2322UN Women Analysis On Women and SDGs
2322UN Women Analysis On Women and SDGs
2322UN Women Analysis On Women and SDGs
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
WOMEN AND SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT GOALS 1
With many thanks to the following for the analysis;
UN Women HQ Communications and Advocacy Section
UN Women ESAR Multi/ Country Offices
Simone ellis Oluoch-Olunya-Deputy Regional Director, UN Women ESAR
Florence Butegwa- Consultant on SDGs, UN Women ESAR
Jack Abebe-Knowledge Management and Research Specialist, UN Women ESAR
Martha Wanjala-Communications Assistant, UN Women ESAR
UN Women Communications and Advocacy Section in New York conducted an analysis of what
the 17 SDGs adopted mean to women in order to inform strategic interventions building on
the e orts of localization at country and regional levels. This analysis has been collated in this
publication and linked to UN Women Eastern and Southern Africa Regional and Country Office
priorities. Concrete examples programming interventions by UN Women country offices in the
region are pro led in relation to specific SDGs and how those streams of interventions could lead
to localization e orts. This has been done through an analysis of all annual reports submitted
by regional/ multi/country offices to identify work streams feeding into the localization of
sustainable development goals. The team comprising UN Women’s consultant on SDGs,
Knowledge Management and Research Specialist and UN Women’s Regional Communications
Assistant, under the leadership of the Deputy Regional Director, linked to existing analysis
provided by UN Women on Women and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The publication showcases how women are affected by each of the 17 proposed SDGs, as well as
how women and girls can — and will — be key to achieving each of these goals. Data and stories
of the impact of each SDG on women and girls is illustrated. UN Women Eastern and Southern
Africa region’s efforts and interventions as they relate to SDGs are also discussed under each
SDG, including our programmes, intergovernmental work and advocacy for policy change.
This publication is intended to help countries in Eastern and Southern Africa understand and
appreciate the linkages between SDGs and women and girls in their localization e orts and in
establishing various partnerships and networks that feed into the vision of localizing SDGs at
the country and regional levels.
The Sharefair gathered more than 100 innovators from 14 countries showcasing their technologies
displaying affordable ways to accelerate productivity, enhance value addition and income, improve
nutrition, save women’s time, and reduce postharvest losses. In addition, more than 300 registered
participants attended the event. The Sharefair promoted technologies and innovations that support
rural female smallholder farmers in the ESA region and brought together rural women farmers/
innovators, policymakers, academics, food producers, investors, financial service providers, and other
technology innovators.
The African/Alliance Women in Technology (AWIT) initiative was launched at the World Economic
Forum in Cape Town in June 2015. Initially a website has been developed and hosted by UN Women and
it gathers all the information associated with and emerging from this initiative www.empowerwomen.
org/cop/awit.
Through this initiative, UN Women is establishing a global alliance to promote upscaling of rural
technologies for women. The initiative expands on the Sharefair on Rural Women’s Technologies held
in October 2014 in Nairobi and builds on the shared intent to upscale some of the great innovations to
meet robustly identified critical needs of rural women in line with the sustainable development goals.
Photo: UNICEF/Sokol
In August 2014, UN Women ESARO in partnership with its regional partner “LVCT Health” and other
capacity building institutions working in the health sector, collaborated in the development of training
materials and in the facilitation of a training programme which utilized capacity-building, peer-to-
peer and mentorship models and tools, towards strengthening the leadership, management and
advocacy skills of networks and associations of WLHIV and HIV/AIDS Caregivers. The training materials
borrowed from existing training models and tools, and the in-puts of experts within the region. The
training also borrowed from the lessons the successes of the global HIV and AIDS movement which
successfully advocated for the development of national HIV/AIDS policies and strategies, and HIV-
responsive business practices. The overarching aim was to build the capacities of women leaders
within these networks and associations to influence national and regional frameworks and policies to
respond to gender issues within the context of efforts to control and manage HIV and AIDS. Currently,
the module is undergoing review and revision to align it with the SDG 3 on ensuring healthy lives and
promotion of wellbeing for all at all ages.
Photo: UNICEF/LeMoyne
Traditional and religious leaders have been consulted, trained and lobbied to implement and monitor
action plans to engage traditional leaders in support of girls’ education as well. Best practices in the
support of the development and implementation of bylaws promoting girls’ education have been
documented, shared and disseminated with communities for future replication. A National Girls’
Education Conference was also held in 2015. Advocacy activities included the organization of a film
premier, Mercy’s Blessing, and that touched issues of inequality between girls and boys, especially in
education. Overall, the advocacy activities focused on empowering children and youth to enable their
voices to be heard and to promote a more participatory approach to find solutions and address the
root causes of violence while addressing inequalities evident in the education system in Malawi and
contributing to the implementation of sustainable development goal 4 on Education.
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WOMEN AND SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT GOALS
cut the roots of gender discrimination wherever women for unpaid care. We promote women’s role
they appear. and leadership in humanitarian action, including in
conflict-prevention and efforts to ensure peace and
UN Women works to empower women and girls security. We advocate for ending violence, raise
in all of its programmes. Advancing women’s awareness of its causes and consequences and
political participation and leadership and economic boost efforts to prevent and respond, including
empowerment are two of the entity’s central ensuring the rights of women living with HIV. We
goals. UN Women supports more women to get also work to ensure that governments reflect the
on ballots, attain political office and go to polls needs of women and girls in their planning and
to vote. We assist women to secure decent jobs, budgeting, and engage men and boys, urging them
accumulate assets, and influence institutions to become champions of gender equality, including
and public policies, while underlining the need to through our HeForShe initiative.
recognize, reduce and redistribute the burden on
This directly falls within our ambit. UN Women is grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the
Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls;
the empowerment of women and girls; and the achievement of equality between women and men as
partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.
UN Women’s Regional focus varies in different countries depending on country specific needs but are
not limited to (i) expanding women’s leadership and participation; (ii) enhancing women’s economic
empowerment; and (iii) ending violence against women. In addition, UN Women in Eastern and
Southern Africa also actively participates and contributes to various UN inter-agency processes and
collaborates with UN organizations around specific programme areas and governments within the
UNCT frameworks to support and build development interventions feeding into the localization of
SDGs at country and regional levels. In 2015, for example, UN Women in Kenya supported the National
Gender and Equality Commission (NGEC) in improving the ability of the Commission to carry out
its mandated role to allow a transformative gender equality in Kenya to take place, UN Women and
NGEC entered into a partnership to work together on a programme for public and private sector.
The cooperation yielded many diverse and complimentary results. For example, a tool to measure
inclusivity at the county level and capacity development on gender responsive budgeting (GRB)
at the counties in Kenya was developed. The capacity of NGEC was also strengthened to lead the
monitoring of compliance on planned inclusivity in the final national budget in Kenya. UN Women’s
analysis showed that the financial year 2015/16 budget was prepared with a focus on pro-poor growth
and sustainable development and the emphasis was on strategic intervention areas.
In partnership with the UN Foundation, WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA, UN Women Uganda country
office systematically engaged the media in raising awareness of policy makers on women’s health
and energy service provision in health institutions. The project was aimed at bringing to light the
challenges that women face in accessing health services, especially maternal and child health services
in light of inadequate power and energy supply to health centres in Uganda. The media with support
from UN Women visited health centres in selected districts and produced many moving challenges
experienced by women especially during pregnancy.
The documented challenges have continued running in different media, with the result that Government
has adopted several resolutions to improve energy services in health centres for the benefit of women
and children. A multi-stakeholder consultation workshop was also held which helped in forming
thematic networks for collaboration, partnerships and advocacy for action. UN Women organized
consultations were meant to mobilize and advocate to gender, health and energy stakeholders in the
public and private sectors, CSOs, the UN system, and other partners to ensure electricity provision to
health facilities through sustainable energy improves health outcomes for women and girls, and also
for men and boys.
It was also used to identify and share best practices on health facility electrification, including through
renewable and efficient energy options, and ones that specifically address women’s and children’s
health by emphasizing gender concerns and involving gender stakeholders. It explored the extent
to which the policy environment is gender-responsive and supportive to providing energy access
across the health system and ways to induce progress and discussed means for inclusion of health
facility electrification in national energy and health planning and programming, especially low-carbon,
climate-resilient options. UN Women also used the consultations to identify funding opportunities –
in national budgets, via regional cooperation mechanisms, private financing or donor funding – that
could support expanded and reliable sustainable energy provision for health facilities that integrate
gender dimensions. UN Women Tanzania and South Sudan country offices have also been involved in
interventions around solar energy targeting women and contributing to the implementation of SDG 7
on ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all as well.
Since 2012, UN Women has invested heavily in building the capacity of women entrepreneurs in the
area of public procurement so that they have the practical skills and knowledge to submit winning bids
for government tenders. In 2015, UN Women in Kenya continued working in this area with a deeper
focus at the county level. Redirecting capacity building forums to the county level was needed due
to lower awareness levels than in Nairobi. In addition to working with MSE suppliers, UN Women also
supported dialogue platforms that brought together the buyers (i.e. Procurement Officers from Public
entities) in order to sensitize them on their role in the implementation of Preference and Reservations
Scheme (2011 and subsequent amendment regulations) as well as Financial Institutions to discuss the
critical issue of access to trade finance. Trade finance continues to be a big barrier for disadvantaged
groups who need access to affordable capital in order for them to service government contracts
within the stipulated time. This unique three pronged approach was effective and contributed towards
achieving UN Women’s goals of decent and economic growth for women which subsequently leads
to the implementation of SDG 8 on promoting sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth,
full and productive employment and decent work for all. Several countries in the region are working
on gender responsive budgeting as well.
In 2015, UN Women Eastern and Southern Africa significantly contributed to generating credible
evidence and knowledge on the positive impacts of investing in gender equality and women’s
empowerment and to building capacity for development impact. This led to successful advocacy that
influenced the development discourse, policies and actions in the region specifically, in agriculture
and extractive industries (EI).
UN Women has been able to demonstrate with evidence and data the substantive losses from
inequality through its study in the ‘Cost of the Gender Gap in Agriculture in Malawi, Tanzania and
Uganda’. The study documented that the gap between male and female farmers is large: 28-31% and
represents a significant amount of money: $67-105 million which can only be closed through smart(er)
interventions and subsequently take up to 400,000 people out of poverty in Malawi, Tanzania and
Uganda. Africa needs to close the gap premised on the fact that for Africa to achieve its 2063 vision
and SDGs, it is important to bring women to the heart of Africa’s development and transformation
and address inequalities affecting women in diverse sectors of the economy.
Three countries participated in the Cost of the Gender Gap in Agricultural Productivity Study including
Malawi, Uganda and Tanzania. The evidence documented on the loss in GDP due to the inequalities
documented shall form a basis for diverse interventions contributing to reduction of inequalities
among countries in Africa.
In line with the implementation of the Kigali Safe Cities programme, UN Women Rwanda and the
City of Kigali municipality has identified and implemented priority physical improvements on 14 mini-
markets. This activity which aimed at boosting employment in the informal sector allowed access
of women hawkers to safer and more productive markets. In general, women dominate the informal
street vending activities and are more prone to sexual and gender based violence and harassment in
public spaces. In collaboration with the City of Kigali, UN Women Rwanda has also contributed to the
construction of a mini market for City of Kigali hawkers.
The construction is at its initial stage and the layout and architectural designs indicate that the mini
market will have infrastructure and services such as storage facilities, running water, electricity, refuse
collection, sanitary and storage facilities, display space, toilets, and rubbish bays including exterior
fencing, car park for the clients and day care center for children for breastfeeding mothers. Street
women hawkers are optimistic that their livelihoods will improve and their safety will be guaranteed.
The approach of constructing safe mini markets for women and girls taken by the City of Kigali will
solve the problem of Illegal Street hawking, and serves the city’s hygienic and environmental purposes,
as well as the problem of tax evasion.
UN Women also sponsored the participation of five delegates to the Safe Cities Global Leaders’ Forum
held in New Delhi, India from 10 to 12 June 2015. The global meeting shared and discussed evidence-
based approaches, practices, tools, and learnings to advance the international knowledge base on
safe cities for women and girls. Participants from Rwanda were able to provide up-to-date knowledge
and good practices from the implementation of Kigali Safe city Programme that aims to prevent and
respond to sexual harassment and other forms of sexual violence against women and girls in public
spaces. Delegates were also able to discuss priority areas for safe city policy and programme actions
focusing on sustainability and national accountability which links to SDG 11 on Safe Cities.
UN Women has recognized that more knowledge is needed on successful ways to enhance women’s
resilience in the region, and on how to integrate a gender perspective in the resilience agenda and
work. To redress this gap, UN Women, in partnership with a wide variety of other actors, propose to
hold a Sharefair on ‘Gender and Resilience’ in 2016. The event will facilitate a long-term collaboration
amongst the regional stakeholders. Key institutions and stakeholders will be gathered together with
the aim of identifying problems, using data and predictive methods, and mobilizing support and
resources to incubate, accelerate, and scale effective solutions. A strong networks will be created in
order to amplify resilience solutions beyond the Resilience Sharefair, sustaining change in policy and
practice while also contributing to the implementation of SDGs at regional and country levels.
UN Women in Zimbabwe, under Gender, Peace and Security program, partnered with Peace-Building
and Capacity Development Foundation (PACDEF), a CSO, which successfully established a women led
community early warning system for EVAW, electoral processes and other peace building initiatives
in rural areas.
This will be utilized to influence gender sensitive electoral processes in preparation for elections in
2018. Furthermore collaboration with the partner enabled UN Women to increase awareness among
rural communities on gender, peace and security issues and this has led in creation of safe spaces for
women to come together and discuss peacebuilding issues without fear and hesitation.
UN Women sought to increase spaces of dialogue and peaceful exchanges between security sector
actors and women’s organizations at national level and this is the first output under outcome through
the support provided to Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe. Community dialogues were held among
the six Women for Peace Committees established in three provinces of Manicaland (Tsvingwe,
Penhalonga), Masvingo (urban and rural communities) and Mashonaland West (Chinhoyi), Bindura
and security sector actors.
UN Women in Zimbabwe also carried out an assessment of the curricula of the security sector state
institutions and private church-owned institutions for gender-sensitivity. The findings were used to
develop gender-sensitive modules for each respective institution that is applied by security sector,
peacebuilding and governance academic institutions as compulsory and examinable curricula,
accompanied by a Training of Trainers user guide for personnel of academic security sector institutions.
The revised curricula have so far been accepted by 3 institutions which are Africa University, Institute
of Correctional Services, Solusi University and Bindura University. On a different note, UN Women
ESAR has positioned a gender expert within the office of the special envoy of the great lakes region
to support with various gender issues in regard to peace and security in the region and contribute to
building effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels in this regard.
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WOMEN AND SUSTAINABLE
32 DEVELOPMENT GOALS