GENDER RESPONSIVE
BUDGETING
For Training Course on “Gender Equitable development Projects”
APMASS & WAP, AIT: Vietnam
Karabi Baruah-Ph.D
Gender, HIV & Development Specialist
27th June 2012 Danang, Vietnam
We follow the money
through to the lives of
women and men
.
(Elson 2004: 627)
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Objective of the Session

Create a common understanding of
the GRB approach

Articulate the relevance GRB as a tool
for to promote gender equality
Session Outline
Key
Concepts
What is Gender Responsive Budgeting
Rationale for Gender Budgeting
Applying GRB Analytical Framework

What is the impact of your country’s
budget on the existing pattern of
gender differences and inequalities?
Which box would you tick?

The budget leaves inequalities between men and
women, boys and girls unchanged or is ‘gender
neutral’.



The budget reduces gender inequalities .
The budget increases gender inequalities.
I have no idea.
What is Gender Responsive Budget?

A gender responsive budget ensures that the needs and
interests of individuals from different social groups (sex,
age, race, ethnicity, location) are addressed in
expenditure and revenue policies
Cont’…
Assessment of the government policy and program expenditures and revenues for their
impact on women and girls, men and boys (as well as different groups of women and
men categorized by income, age, ethnicity etc)- GENDER BUDGET ANALYSIS
In the light of these gender budget analyses the implementation of strategies and
actions that result in the budget promoting women’s empowerment and gender equalityCHANGE BUDGETS SO THAT GENDER EQUALITY IS PROMOTED
It’s the combination of these two steps that will
produce a gender responsive budget.
Source: Rhonda Sharp (2006b)
GRB is “revolutionary”
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Cont’
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A Note:

The terms:
 Gender
responsive budgets
 Gender budget initiatives
 Gender sensitive budgets
 Gender budgets
 Women’s budget
Are Used interchangeably – all mean the same
thing
Important notice
It is important to recognise that ’women’s budgets’ or
‘gender-sensitive budgets’ are not separate budgets for
women, or for men. They are attempts to break down, or
disaggregate, the government’s mainstream budget
according to its impact on women and men, and different
groups of women and men, with cognizance being given
to the society’s underpinning gender relations
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Its about mainstreaming
About ensuring that gender issues
are integrated into all national
policies, plans and programs rather
than regarding women as a special
‘interest group’.
The objective of a gender-sensitive
budget is to inform debate about
policy and the appropriate
allocation of public expenditure and
taxation.
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GENDER RESPONSIVE BUDGETING…


Recognizes the ways in which women contribute to the
society and economy with their unpaid labor in the
productive sector and in bearing, rearing and caring for
the people in the country.
Acknowledges the intersection between budget policies
and women’s well being.
Example: The care Economy
Private sector commodity economy: market-oriented goods and services profit motive
Public service economy: social and physical infrastructure – both marketoriented (paid employees, taxes, user charges) and non-market (some free
services)
Care economy: family and community-oriented goods and services – unpaid
Rationale for Gender Responsive
Budgeting
WHY - GENDER BUDGETS
By monitoring outcomes, outputs, activities and inputs of
budgets the following can be achieved:
• Improved accountability towards GE and equity & HR
• Improved efficiency & effectiveness
• Improved transparency and reduced corruption& good
governance
• Informed participation,
THE CORE GOALS OF GBIs
Raise awareness and
understanding of gender
issues and impact of
budgets and policies
Change an
redefine
government
budget and
policies to promote
gender equality
Make Government
accountable for
their gender
budgetary and
policy commitment
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General Objectives of GRBs
Raise awareness of the gendered impact
of policies and corresponding budget
allocations
Highlight the gap between policy and
budget allocations
Make government and communities
accountable to gender equality
Bring about changes to policies and
budgets that promote gender equality.
mukundajulius@yahoo.co.uk
How can we start gender budget analysis?
Who undertakes gender budget analysis?
• Government
• NGOs
• Parliamentarian
Analytical scope
• Central/regional (local) government
• Expenditure/Revenue
• Policy/Project/Programs
Reporting
• Budget statements
• Reports
Political context
• Source of budgets
• accountability
Applying analytical Frame works
There are
• Australian
three basic
(Sharp) threeframeworks
way
that, with
categorisation of
variations,
expenditure and
have served
the
as the basis of • South African
five-step
many
approach
exercises to
date. These • Elson’s Six Tools
are the
22
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The three-way categorization
This distinguishes between:
1. gender-specific expenditure;
2. equal opportunity expenditure for civil servants;
and
3. general expenditure (the rest) considered in terms
of its gendered impact.
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The five-step approach
The
fivesteps
are:
• 1. Analysing the situation of
women, men, girls and boys;
• 2. Assessing the genderresponsiveness of policies;
• 3. Assessing budget allocations;
• 4. Monitoring spending and
service delivery;
• 5. Assessing outcomes.
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Elson’s Six Tools
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Gender-aware policy appraisal
Gender-disaggregated Public Expenditure Incidence
Analysis
Gender-disaggregated Beneficiary Needs
assessment
Gender-disaggregated analysis of the impact of
budgets on time use
Gender-aware medium term economic policy
framework
Gender-aware budget statement
These are not the only tools. You can create new ones!
Budget cycle framework (Elson)
PHASE OF THE BUDGET
CYCLE
PLANNED
(identification, planning)
LEVEL
EXAMPLE
GENDER PERSPECTIVE
Impact (realisation of
objectives)
poverty
Healthy population
Level of alphabetisation
-is there a genderdifferentiated impact?
(quantitative & qualitative)
-Contribution to gender
equality?
Outcome (use of service
delivery)
REALISED
(audit, evaluation)
November 2006
Number of patients treated
Number of students that
have finished schooling
-to what extent do men &
women benefit from the
service delivery?
-Contribution to gender
equality?
Outputs (supply of
services)
Treatment of patients
(health care)
Schooling
-is there enough supply of
services that is appropriate
for men and women?
Inputs
Financial inputs
Human resources
Are the means enough to
stimulate gender equality?
Nathalie Holvoet
KEY CHALLENGES:
Is this GRB!!!!!!

GRB is an effective methond for measuring
government gender commeitements and can als
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