Our Journey through the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment

Silvia Sperandini (LR Nepal, 6-13 December 2014)

Key Principles emerged:

▪ Empowerment: capacity to make choices, and transformthem into actions and outcomes

▪ Being People Focussed: Strategies focussed on people, their vision, goals, pathways, etc.

▪ Self-generated solutions: Willingess to change isgenerated by women who proposed their own solutions

▪ Equal opportunities: Women, men, youth, Indigenous Peoples and other vulnarablegroups should have equal:

Voice and decision-making

Access to opportunities, productiveassets, services, benefits

▪ Overburdened by their daily workload

▪ Face specific challenges in accessing inputs, land and natural resources, services, education/trainings, technologies

▪ Cannot access formal financial services due to the lack of collateral

▪ Have no voice in decision-making at the household level but also in the community

▪ Face nutrition and health problems

Gender inequalities in rural development:

▪ Community based organizations:

Encouraging new small business

Investing in knowledge, skills, assets, services

Supporting income-generating activities

Mobilizing peer-to-peer support and mentoring

▪ Men Champions

▪ Clear visions

▪ Group cohesion

▪ Effective community mobilization

▪ Strong partners/could act as agent ofchange

Opportunities

Strenghts

Outcomes/Achievements:

▪ Increased knowledge, skills, self-confidence

▪ Access to finance (+ more savings)

▪ Opportunity to participate and benefit from profitable economic activities;

▪ Increased presence, voice and influence in rural organizations;

▪ Achieved a more equitable balance in workloads

▪ Gained a better sharing of economic and social benefits

Lessons Learnt:

▪ Community-based organizations with the wide range of opportunities provided are crucial for women’s empowerment

▪ Economic development alone cannot address gender inequalities and promote women empowerment (need for social mobilization, peer-to-peer support, household mentoring)

▪ Women’s heavy workload remain a key issue that often limits women’s productivity and involvement in economic activities

Labor-saving technologies

Household methodologies

Dhanyabad

Don’t stop the Journey, be a Champion!

And now?