Gender in climate change, agriculture, and natural resource policies: Insights from East Africa
This article (PDF) in the Climatic Change journal analyzes the extent of gender integration in agricultural and natural resource policies in Uganda and Tanzania, and how gender is budgeted for in implementation plans at district and lower governance level. Effective gender mainstreaming requires that gender is sufficiently integrated in policies, development plans, and implementation strategies, supported by budgetary allocations. The results show that whereas there is increasing gender responsiveness in both countries: 1) Gender issues are still interpreted as “women issues”, with very little attention to men’s vulnerability to climate change; 2) There is disharmony on how gender is prioritized in policy planning, integrated in policy documents and implemented at local level; 3) Budgeting for gender is not yet fully embraced by governments 4) Allocations to gender at sub-national level remain inconsistently low with sharp differences between estimated and actual budgets; and 5) Gender activities do not address any structural inequalities. So, although there are variations in the extent to which gender is integrated, there is a shift towards integrating gender in policies. However, work remains to be done to move towards more effective execution of gender mainstreaming in policy and practice. To do so, there is an apparent need to improve the understanding of gender (mainstreaming) as well as to build the capacity of policy makers and development practitioners across governance levels. Further, capacity building of government officials and practitioners requires that researchers work with governments and non-state actors to collectively develop tools and guidelines for capacity building and supporting practitioners to apply the acquired knowledge. Lastly, regulatory frameworks need to be supported with gender-responsive planning and coordination tools at local government level so that the secured funds are used appropriately.