Gender Equality
GEWEP II: Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Programme II Final Report
GEWEP II works with and for poor and vulnerable women and girls. More than 8 160 000 women and girls live in our programme areas, and the end programme target is to directly work with 1 022 200.
The main impact is through Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). The VSLA model came out of a pilot in Niger in the early 90s. Nearly 30 years later, there are more than 6.7 million VSLA members across the globe. Other organisations and governments have adopted CARE’s model, thereby multiplying impact. GEWEP continued to scale up VSLAs, and advocated for governments to recognize the model. The Governments of Burundi, DRC, Niger and Rwanda all recognize the important contribution of VSLAs to women’s economic empowerment, manifested within national strategies, policies and funds.
Women’s economic empowerment opens up for women’s participation. GEWEP supported women to come together and find confidence and common cause through VSLAs. We find VSLA women who actively participate in decision-making in formal structures, and who manage to stay there despite resistance from some men. This is the main success for women’s participation, across countries.
The shrinking space for civil society remains the most difficult challenge. In all countries, CARE’s main approach was to maintain good relations with those that are directly engaging with the field of women’s rights or who control the implementing areas or relevant political processes. This approach was successful in terms of preserving enough working space for CARE, GEWEP partners and other civil society actors working in the same field. Read More...
The main impact is through Village Savings and Loan Associations (VSLAs). The VSLA model came out of a pilot in Niger in the early 90s. Nearly 30 years later, there are more than 6.7 million VSLA members across the globe. Other organisations and governments have adopted CARE’s model, thereby multiplying impact. GEWEP continued to scale up VSLAs, and advocated for governments to recognize the model. The Governments of Burundi, DRC, Niger and Rwanda all recognize the important contribution of VSLAs to women’s economic empowerment, manifested within national strategies, policies and funds.
Women’s economic empowerment opens up for women’s participation. GEWEP supported women to come together and find confidence and common cause through VSLAs. We find VSLA women who actively participate in decision-making in formal structures, and who manage to stay there despite resistance from some men. This is the main success for women’s participation, across countries.
The shrinking space for civil society remains the most difficult challenge. In all countries, CARE’s main approach was to maintain good relations with those that are directly engaging with the field of women’s rights or who control the implementing areas or relevant political processes. This approach was successful in terms of preserving enough working space for CARE, GEWEP partners and other civil society actors working in the same field. Read More...
Final Report On End Line Study of Promoting Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and Girls in Clothing Industry Project
Employing more than 2.5 million women (60%), the RMG sector in Bangladesh is one of the largest sources of employment for women. CARE Bangladesh and UN Women partnered to undertake the Promoting Women Worker’s Empowerment Project as a 5 months pilot to help workers, particularly women, develop their skills and experience and access leadership opportunities which may lead to career advancement, improved work environment for the workers. The study was undertaken with several objectives- (i) To identify the progress on knowledge, skill and aspiration of women RMG workers in the working factories from the baseline (ii) To identify the initiatives that Management of the working factories are planning for career Advancement for women RMG workers (iii) To examine the appropriateness of the career pathways that was identified in baseline and identify the further recommendations for career Advancement for women RMG workers (iv) Evaluating the project indicators to measure the progress of the project (v) Developing a learning brief on the Project from baseline and end line . Read More...
Addressing GBV & SRHR Challenges in Bama and Dikwa LGAs in Borno State, Northeast Nigeria
Borno state in Northeast Nigeria has been under frequent attacks in the past decade, which has left several million people insecure, homeless, and without any means of livelihood. Hence, the rate of Gender-based Violence (GBV) continues to increase coupled with lack of awareness and basic infrastructure for promoting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). To alleviate the challenges faced by several inhabitants of these conflict-affected communities, CARE is implementing a SRHR and GBV project to reach 47,000 vulnerable boys, girls, men and women, living in Internally Displaced Person (IDP) camps and host communities in Bama and Dikwa Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Borno State. This report highlights the current gaps in GBV and SRHR in Bama and Dikwa LGAs to serve as benchmark for measuring progress and guide implementation of the right intervention mix.
In October – November 2019, CARE Nigeria conducted a baseline survey for the project. The study involved administration of Knowledge Attitude and Practice (KAP) questionnaires as well as Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and Key Informant Interviews (KII) covering SRHR and GBV to randomly selected men, women, boys and girls in the project communities. Among the interviewed were; community members, representatives of security agencies, camp coordinator and health facility staffs respectively, in Dikwa and Bama LGAs in Borno State. A total of 79 FGDs and 46 KIIs were conducted, in addition to the quantitative survey involving 3,112 participants. Read More...
In October – November 2019, CARE Nigeria conducted a baseline survey for the project. The study involved administration of Knowledge Attitude and Practice (KAP) questionnaires as well as Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and Key Informant Interviews (KII) covering SRHR and GBV to randomly selected men, women, boys and girls in the project communities. Among the interviewed were; community members, representatives of security agencies, camp coordinator and health facility staffs respectively, in Dikwa and Bama LGAs in Borno State. A total of 79 FGDs and 46 KIIs were conducted, in addition to the quantitative survey involving 3,112 participants. Read More...
When Time Won’t Wait: CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis Approach External Evaluation
Humanitarian crises can offer a ‘window of opportunity’ to transform unequal gender relations and shift harmful gender norms. Integration of gender into humanitarian programming ensures that the specific vulnerabilities, needs, capacities and priorities of women, girls, men and boys — related to pre-existing gender roles and inequalities, along with the impacts of the crisis — are recognised and addressed.
Sound gender analysis and programming from the outset is critical to effective crisis response in the short-term, and equitable and empowering societal change in the long-term. CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) approach and tool, developed during the humanitarian response in Syria in 2013, aims to drive a shift to locally driven and women-centered needs assessment which influences how needs are defined and responses are developed. The approach aims to provide essential information about gender roles and responsibilities, capacities, and vulnerabilities together with programming recommendations in situations where time is of the essence
and resources can be scarce. The ultimate goal of such an approach is to influence humanitarian response, program design and implementation to ensure that it supports not only the immediate needs of women and girls but also upholds their rights. CARE’s RGA has now been used in over 50 crises around the word and is featured as good practice in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee’s (IASC) Gender Handbook for Humanitarian Action. With rapidly increasing interest in and adoption of CARE’s RGA approach, discussion and questions continue as to whether increased awareness of gender, power and disaggregated data sets are translating into safer, more responsive, and effective aid.
To answer these questions, CARE commissioned an external evaluation to ‘provide an analysis of the effectiveness and influence of the RGA approach on adapting programming to improve gendered outcomes for crises-affected communities.’ The scope of the evaluation was global and focused on rapid gender analyses and related humanitarian programming over the period 2015-2020. Read More...
Sound gender analysis and programming from the outset is critical to effective crisis response in the short-term, and equitable and empowering societal change in the long-term. CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis (RGA) approach and tool, developed during the humanitarian response in Syria in 2013, aims to drive a shift to locally driven and women-centered needs assessment which influences how needs are defined and responses are developed. The approach aims to provide essential information about gender roles and responsibilities, capacities, and vulnerabilities together with programming recommendations in situations where time is of the essence
and resources can be scarce. The ultimate goal of such an approach is to influence humanitarian response, program design and implementation to ensure that it supports not only the immediate needs of women and girls but also upholds their rights. CARE’s RGA has now been used in over 50 crises around the word and is featured as good practice in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee’s (IASC) Gender Handbook for Humanitarian Action. With rapidly increasing interest in and adoption of CARE’s RGA approach, discussion and questions continue as to whether increased awareness of gender, power and disaggregated data sets are translating into safer, more responsive, and effective aid.
To answer these questions, CARE commissioned an external evaluation to ‘provide an analysis of the effectiveness and influence of the RGA approach on adapting programming to improve gendered outcomes for crises-affected communities.’ The scope of the evaluation was global and focused on rapid gender analyses and related humanitarian programming over the period 2015-2020. Read More...
Learning from Youth in West Africa in COVID-19
In July 2020, volunteers from the West Africa CARE Youth Network decided to learn more about what young women and men are experiencing in COVID-19, and how that should shape CARE’s response and our advocacy interests. This team interviewed 128 young people between the ages of 15 and 35 in 8 countries. 86 of the young people (67%) were young women. Volunteers used Whatsapp messages, phone calls, and recorded interviews to let young people tell their own stories. With a few guiding questions, and using ONA as a platform to structure and analyze the responses, the team has been able to see regional trends and individual stories that must shape humanitarian response to COVID-19 and recovery efforts in way that include young people—especially young women, meet their needs, and value their voices and leadership.
Interviewers had a set of questions from CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis toolkit, where they asked young people about the biggest impact COVID-19 has in their lives, their biggest need right now, how they are responding to COVID-19, and what are their hopes for the future. Listening to their answers, interviewers categorized the responses based on a pre-set list of options also from the RGA toolkit.
Read More...
Interviewers had a set of questions from CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis toolkit, where they asked young people about the biggest impact COVID-19 has in their lives, their biggest need right now, how they are responding to COVID-19, and what are their hopes for the future. Listening to their answers, interviewers categorized the responses based on a pre-set list of options also from the RGA toolkit.
Read More...
Rapid Gender Analysis Myanmar, Rakhine State COVID-19
Despite the number of COVID-19 cases in Rakhine State being quite low, the impact on rural food production and the livelihoods of thousands of farm labourers, who are mostly women, is immense. The loss of food production in the State could potentially push families into further poverty and produce further malnutrition in a State of Myanmar that already has one of the highest malnutrition rates in the country. Additionally, the growth of women’s empowerment, which is strongly linked to financial contributions to the household, will decline.
Women and girls in Rakhine State face inequalities in many areas, such as in employment and payment, division of domestic labour, decision making and participation. Those are likely to further increase in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. An area of specific concern is in the education of girls and boys, from poor families, who do not have the technical infrastructure and capacity to support, especially with the continuous internet blackouts across the State. Deployed in an operational environment characterised by ongoing volatility, COVID-19 prevention, treatment and containment efforts have faced multiple difficulties. Mistrust of government officers by communities, restrictions on humanitarian access, limited health services, coupled with targeted attacks on healthcare workers and facilities have proved to be serious operational challenges. Read More...
Women and girls in Rakhine State face inequalities in many areas, such as in employment and payment, division of domestic labour, decision making and participation. Those are likely to further increase in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. An area of specific concern is in the education of girls and boys, from poor families, who do not have the technical infrastructure and capacity to support, especially with the continuous internet blackouts across the State. Deployed in an operational environment characterised by ongoing volatility, COVID-19 prevention, treatment and containment efforts have faced multiple difficulties. Mistrust of government officers by communities, restrictions on humanitarian access, limited health services, coupled with targeted attacks on healthcare workers and facilities have proved to be serious operational challenges. Read More...
Cote d’Ivoire Rapid Gender Analysis COVID-19 May 2020
Pour la Côte d’ivoire, le COVID-19 présente un éventail de défis contextuels dans plusieurs villages et quartiers précaires de la capitale économique avec une population ayant des ressources limitées. Dans la plupart des villes de la Côte d’ivoire, l'accès à des services de santé de qualité, y compris les soins intensifs, est limité. Les Maladies Non transmissibles (MNT), les maladies cardiovasculaires, les maladies respiratoires aigües et chroniques et la malnutrition représentent la principale cause de mortalité prématurée dans le pays. En outre, la sécurité alimentaire et les moyens de subsistance sont particulièrement précaires en raison des modes de vie de semi-subsistance et de la forte dépendance du secteur informel pour les revenus.
Une flambée de COVID-19 en Côte d’Ivoire pourrait affecter de manière disproportionnée les femmes et les filles de plusieurs manières, y compris des effets néfastes sur leur éducation, la sécurité alimentaire et la nutrition, la santé, les moyens de subsistance et la protection. Les femmes sont les principales dispensatrices de soins dans la famille et sont des intervenants clés de première ligne en matière de soins de santé, ce qui les expose à un risque accru et à une exposition à l'infection. Les besoins en matière de santé maternelle et sexuelle, en matière de reproduction se poursuivent en cas d'urgence, mais risquent de ne pas être prioritaires. Le COVID-19 risque d'augmenter la charge de travail des femmes avec la fermeture des écoles parce que les enfants resteront à la maison. De plus, il existe un risque d'augmentation de la violence familiale dans les régions où les taux préexistants de violence à l'égard des femmes sont déjà très élevés.
Les rôles et les normes de genre des hommes doivent être pris en compte afin de garantir que les hommes sont correctement ciblés pour aider à réduire leur vulnérabilité à la maladie et à tirer parti de leurs rôles de leaders et de décideurs au foyer et dans la
communauté pour aider à prévenir la propagation de la maladie. Read More...
Une flambée de COVID-19 en Côte d’Ivoire pourrait affecter de manière disproportionnée les femmes et les filles de plusieurs manières, y compris des effets néfastes sur leur éducation, la sécurité alimentaire et la nutrition, la santé, les moyens de subsistance et la protection. Les femmes sont les principales dispensatrices de soins dans la famille et sont des intervenants clés de première ligne en matière de soins de santé, ce qui les expose à un risque accru et à une exposition à l'infection. Les besoins en matière de santé maternelle et sexuelle, en matière de reproduction se poursuivent en cas d'urgence, mais risquent de ne pas être prioritaires. Le COVID-19 risque d'augmenter la charge de travail des femmes avec la fermeture des écoles parce que les enfants resteront à la maison. De plus, il existe un risque d'augmentation de la violence familiale dans les régions où les taux préexistants de violence à l'égard des femmes sont déjà très élevés.
Les rôles et les normes de genre des hommes doivent être pris en compte afin de garantir que les hommes sont correctement ciblés pour aider à réduire leur vulnérabilité à la maladie et à tirer parti de leurs rôles de leaders et de décideurs au foyer et dans la
communauté pour aider à prévenir la propagation de la maladie. Read More...
GARMENT WORKER NEEDS ASSESSMENT DURING COVID19
The COVID19 pandemic has severely impacted the garment industry in Cambodia. As of July 2020, over 400 factories have temporarily or permanently closed down and over 150,000 workers are out of work.1 The garment industry employs approximately 750,000 workers in Cambodia, 89% of whom are women.
CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis demonstrates the disproportionate impact that COVID19 has had on women in Cambodia and around the world. A lot of attention has been placed on the garment industry, but there is little detailed information available from the workers themselves on the impact of the pandemic and what support they need.
The objectives of this needs assessment are to:
• Better understand the needs of women garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic
• Develop evidence-based recommendations for CARE and civil society partners, workers’ organizations,
employers, brands and government stakeholders in Cambodia on how to best address the needs of women
garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic. Read More...
CARE’s Rapid Gender Analysis demonstrates the disproportionate impact that COVID19 has had on women in Cambodia and around the world. A lot of attention has been placed on the garment industry, but there is little detailed information available from the workers themselves on the impact of the pandemic and what support they need.
The objectives of this needs assessment are to:
• Better understand the needs of women garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic
• Develop evidence-based recommendations for CARE and civil society partners, workers’ organizations,
employers, brands and government stakeholders in Cambodia on how to best address the needs of women
garment workers during the COVID19 pandemic. Read More...
Cambodia COVID-19 Rapid Gender Analysis
The number of COVID-19 cases in Cambodia is quite low (141) however the impact on global supply chains and the livelihood of thousands of factory and migrant workers, who are mostly women, is immense. The loss of income could potentially push families back into poverty and the value of unpaid care work which will increase during the pandemic, is not measured in financial terms, nor seen as a valuable contribution. Additionally, the growth of women’s empowerment which is strongly linked to financial contributions to the household, will decline.
Women and girls in Cambodia face inequalities in many areas such as in employment and payment, division of domestic labour, decision making and participation. Those are likely to further increase in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. An area of specific concern is in the education of girls and boys, from poor families, who do not have the technical infrastructure and capacity to support online home schooling.
The current health system does not have the capacity to deal with an increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Sub- national health facilities are considered low quality and previous health crisis showed that patients will directly consult provincial and national facilities which is going to exceed their capacity.
There is still uncertainty about transmission of COVID-19 which causes fear and creates potential for rumours causing
stigmatisation and discrimination of certain population groups such as foreigners, women working with foreigners as in bar work and Muslim groups.
Gender based violence is common and widely accepted in Cambodia. Globally, intimate partner violence (IPV) may be the most common type of violence women and girls experience during emergencies. In the context of COVID-19 quarantine and isolation measures, IPV has the potential to dramatically increase for women and girls. Life-saving care and support to GBV survivors may be disrupted when front-line service providers and systems such as health, policing and social welfare are overburdened and preoccupied with handling COVID- 19 cases. Restrictions on mobility also mean that women are particularly exposed to intimate-partner violence at home with limited options for accessing support services. Read More...
Women and girls in Cambodia face inequalities in many areas such as in employment and payment, division of domestic labour, decision making and participation. Those are likely to further increase in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. An area of specific concern is in the education of girls and boys, from poor families, who do not have the technical infrastructure and capacity to support online home schooling.
The current health system does not have the capacity to deal with an increasing number of COVID-19 cases. Sub- national health facilities are considered low quality and previous health crisis showed that patients will directly consult provincial and national facilities which is going to exceed their capacity.
There is still uncertainty about transmission of COVID-19 which causes fear and creates potential for rumours causing
stigmatisation and discrimination of certain population groups such as foreigners, women working with foreigners as in bar work and Muslim groups.
Gender based violence is common and widely accepted in Cambodia. Globally, intimate partner violence (IPV) may be the most common type of violence women and girls experience during emergencies. In the context of COVID-19 quarantine and isolation measures, IPV has the potential to dramatically increase for women and girls. Life-saving care and support to GBV survivors may be disrupted when front-line service providers and systems such as health, policing and social welfare are overburdened and preoccupied with handling COVID- 19 cases. Restrictions on mobility also mean that women are particularly exposed to intimate-partner violence at home with limited options for accessing support services. Read More...
Latin America & the Caribbean Rapid Gender Analysis April 2020
Asylum seekers and migrants traveling through Central America and Mexico to the U.S. border face a range of risks, but women, girls, and other vulnerable groups—such as members of the LGBTQIA community—are confronted with additional threats to their health, safety, and well-being in their countries of origin, countries of transit, and in the U.S. As a result, asylum seekers and migrants who arrive at the U.S.–Mexico border often carry a heavy burden of trauma from experiences with violence. The lack of a system to appropriately support people on the move deepens pre-existing inequalities and exposes already vulnerable groups to additional, unnecessary, risks.
The U.S. Government’s Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, returns asylum seekers and migrants from U.S. custody to Mexican territory, compelling them to face months of risk and uncertainty as they wait to complete their asylum processes. The asylum process itself is challenging and unclear, liable to change without warning, and largely opaque to affected populations. The asylum seekers and migrants waiting in Mexico’s Ciudad Juárez city, along the Mexico–U.S. border, face ever-present threats of extortion, gender-based violence (GBV), and kidnappings, which compound their trauma and restrict their freedom of movement and access to critical resources and services. Trauma and fear were the norm of the population that CARE surveyed, not the exception.
Lack of access to complete and reliable information made it difficult for asylum seekers and migrants— including pregnant women and GBV survivors—to make knowledgeable decisions about navigating the asylum process or finding basic services, including health care. Moreover, CARE did not find any mechanisms that allowed asylum seekers and migrants to report concerns or complaints of exploitation and abuse operating at the time of research.
At no point has there been a deliberate effort—by government authorities, policy makers, or those providing the scant services that exist—to systematically assess vulnerabilities and mitigate the risk of harm to at-risk groups. On the contrary, the lack of risk mitigation efforts has allowed several actors to emplace policies that put migrants and asylum seekers at increased risk of harm. For example, asylum seekers and migrants returned from U.S. detention to Mexico are often easily identified by visible markers of their detention, including a lack of shoelaces and the bags that they are issued to carry personal items. This visibility renders asylum seekers and migrants more vulnerable to detention or forced recruitment by armed groups, as well as kidnappings, which at times have taken place on the street directly outside the release area in plain sight of authorities. Read More...
The U.S. Government’s Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), also known as the “Remain in Mexico” policy, returns asylum seekers and migrants from U.S. custody to Mexican territory, compelling them to face months of risk and uncertainty as they wait to complete their asylum processes. The asylum process itself is challenging and unclear, liable to change without warning, and largely opaque to affected populations. The asylum seekers and migrants waiting in Mexico’s Ciudad Juárez city, along the Mexico–U.S. border, face ever-present threats of extortion, gender-based violence (GBV), and kidnappings, which compound their trauma and restrict their freedom of movement and access to critical resources and services. Trauma and fear were the norm of the population that CARE surveyed, not the exception.
Lack of access to complete and reliable information made it difficult for asylum seekers and migrants— including pregnant women and GBV survivors—to make knowledgeable decisions about navigating the asylum process or finding basic services, including health care. Moreover, CARE did not find any mechanisms that allowed asylum seekers and migrants to report concerns or complaints of exploitation and abuse operating at the time of research.
At no point has there been a deliberate effort—by government authorities, policy makers, or those providing the scant services that exist—to systematically assess vulnerabilities and mitigate the risk of harm to at-risk groups. On the contrary, the lack of risk mitigation efforts has allowed several actors to emplace policies that put migrants and asylum seekers at increased risk of harm. For example, asylum seekers and migrants returned from U.S. detention to Mexico are often easily identified by visible markers of their detention, including a lack of shoelaces and the bags that they are issued to carry personal items. This visibility renders asylum seekers and migrants more vulnerable to detention or forced recruitment by armed groups, as well as kidnappings, which at times have taken place on the street directly outside the release area in plain sight of authorities. Read More...