gender equity. In fact, although this issue has a growing importance in the agendas of civil society, in academic circles and in departmental and national governments, it faces, in contrast, a timid reflex in the dynamics proposed by municipal governments.

At a departmental level, efforts were made to consolidate instances of political and social interlocution that have opened spaces for legitimization and visibility of the role of women. Even the existing cultural, political and public order conditions continue to perpetuate the male power par excellence and the invisibility of the role of women as managers of development.

Until now, a large part of the local actions "with sensitivity to gender issues" have focused on raising awareness of social issues such as violence against women within families. Undoubtedly, this situation represents a serious problem in the daily life of women in the municipalities of the Department of Nariño.

SPANISH ABSTRACT:

La ley establece que los entes territoriales a todos los niveles deben promover políticas, programas y proyectos de protección y promoción integral para las mujeres. 

Este aspecto transformador que puede tener el municipio, es relevante cuando hablamos de uno de los temas pendientes en las alcaldías de nuestro país: la equidad de género. En efecto, a pesar de que este tema tiene una importancia creciente en las agendas de la sociedad civil, en los medios académicos y en los gobiernos departamentales y nacional, enfrenta, en contraste, un reflejo tímido en las dinámicas propuestas por los gobiernos municipales. 

A nivel Departamental se trabajó en consolidar instancias de interlocución política y social que ha abierto espacios de legitimación y visibilización del papel de las mujeres, aún las condiciones culturales, políticas y de orden público existentes, siguen perpetuando el poder masculino por excelencia y la invisibilización del rol de las mujeres como gestoras del desarrollo. 

Hasta ahora, gran parte de las acciones locales “con sensibilidad al tema de género”, se han enfocado a la sensibilización de problemáticas sociales como la violencia contra las mujeres al interior de las familias. Sin duda, esta situación representa un grave problema en la vida cotidiana de las mujeres en los municipios de del Departamento de Nariño. 

Topics: Gender, Women, Gender-Based Violence, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equity, Governance Regions: Americas, South America Countries: Colombia

Year: 2012

Citation:

Sulle, Emmanuel, Sue Mbaya, Barbara Codispoti, Josephine Atananga, Bernard Moseti, and Leah Mugehera. 2019. “Women’s Land Rights in Africa: Does Implementation Match Policy?” Paper presented at Conference on Land Policy in Africa, 2019: Winning the fight against Corruption in the Land Sector: Sustainable Pathway for Africa’s Transformation, Abidjan, November 25-29.

Authors: Emmanuel Sulle, Sue Mbaya, Barbara Codispoti, Josephine Atananga, Bernard Moseti, Leah Mugehera

Abstract:

This paper assesses the performance of selected countries in implementing the provisions of women’s land rights instruments such as African Union Framework and Guidelines on Land Policy in Africa and the Voluntary Guidelines on Responsible Governance of Tenure among others. Field research was carried out in seven African countries whereby, in each country a national researcher in collaboration with the collaborating nongovernmental organisation selected three heterogeneous locations which capture the range of situations under which rural women use land. Based on field research results complemented with desk review, the study finds that while statutory laws to protect women land rights are in place in all studied countries, with some differences and, in some cases with existing loopholes, adherence to these laws at the community level remain inadequate. This is particularly evident in terms of equality of rights to inherit land among men and women. Women experience constant threat from clansmen and relatives of their husbands. As also documented elsewhere, in many African communities (although not all), most land-holding systems are male lineage based, with men playing an important decision-making role. Malawi represents a specific case in this regard, as most land-holdings are based on matrilineal systems, but this still is not an automatic guarantee of women having more decision-making power on land. Based on these findings the paper confirms that while impressive steps to address women’s land rights issues have been taken in recent African policies, law enforceability is yet to receive sufficient political backing, due to widespread patriarchal values, limited financial and human resources and last but not least informal rules of the games that are the same drivers of widespread corruption. Patronage, ‘clientage’, illegality and opacity of land transactions find fertile ground in a patriarchal system. Understanding the status, causes and consequences of the de facto ‘unenforceability’ of constitutional and legal provisions in favour of women might shed a light on much broader challenges like those addressed in this conference. Holistic implementation and reforms that 1) address existing loopholes in land laws and regulation, 2) align other sectoral policies, laws and regulations, and 3) use transformative actions to revert patriarchal values in order to bridge the gender gap in property rights, but also to help creating a fairer environment to contribute combating corruption.

Topics: Corruption, Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Patriarchy, Gender Hierarchies, Land Tenure, Governance, Constitutions, NGOs, Rights, Land Rights, Property Rights Regions: Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa Countries: Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Togo

Year: 2019

Citation:

Adendorff, C. M., Harvey Keown, and Ric Amansure. 2020. “The Development of a Socio-Economic Model to Promote Women’s Empowerment Initiatives in the Renewable Energy Sector of South Africa.” Journal of Energy in Southern Africa 31 (2): 34-47.

Authors: C. M. Adendorff, Harvey Keown, Ric Amansure

Abstract:

This study investigates the main contributors that can positively influence the socio-economic empowerment of women in the renewable energy sector in the Republic of South Africa, and recommends new and innovative approaches to mainstream gender in the sector. Empirical evidence showed that ethical leadership positively influences good governance and successful women's empowerment. The results also indicated that social investment and broad-based black economic empowerment positively influence successful women's empowerment. Finally, the results indicated that sustainable programmes are a positive contributing factor to good governance. However, the respondents did not consider stakeholder engagement statistically significant to good governance or successful women's empowerment. This study also has the potential to contribute to the improvement of impoverished communities in South Africa and elsewhere.

Keywords: socio-economic empowerment, empowerment of women, mainstream gender, renewable energy, local economic development

Topics: Economies, Poverty, Gender, Women, Gender Mainstreaming, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy, Race Regions: Africa, Southern Africa Countries: South Africa

Year: 2020

Citation:

Sutz, Philippine, Amaelle Seigneret, Mary Richard, Patricia Blankson Akapko, Fati Alhassan, and Mamadou Fall. 2019. A Stronger Voice for Women in Local Land Governance: Effective Approaches in Tanzania, Ghana and Senegal. London: International Institute for Environment and Development. 

Authors: Philippine Sutz, Amaelle Seigneret, Mary Richard, Patricia Blankson Akapko, Fati Alhassan, Mamadou Fall

Abstract:

Pressures on land have been on the rise over the past two decades across subSaharan Africa, notably due to increasing commercial interests fuelled by global demand for agricultural commodities. In Tanzania, Ghana and Senegal, such pressures have exacerbated tenure insecurity for rural populations and resulted in numerous cases of dispossession and displacement.

In many cases, rural livelihoods are being undermined: increased competition and reduced access to land impact communities’ economic development, sometimes threatening food security, and bear significant impacts on wellbeing and sociocultural identities. Communities with fragile and exclusionary governance structures are more likely to lose out. Although important progress has been made in terms of legal empowerment – including women’s empowerment –, local land governance systems across the three countries studied remain weak and gender-discriminatory.

Vulnerable members – in particular women – often hold little to no control over land and are significantly under-represented in decision-making processes, although situations can vary across areas. As a result, they tend to be more severely affected by the impacts of commercial pressures on land.

This highlights a need to address exclusion and gender-discrimination in local level governance structures. The rationale underlining this idea is that increasing social cohesion and making decision-making arrangements more participative and gender-equitable will strengthen a community’s capacity to collectively discuss and deliberate on land-related matters.

This report focuses on initiatives that have been taking place in Tanzania, Ghana and Senegal since 2016, and that aim to reinforce governance structures to make them inclusive and gender-inclusive in response to the challenges aforementioned. The approaches they developed aim to support women in entering the political space and participate meaningfully in land governance. In Tanzania, where village authorities play a key role in local land governance, the Tanzania Women Lawyers Association (TAWLA) has been working with village councils across several districts to support the adoption of gender-sensitive village bylaws promoting more inclusive and participative land governance.

In Ghana, the Network for Women’s Rights (NETRIGHT) and the Grassroots Sisterhood Foundation (GSF) have overseen the establishment of local, gender sensitive governance committees in nine communities. These advise traditional authorities in land-related decision-making processes, reflecting a local context where customs play a key role in land management.

In Senegal where customary land tenure has been abolished and land management has been devolved to the municipal level, Innovation Environnement Développement en Afrique (IED Afrique) has piloted the reform of a local government body responsible for land management. The aim is to promote the inclusion and participation of women and the adoption of a local land charter.

The report presents each initiative and associated outcomes and lessons, and then reflects on their broader implications for the future of work on gender and land rights.

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Governance, Land Grabbing, Rights, Land Rights, Security, Food Security Regions: Africa, East Africa, West Africa Countries: Ghana, Senegal, Tanzania

Year: 2019

Citation:

Łapniewska, Zofia. 2019. “Energy, Equality and Sustainability? European Electricity Cooperatives from a Gender Perspective.” Energy Research & Social Science 57 (November).

Author: Zofia Łapniewska

Abstract:

The European electricity market and energy security have recently become heatedly discussed topics at the European Union level. In many countries, political and financial support for the transition towards renewable energy systems during the last two decades have encouraged the establishment of a substantial number of new electricity cooperatives. Cooperatives, as social enterprises, demonstrate attachment to values such as equity and equality in their actions, thus they might be perceived as women-friendly entities. However, little empirical research on that topic has been carried out in the European Union so far. The pilot study presented in this paper fills this gap by determining if gender perspective is reflected in the European electricity cooperatives’ declarations and actions and whether this perspective is related to cooperative size, adopted mode of governance and cultural determinants of the region/country. This paper shows why gender equality is valuable to electricity cooperatives and how the presented research results may be useful to practitioners, researchers and policy makers.

Keywords: electricity cooperatives, energy, gender perspective, gender equality, European Union

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Gender Equity, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy Regions: Europe

Year: 2019

Citation:

Nel, D., and C. Joel. 2019. “The Transformation of Governance in the South African Energy Sector: Critical Considerations for Gender Mainstreaming.” Journal of Contemporary Management 16 (1): 313-32.

Authors: D. Nel, C. Joel

Abstract:

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, views gender equality as a basic human right. SDG 5 emphasises that the end of discrimination in all sectors across the globe, is essential to achieve SDG 5. SDG 7 calls for affordable and clean energy. Consequently, affordable energy and energy efficiency is a basic prerequisite for socio-economic development, whereas clean energy, is an essential component for preventing environmental degradation and resource depletion. Based on these SDGs, it is important that equal rights in terms of gender be reflected in the energy sector to achieve sustainable development. Gender inequality limits womans’ opportunities to participate in policy- and decision-making in terms of energy resource governance. Gender mainstreaming addresses the inequality of women and therefore implies a shift in the role of women in the energy sector. This article aims to discuss the interrelationship of the energy sector and gender mainstreaming, to work towards achieving SDGs 5 and 7. The analysis in this article is based on a qualitative approach, using unobtrusive research techniques. Data was collected through a desktop study, using secondary data, including scholarly papers and books, reports from the United Nations, ministerial websites, relevant news articles, unsolicited government reports and policies. An analysis was done to determine the development of the level of female representation at the executive decision-making level in the energy sector in South Africa. The results indicate that male representation is higher than female representation’, which may indicate, unequal access to participation in energy resource governance, which would reinforce an unequal gender power balance. Although there has been an improved effort from government in terms of gender mainstreaming and empowerment, a number of barriers remain, including a lack of gender-sensitive policies, awareness, information, and employment equity. The South African government has made some progress in terms of gender mainstreaming and there seems to be improvement in some areas in the energy value chain. However, these efforts have been fragmented and disjointed and not much has been achieved in terms of gender mainstreaming in the policy process and implementation.

Keywords: energy governance, energy resource management, gender mainstreaming, Sustainable Development Goals

Topics: Gender Mainstreaming, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equality/Inequality, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Regions: Africa, Southern Africa Countries: South Africa

Year: 2019

Citation:

Villamor, Grace B., Dawit Guta, Utkur Djanibekov, and Alisher Mirzabaev. 2018. “Gender Specific Perspectives among Smallholder Farm Households on Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus Issues in Ethiopia.” ZEF-Discussion Papers on Development Policy No. 258, Zentrum für Entwicklungsforschung / Center for Development Research (ZEF), University of Bonn.

Authors: Grace B. Villamor, Dawit Guta, Utkur Djanibekov, Alisher Mirzabaev

Abstract:

The water-energy-food security nexus concept is a widely recognized analytical approach to consider and achieve sustainable development goals. However, the water-energy-food security nexus concept has mostly been analyzed at higher scales in a top-down manner, while examples of bottom-up and local scale applications remain limited. Breaching this gap, the research presented in this paper describes and assesses the water-energy-food nexus from a smallholder farm household perspective in the context of rural Ethiopia through a gender-specific lens. We adopted the “Actors, Resources, Dynamics and Interactions” participatory approach to co-develop a mental model of this nexus concept. Using this approach, we were able to examine the key elements and interlinkages among major nexus related resources that affect management according to gender. The results indicate that there are four aspects that differentiate between male and female farm household management with respect to the water-energy-food nexus. These differences include gender specific productive roles, perceptions of target resources, access to external actors, and decision making with respect to target resource management and utilization, which may affect the dynamics and governance of important components of the water-energy-food nexus.

Keywords: ARDI method, bottom-up approach, energy-food-land linkages, gender roles, intrahousehold heterogeneity, mental model

Topics: Agriculture, Gender, Gender Roles, Governance, Households, Infrastructure, Energy, Water & Sanitation, Livelihoods, Security, Food Security, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Regions: Africa, East Africa Countries: Ethiopia

Year: 2018

Citation:

Maduekwe, Monica, Ellen Morris, Jennye Greene, and Victoria Healey. 2019. “Gender Equity and Mainstreaming in Renewable Energy Policies—Empowering Women in the Energy Value Chain in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).” Current Sustainable/Renewable Energy Reports 6: 13–21.

Authors: Monica Maduekwe, Ellen Morris, Jennye Greene, Victoria Healey

Abstract:

Purpose of Review: Using practice theories as the analytical framework, this paper assesses the potential of the Economic Community of West African States’ (ECOWAS) first ever regional policy on Gender Mainstreaming in Energy Access to produce the desired behavioral changes envisioned.

Recent Findings: The policy came to fruition after a multi-year, multi-stakeholder effort of research, advocacy, and consensus building; all spearheaded by an institution of the community, the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE). The success of the ECOWAS policy has led to the development of a related regional level legal instrument, monitoring protocols, institutional evolutions, as well as replication efforts in other African regions.

Summary: The policy’s provisions were aimed at changing the mind-sets and, eventually, behaviors of people concerned and were designed in order to increase its chances of successful implementation; however, the onus lies on the constituent governments of the community to provide incentives for its full and effective implementation in order to guarantee its success.

Keywords: gender-responsive energy policies, women's empowerment, ECOWAS, energy access, gender equality

Topics: Gender, Women, Gender Mainstreaming, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equity, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy Regions: Africa, West Africa

Year: 2019

Citation:

Mohideen, Reihana. 2020. “Gender-Inclusive Energy: The Nepal Case.” In Women and the Energy Revolution in Asia, 39–58. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Author: Reihana Mohideen

Abstract:

The Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), Nepal, provides an important real-world example that illustrates the role that governments can and do play in spawning technological development for socio-economic benefits, including addressing social and gender equity issues related to differential access to energy-based technologies. The AEPC is a special case as an institution in the energy sector, because it attempts to address social and gender equity considerations in the development of the renewable energy sector in Nepal and in the delivery of renewable energy technologies and services to rural communities.

Topics: Gender, Gendered Power Relations, Gender Equity, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy Regions: Asia, South Asia Countries: Nepal

Year: 2020

Citation:

Clancy, Joy S., and Nthabiseng Mohlakoana. 2020. “Gender Audits: An Approach to Engendering Energy Policy in Nepal, Kenya and Senegal.” Energy Research & Social Science 62 (April): 101378.

Authors: Joy S. Clancy, Nthabiseng Mohlakoana

Abstract:

Gender audits are an approach for putting gender on the policy agenda and are an alternative to gender budgets being less dependant on experts in government finance.

This paper explores the effectiveness of gender audits as an approach to mainstreaming in the energy sector which has lagged other sectors in mainstreaming gender. The assessment takes the experiences of an international network on gender and sustainable energy that aims to get gender onto the energy policy agenda. Since there is no standard audit methodology, the network developed its own.

The paper uses an analysis of qualitative data, reviews of audit reports and key informant interviews to answer two questions. As a result of gender audits, have gender issues or attending to women's particular interests been incorporated in energy policy? Did participation in an audit build the capacity of national actors to contribute to gender mainstreaming in the energy sector? Detailed data comes from network countries conducting audits: Kenya, Senegal and Nepal, with supporting evidence from 8 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

The gender audit methodology used is partially effective in integrating gender issues into government energy policy. Pragmatic, conceptual and political barriers to gender mainstreaming continue to operate. Adopting gender-aware policies occurs rapidly in organisations that participated in the audits. Male employees more readily accept gender policies when they see that policies also benefits men. In the audit countries, a group of national gender and energy experts has been established able to contribute to mainstreaming gender in the energy sector.

Keywords: gender mainstreaming, gender audits, energy policy, engendering policy, knowledge networks, gender capacity, mainstreaming effectiveness

Topics: Gender, Gender Analysis, Gender Budgeting, Gender Mainstreaming, Governance, Infrastructure, Energy Regions: Africa, East Africa, West Africa, Asia, South Asia Countries: Kenya, Nepal, Senegal

Year: 2020