Gender and participatory evaluation

Ratna M. Sudarshan Institute of Social Studies Trust , New DelhiEvaluation Conclave, New Delhi, October

2010

Key Themes

• How should we evaluate progress towards gender equality? Many different trajectories of change

• Contribution/ limitations of using participatory methods in evaluation

• Significance of context: for design, method, analysis, recommendations

Evaluations at ISST: data

Paper based on analysis of evaluations carried out by researchers at ISST over the last 5 years:

A. ‘Concurrent evaluations’ for projects funded by ‘training of women for self employment’ programme, many implemented by NGOs

National programme of GOI, projects in all statesB. Impact assessments of NGO interventions for

women’s empowerment, livelihood, community mobilisation for change

Evaluating progress towards gender equality

• Varying strategies for change: all interventions start by organising women into groups, but differ in focus:– Individual growth vs collective approaches– Women-only vs community initiative with special

focus on women– Experiential vs more directional approach– Address immediate need vs underlying gendered

constraints

Evaluating progress towards gender equality

• Balancing non-linear experiences of implementation with expectations of commissioner - linear progress is ‘normal’

• Has the project done what it set out to do, within the allocated resources and time frame? With what measure of success?

• If not, what were the constraints, what factors impeded progress?

Evaluating progress: participatory methods help

• Design:– overall framework, sample selection

• Methods: – Structured/ semi structured interviews +– group discussions, open ended questions

• Analysis:– Understand strategies and process as well as

outputs and outcomes (as far as time allows)

Significance of context

• Socio-cultural: these interventions seek to change deep rooted social norms: what is realistic pace of change?

• Geographic: how accessible? What is feasible set of choices around livelihood, for example

• Donor-NGO relationship: how much flexibility in changing strategies, or relative emphasis, with experience gained

Evaluating progress: the nuancesExamples:• A project leads to higher income or earning potential:

but does it address impact on unpaid work and care; what would change?

• Adult women find work, adding to household income and their own eco empowerment – but are there inadvertent outcomes – eg irregular girls attendance in school; reduced milk consumption of children?

• Women receive training for new forms of income generating activity: but cannot question/ change seclusion norms: eg carpet weaving for own use, not for market

A gender lens does make a difference

• Training of adult women in growing medicinal plants for sale does not translate into actual production for the market: project did not factor in the fact of land ownership by men

• Challenge: Seeking sustainable change, progress towards gender equality and ‘empowerment’ – but trajectories of change not pre-determined; evaluation needs context specific progress markers

Evaluating progress: role of the evaluator

• Understanding and empathising with the underlying ‘theory of change’

• Developing context specific progress markers• Recognising non-linearity of change process,

positive aspects of conflict/ apparent backward movement

• Evaluation not just for the commissioner, equally so for implementing agency - informal discussions to encourage evaluation use

Lessons learnt..Participatory and context-sensitive approaches offer

an insightful lens for evaluationQuestioning of some established indicators of

progress towards gender equality Immense value in capturing the process of change as

well as outcomes Expecting change over 2-3 years linked to project

mode of funding: capacity building takes timeUnderstanding implementing agency phases into OD

analysis

Thank you!