Gender Comment – Yemen 2010 Humanitarian Response Plan
Yemen’s HCT has made considerable effort to bring a gender equality focus to the 2010 Humanitarian
Response Plan (HRP). The fact that this is the country’s first HRP lifts the bar for many other countries.
Congratulations.
Highlights
The executive summary refers to the high gender disparities. The context states that the majority of the
displaced are women and children. Under lessons learned the gender section documents that Yemen
ranks lowest of the 130 countries on the Global Gender Index, has gender inequalities in all sectors, and
that socio-cultural norms are limiting women’s role in crisis mitigation, assessment and other selfdetermination processes. Impacts of the most likely scenario include continued gender-based violence.
Strategic objectives specifically mention the life and livelihood assistance needs of women. The third
strategic objective is to “ensure humanitarian response is underpinned by integrated analysis and based
on comprehensive sex and age disaggregated needs assessment”. One of the six selection criteria is
“Does the project include crosscutting issues (gender, HIV/IADS, protection, age), unless absence is
clearly justified.”
These efforts to mainstream gender into the HRP provide a useful framework for cluster teams to
integrate gender realities into their cluster response plans.
Next Steps: Gender Openings for Yemen’s HRP
During implementation of the 2010 YHRP and future plans, there are several openings to advance
gender equality which will benefit humanitarian action and all clusters. Some of the most strategic:
- The HRP conclusions put emphasis on the “steady build up of humanitarian knowledge and
capacity”. This is a place to integrate 1) building competence in conducting and applying gender
analysis as well as 2) creating space for capacity building of equal numbers of men and women
at all levels.
-
The roles and responsibilities section of the HRP notes that “only a few agencies had projects of
a purely humanitarian nature” before the sixth war. Cluster teams may find the IASC Gender
Marker timely and useful in helping bring gender equality dimensions into humanitarian
projects.
-
Also related to roles and responsibilities, attention is needed to coordinate gender technical
support for OCHA, the HCT, the Inter-Cluster Coordination Forum and the clusters.
-
Strategic gender analysis and gender facilitation is needed that would serve cross-cluster
interests. Among the key examples:
1) Community engagement. The HCT is pro-actively encouraging community ownership and
management. Examples include: community management of acute malnutrition; community
group formation in camps for shelter/NFI/CCCM/ health/WASH/protection; IDP-host
community committees for protection and education; community-based psycho-social
counselling, disease surveillance and child protection mechanisms. Effective community
mobilization is essential to recovery. The question is: do the HCT and its implementers have
the analysis, the methods and the on-ground partners with the skills to engage women,
girls, boys and men? Can the HRP’s intended results be achieved?
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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This is raised because the HRP lessons learned clearly state that women could play a key role
in crisis mitigation but their participation is limited by cultural and social norms. The same
norms have resulted in assessments having less than 30% female respondents and barriers
that prevent aid from reaching target females and vulnerable groups. If the Government still
does not allow UN agency assistance to IDPs in host communities, the challenges get
deeper.
If such does not yet exist, it would appear timely to have a comprehensive assessment on
how to effectively engage the meaningful participation of women, girls, boys and men in
ways that are locally accepted and supported. Project sheets suggest some organizations
including Charitable Association of Social Welfare (CSSW), CHF and the Yemen Family Care
Association (FFCA) have some of the answers.
2) Women in crisis mitigation – peace and water. Building onto the above point, Yemeni reality
suggests two areas where women’s conflict resolution and peace-building skills are most
critically needed: in crisis mitigation and in water management. A prudent investment by
the humanitarian community would be to nurture space for both women and men at all
levels in water and crisis management fora.
Cluster Response Plans and Project Sheets
General Comments
 There is little reference to men and women in the displaced population being consulted in the
design of projects. The main exceptions are the minority of projects that include comprehensive
assessments within their activities. It is important, especially from a gender perspective, to
invest in this essential element of empowerment and self-reliance.
 Less than 10% of the projects will generate sex-disaggregated data. Attention is needed to
ensure gender outcomes are achieved and visible.
Within the HRP there are some excellent examples of projects that are designed to track gender
outcomes. Some examples are MS-29290, E-28737, NF-26716 and E-28710. One of the best
examples of gender mainstreaming is E-29146 on coordinated protection monitoring which will
design responses based on the different needs of women, girls, boys and men as well as identify
their respective coping mechanisms.
 A minority of projects have gender analysis that informs explicit activities and outcomes that
capture gender change. Often gender issues are visible only in the needs, only in the activities,
or the greatest mystery: only in the outcomes. Gender mainstreaming for best results depends
on the smooth flow of gender issues from needs assessment into activities and related
outcomes.
 There is low visibility of the different realities and outcomes for girls compared to boys.
 Although a number of clusters are seriously addressing sexual and gender-based violence, it is
difficult to determine if adequate attention will be devoted to prevention of, and response to,
sexual exploitation and abuse by humanitarian actors.
 There is some sexist language (e.g. man-made disasters, fishermen, man days) that needs to be
removed.
The following chart reflects whether gender equality or response to the specific needs of women, girls,
boys or men was included in cluster response plans included in Yemen’s 2010 HRP. Although deeper
analysis is needed to do justice to cluster efforts on gender equality, the chart shows that some cluster
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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response plans do not reflect fully the depth of their cluster’s commitment to and work toward gender
equality. It is also acknowledged that monitoring plans were being developed at the time the HRP was
submitted and that project sheets in some clusters do not live up to expectations established in their
response plans.
Cluster Response Plan
Food & Agriculture
Health
Nutrition
Protection & Education
WASH
Shelter/NFI/CCCM
Early Recovery
Multi-Sector (Refugee Response)
Coordination & Support Services
Objectives
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
No
Needs/Activities
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Indicators
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
Monitoring
No
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
The IASC Gender Marker allows each cluster’s vetting team to assign a gender code to each of their cluster’s
projects. The code is assigned based on whether gender dimensions are included in three elements: 1) needs
assessment 2) activities and 3) outcomes.
For the purpose of discussion and reflection, the GenCap Adviser assigned a code to each project in Yemen’s 2010
HRP. It was hoped that the majority of projects would code 2. However, only 10% of the projects merited a code 2
which reflects that gender dimensions in the needs assessment shaped at least one responsive activity which, in
turn, resulted in at least one gender outcome. In coding the projects it was obvious that many projects that coded
0 or 1 had the potential to code 2: their design was weak from a gender perspective.
Yemen Clusters
HRP 2010
Coordination & Support
Early Recovery
Food & Agriculture
Health
Multi-sector (refugees)
Nutrition
Protection & Education
Shelter / NFI / CCCM
WASH
# of projects
% of projects
Code 0
Code 1
Code 2
Code 3
3
4
1
5
3
2
2
1
5
26
38%
1
2
6
4
3
5
7
1
2
31
45%
0
0
0
1
0
1
3
2
0
7
10%
0
1
0
2
0
1
1
0
0
5
7%
Total
Projects
4
7
7
12
6
9
13
4
7
69
Cluster – Specific Comment
Food and Agriculture
Cluster Response Plan: Although food relief is disaggregated by gender, there is no mention that
recipients of agricultural inputs, training, and livestock feed and veterinary services (vaccination) will be
sex disaggregated.
Project sheets reflect many cluster partners having an understanding of the roles women, girls, boys and
men have in herding and farming and/or the links between school feeding and girls being able to
continue their education, avoid early marriage etc. However, the analysis is not often well linked to the
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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activities or outcomes. Examples: A-27827 has good gender analysis on issues related to girls’ school
participation and an outcome ‘encourages school attendance, especially for girls’ yet no specific
targeting or sex-disaggregation of student beneficiaries. A-28046 says preference for seed distribution
will be given to widows and female headed households but activities do not clearly reference this nor do
outcomes explicitly capture whether this happens. A-28211 documents that herding of livestock and
fodder gathering are normally tasks carried out by children or women, and that priority will be given to
households headed by women, by men with disabilities, or with large numbers of dependent children.
However, outcomes are not set up to reflect this. Likewise A-28231 includes some solid gender analysis
but outcomes will not reflect the degree to which male and female household heads received livestock
feed and vaccination.
Health
Cluster Response Plan: There is a commitment to “availability of gender-sensitive health services”.
Among the health services being provided is the minimum initial service package for reproductive
health, including emergency obstetric, child health and clinical care for survivors of sexual violence. The
stage is being set well to advance gender equality. However, there is no explicit commitment to
disaggregate health data by sex and age in the outcomes, indicators or monitoring components.
Project sheets show excellent entry points for institutionalizing the collection and use of relevant sex
and age disaggregated data. Among these, H-27878 presents an opening for gender analysis in joint
health assessments, the new early warning system for disease surveillance and in cluster situation
reporting. Now may be an opportune time to establish the importance of analysing the roles of women,
girls, boys and men in zooatic infection and transmission paths due to Yemen’s rounds of swine flu.
H-27867 is a good demonstration of a gender-responsive project, although it could be further enhanced
by having comparative figures for girls and boys on newborn and infant mortality as well as delivery by
skilled health workers. A number of health cluster projects could be strengthened by sex disaggregation
of who is receiving capacity building.
Nutrition
Cluster Response Plan: Useful analysis showed the greater malnutrition risk to under-five boys and a
commitment to mid-upper arm nutrition screening of an equal number of girls and boys. There is no
indication, however, that there will be sex disaggregation of all key child nutrition indicators.
Project sheets indicate strong programming for maternal and under-five nutrition, breastfeeding and
outreach to women via home visits. However, most projects neglect to specify that nutrition data must
be collected on boys as well as girls as well as sex-disaggregated data on male and female clinical staff
and community volunteers.
H-29595 will establish governorate nutrition baselines. This project lays important foundations for
future response. It presents an important opportunity to strive for as close to a gender balance as
possible in staff training at all levels, on-the-job training in nutrition monitoring for IDPs, and skills
training in nutrition data collection and analysis at the health facility, district and governorate levels.
Protection & Education
Cluster Response Plan: This is the only cluster response plan which mainstreamed gender issues into its
objectives, needs assessment, activities, indicators and monitoring. It’s most notable strength is in
promoting inclusive participation by children, ensuring voice of girls and children with disabilities, in
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identifying risks and developing ideas to protect themselves from violence, abuse, neglect and
exploitation. There is also a solid indicator for adult participation: IDP committees are gender-balanced.
While some of the best designed projects in the HRP are in this cluster, others are not explicitly
gathering sex-disaggregated outcomes. Examples: E-27764 on the Youth Engagement Program does not
specify that girls and boys will equally benefit in leadership and basic skills training in direct employable
skills, in cash for work or in literacy. E-28752 gives no indication of how equitably capacity building
opportunities for education managers, planners and supervisors will benefit males and females.
WASH
Cluster Response Plan: There is good linkage between the cluster objective of ensuring that the specific
needs of women, girls, boys and men are considered in all activities and monitoring to ensure that there
is sex-disaggregated data on WASH needs, interventions and pre-positioned hygiene kits. Indicators
which refer to families, children, people, IDP families etc would be stronger if they specified the sex of
the individual or household head etc. Unless sex-disaggregation is specified, implementers may overlook
including or meeting the needs of both males and females.
Issues of dignity and privacy are well addressed in WS-26157 and WS-28010 which are the most gender
responsive of the cluster projects. However, the cluster response plan objective and monitoring
commitment, noted above, appear to have evaporated at project level. A number of projects are gender
blind but have untapped potential to respond more fully to the distinct needs of women, girls, boys and
men.
WS-29236, for example, talks of a community-based approach to WASH as a means to reduce tensions
between IDPs and host communities. The intent has merit but the meaningful participation and the
distinct needs of males and females are required to ensure tankering, waterpoint location and
development, sanitation construction and rehabilitation, hygiene mobilization and environmental
sanitation campaigns are effective. The absence of any gender analysis, focused participation or
targeted benefits related to women, girls, boys and/or men weakens the project potential seriously.
Similarly, control of water-borne disease in WS-27890 will not be maximized without the full inclusion of
women, girls, boys and men.
Shelter/NFI/CCCM
Cluster Response Plan: The needs analysis could be much stronger from a gender perspective and
provide useful support to the cluster’s important indicator: a gender balance in camp committees. It
would also be useful to have cluster members agree that the monthly statistical reporting system will
feature sex-disaggregated data.
NF-29267 has very good gender needs assessment and related activities. It could be a useful model to
other cluster projects. Even this project, however, falls short on providing sex-disaggregated data in its
outcomes and in the tracking of gender change. NF- 26147 also has solid activities from a gender
perspective but does not capture sex-specific outcomes. In a number of projects beneficiaries are IDP
camp leaders, host families, government authorities etc. which hide whether women and men are both
fully benefitting.
Multi-Sector (Refugee Response)
Cluster Response Plan: The needs assessment does not expose distinct issues facing women, girls, boys
and men who are refugees. Applying gender analysis and facilitating meaningful input of both females
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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and males is needed to maximize peaceful co-existence and the protection of vulnerable groups. The
recent creation of the National Committee for Refugee Affairs and its subcommittees is an entry point
for this cluster: priority should be given to assisting these new government bodies to respond to both
the basic and strategic needs of women, girls, boys and men who are refugees.
MS-29290 is an example of good gender outcomes: 1) at least 40% of the people of concern (age 16-60)
by gender earn income and 2) 50% women participation in leadership and management. There is
potential for both of these outcomes to go beyond meeting practical survival needs and to address
strategic interests – men and women having choices and influence they have never had before. The
same attention to tracking gender change is, however, not consistent in a number of other cluster
projects. Of note is MS-26125 which will explore migration trends and establish a refugee study centre
and more responsive reception centres. The different needs and realities of women, girls, boys and men
as well as their active participation are needed to ensure migration analysis and facilities meet the needs
of all. Likewise, MS-29324 which builds social co-existence between refugees and host communities
must be pro-active to equally benefit women and men through education and vocational training,
income-generation, micro-credit, and leadership training. Other projects in this cluster will not
necessarily document how many birth certificates are acquired for girls compared to boys or show if
boys and girls equally benefit from youth centres etc.
Early Recovery
Cluster Response Plan: This cluster response plan includes no reference to gender issues. Yet, early
recovery is the critical bridge between emergency response and sustainable development. It is essential
that the needs, realities and capacities of women, girls, boys and men be explicit and integral to early
recovery. Capacity building of government, NGOs and communities provides a fertile opportunity for
males and females to each have voice and gain leadership skills.
It is encouraging to see projects in this cluster that give cash-for-work to women-headed households
(ER-26145). In many countries there is a tendency to automatically designate female heads as grant
recipients, denying them the choice and dignity of cash-for-work.
Outcomes often focus on affected families, farmers, individuals trained, NGOs or NGO staff trained, lives
etc. which hide whether men or women benefit. A gender perspective is lacking in ER-27996 where
women, girls, boys and men should be actively involved in mine risk education and both women and
men in providing victim services. Projects like ER-28005 which focus on rural livelihood support would
be stronger if they included a brief profile of the role and knowledge that women, girls, boys and men
have in cropping, livestock rearing, fishing and fish processing, and marketing of farm and fish products.
This could better explain the selected activities and inform tracking of project benefits to males and
females. As women in Yemen face high levels of social and economic discrimination, it is a positive sign
that the cluster includes a project to support women’s capacity to recover from the conflict (ER-28744).
Coordination and Support Services
Cluster Response Plan: This cluster response plan includes no reference to gender issues. However, the
potential is great. It is vital to ensure that the humanitarian project cycle, the common information and
communication tools, the dialogue fora, and capacity building advance gender equality. Having this
explicit in the cluster response plan would enhance humanitarian leadership and advocacy. Provision of
safe transportation for the conflict-displaced population also flags the need to ensure GBV and PSEA
mechanisms are in place.
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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Project sheets would be stronger if gender equality was addressed more fully. Examples include CSS29283 where the capacity building curriculum of key NGOs should include training in gender analysis;
CSS-28534 where distribution of wind-up radios and training in their use should include a proportionate
number of women and men as in the IDP population and consider vulnerability; and CSS-25931where
gender equality can be advanced in policy dialogue, information management, humanitarian
coordination and contingency planning.
Draft Gender Comment – Linda Pennells, IASC GenCap Adviser May 10, 2010
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