Transcript ATPC/TFED INCEPTION WORKSHOP ON MAINSTREAMING GENDER …

ATPC/TFED INCEPTION WORKSHOP ON
MAINSTREAMING GENDER INTO TRADE
POLICY:
ADDIS ABABA, 21-22 APRIL 2009
Mainstreaming Gender Issues into
Trade Makes More Business. A Practical
Framework
By Ms. Ngone DIOP
Economic Affairs Officer, ECA West
Sub-Regional Office
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Gender equality makes more
flourished Trade
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Trade is an engine of growth because it
offers opportunities for the production
of goods and services as well new
markets;
It offers opportunities to create new
production factors;
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Gender equality makes more
flourished Trade cont.)
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It contributes to wealth and growth creation;
Creates new jobs thus, contributes to social
and economic distribution, to individual
empowerment, poverty reduction and indeed
development as the later is a process of
empowerment and self reliance.
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Gender equality makes more
flourished Trade (cont.)
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The ILO report suggests that women
are the worker –bees in the hives of
export-oriented industry, from data
entry to light manufacturing and
horticulture – occupying 70%-80% of
the more than 27 millions job (ILO,
World of Work, No. 27, December
1998).
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Gender equality makes more
flourished Trade (cont.)
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Evidences in many countries suggest that
women’s critical role is an impetus to trade
e.g. national, regional and international trade.
In Lesotho, women’s employment in the
export-oriented textile industry has provided
a vital source of revenue to the economy,
with exports to the United States growing
from US $ 50 millions in 1996 to US $ 456
millions in 2004. (ITC, Geneva, 2006).
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Gender inequality hampers
trade’s outcomes
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However, the marginalisation of women
from trade decision making and policies
processes hampers trade’s outcomes
given the critical role they play in this
sector particularly in agricultural trade
related activities and informal business
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Gender inequality hampers
trade’s outcomes (cont.)
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Unless gender issues are systematically and
fully addressed, trade will exacerbate
women’s exclusion from the economic sector,
exacerbating poverty and postponing the
achieving of MDGs.
It has been well documented the costs of
gender inequality cut across society ultimately
impacting negatively on everyone.
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Gender inequality hampers
trade’s outcomes (cont.)
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The World Bank report concluded
“women and girls bear the largest
and most direct costs of gender
inequalities but the costs cut more
broadly across society ultimately
harming everyone “ (Engendering
development through gender equality in
rights, resources and voice”, World Bank
Policy Research Report, 2001)
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PRACTICAL FRAMEWORK AND TOOLS TO
MAINSTREAMING GENDER ISSUES
INTO TRADE – THE HOW -
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MAKING GENDER A CRITICAL
DIMENSION OF TRADE AGREEMENTS
AND POLICIES
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Gender should not be considered as an
adding on, rather, it should be part and
parcel of trade agreements, policies,
programmes and activities.
This entails strategic and iterative
interventions at macro, meso and micro
levels.
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STRATEGIC ITERATIVE APPROACH
Macro
Meso
Micro
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APPROACH/METHODOLOGY
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NB: Important to understand and factor in
the inter-linkages between the 3 levels
Two main approaches (among others) can be
used across the three inter-linked levels e.g.
(1) The entitlements approach
(2) the Capabilities approach
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APPROACHES/METHODOLOGIES 5CONT;°
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The entitlements approach:
It focuses on increasing women’s access
to inputs and resources that enable
them to access markets with the view
of increasing their productivity. Ex: a
micro credit programme raises women’s
entitlements.
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APPROACHES/METHODOLOGIES
(cont.)
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The Capabilities approach:
It consists of raising resources, services
capacities, that women are needed to be
empowered to participate in trade
negociations, to enter new markets and other
strategic activities that are traditionally
monopolised by men.
Such approach helps to enhancing women’s
skills and interventions at highest levels.
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MACRO LEVEL
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Because Trade is an aggregate like all
macroeconomic components,
mainstream economists assume that
trade agreements, policies and
mechanisms do not have any
differential impacts on women and
men.
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MACRO LEVEL (cont.)
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A comprehensive ex ante analysis of gender
issues of trade agreements must to done.
Women need to participate to and undertake
such assessment
Related action: ensure/motivate governments
to involve women’s organisations in national,
regional trade negociations;
Train women at large and women’s
representatives on key trade negotiation
aspects:
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MAINSTREAMING GENDER
INTO TRADE AGREEMENTS
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Need to demystify the so called ‘technicality’ of trade
by trading women on trade negotiation techniques,
enhance women’s communication;
Involve women in trade negotiations preparation;
Ensure that they contribute and their
contribution/Inputs are effectively factor in both
technical and administrative documents;
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MAINSTREAMING GENDER INTO
TRADE AGREEMENTS (cont.)
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Laws, rules and regulations and procedures
and negociations: regulations on antidamping, subsidies, unfair trade, support to
investigating authorities
Make women’s understand the dispute
settlement procedures: WTO rights and
obligations, access to legal advisory services.
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MACRO LEVEL
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Mainstreaming gender into macroeconomic
framework and models that guide trade
policies;
Take stock of ECA/ACGDS’ on mainstreaming
gender into macroeconomics;
Time use data and satellite accounts to shape
conventional macroeconomic model = SAM
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MESO LEVEL - MAKING TRADE
POLICIES GENDER RESPONSIVE
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PRS: critical roadmap for countries’ policies
and intervention, training women and men on
engendering MDGs-based PRS can be a
strategic entry point to mainstream gender
into trade.
The Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF)
can be used to champion gender in trade
policies.
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MESO LEVEL - MAKING TRADE POLICIES
GENDER RESPONSIVE (cont.)
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The EIF was developed in 1997 by WTO, ITC,
IMF, UNTAC, UNDP, World Bank to deliver
greater development dividends to LDCs in the
multilateral trading systems.
Tow main objectives have been defined:
(i) mainstream trade into the national
development plans such as PRS f leastdeveloped countries,
(ii) assist in the co-ordinated delivery of
trade-related technical assistance in response
to needs identified by the LDCs
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MESO LEVEL - MAKING TRADE POLICIES
GENDER RESPONSIVE (cont.)
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As such, EIF is a strategic building block
to mainstream gender into trade
policies and programmes.
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MICRO LEVEL
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Bring women together, make them to
Initiate micro-credit, micro finance to
promote their access to financial resources;
Make them initiate programmes on access to
critical inputs such selected seeds and
extension service to increase the quality of
their agricultural products; etc.
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IMPERATIVES
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Both sex-disaggregated data and gender
responsive data are needed
(AGDI, etc)
Take stock of existing comprehensive
normative work (ATPC, ITC, WTO, etc) and
translate them into harmonised actions and
results;
Strategic partnership at national, regional and
international levels;
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IMPERATIVES (cont.)
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Institutionalisation of actions/interventions – to avoid
policy evaporation and sustain gains;
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M&E is a must
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Important: avoid rhetoric
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Put the focus on the HOW
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MOTTO - ACT NOW AND NO TIME TO WASTE
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