UNCT Performance Indicators for
Gender Equality
Users’ Guide
Prepared by
UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality
Contact information: Sandra Pellegrom, UN DOCO
(sandra.pellegrom@undp.org)
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1
2. Background to the Scorecard
2
3. Using the Scorecard
3
3.1 Process for implementation and roll-out and review
3.2 Technical assistance
3.3 The Scorecard dimension and indicators
3.4 How to rate the dimensions
3.5 How to analyse the data
3.6 Contributing to UN system-wide knowledge on gender mainstreaming
3.7 Follow-up to rating
Annex 1: Background information to development of the Scorecard
Annex 2: Scorecard methodology
Annex 3: Terms of reference for national consultant
Annex 4: Questionnaires for UNCT and counterpart interviews
Annex 5: Narrative report outline
Annex 6: Key source documents
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Users’ Guide June 2008
1. Introduction
This Users’ Guide should be read before use of the Scorecard.
Its purpose is to provide guidance on using and follow-up to the Scorecard.
The UNCT Performance Indicators for Gender Equality (Scorecard) establishes an
accountability framework for assessing the effectiveness gender mainstreaming by the
UN Country Team’s (UNCT).
The purposes of the Scorecard are:
 To assist UNCTs in identifying areas in which they are meeting or not meeting
minimum standards.
 To stimulate a constructive dialogue within the UNCT about the current status of
gender mainstreaming and how it can be improved.
 To identify where technical assistance can support the achievement of minimum
standards.
 To share good
mainstreaming.
practice
in
supporting
national
priorities
for
gender
Development of the Scorecard was coordinated by the UNDG Task Team on Gender
Equality. Its development was proposed by the UNDG Principals in July 2006, and
endorsed by the UNDG Principals in April 2008.
Section 2 of the Users’ Guide provides a background to development of the Scorecard.
Section 3 explains how the Scorecard should be implemented, including data analysis
and follow-up. The Annexes provide additional background information, a generic terms
of reference for a national consultant, and templates for reporting.
A powerpoint presentation on implementing the Scorecard is also available. Technical
support for using the Scorecard is available at: tonybeck@shaw.ca or by phone
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Users’ Guide June 2008
2. Background to the Scorecard
UN Member States have made visionary commitments concerning achievement of
gender equality and women’s empowerment at the national level. 1 The majority of UN
organizations have policies and/or strategies to enhance their contributions to and
support of gender equality and women’s empowerment. In the context of UN reform,
enhancing overall performance of the UNCT on gender equality and women’s
empowerment is vital.
Reviews undertaken by the UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality affirmed that there
has been notable progress in the reflection of gender equality in planning documents,
and that innovative programming is being spearheaded by many UN organizations.
However, systems and tools to measure
progress against stated goals, and
Accountability mechanisms for
accountability functions, need to be
gender mainstreaming across the
strengthened. The Scorecard is intended
UN system
to assist UNCTs in filling this gap.
The Scorecard is one of three system-wide
The Scorecard is focused on the
accountability mechanisms being
performance of the UNCT, rather than the
introduced in the UN. The other two
performance of any one UN organization. It
mechanisms are standards for the Systemwide policy and strategy on gender equality
intends to provide an assessment of what
and the empowerment of women, with a
the UN as a whole contributes to gender
focus on agency HQs; and a results based
mainstreaming and consequently to the
framework for planning and reporting on
promotion of gender equality. It is intended
Security Council resolution 1325 (2000) on
to complement existing accountability
Women, Peace and Security. Development
frameworks (see Box). The main focus of
of the Scorecard has been coordinated
the Scorecard is on strategies and
with these other initiatives.
processes – that is gender mainstreaming rather
than
development
results.
Achievement of development results on gender equality and women’s empowerment
must be led by national partners, with support from the UNCT.
For further background details, see Annex 1; for the methodology behind development of
the Scorecard, see Annex 2.
How the Scorecard fits with UNDG reporting processes
The Resident Coordinator (RC)/UNCT appraisal system – made up of the UNCT results
reporting template and the 180 Degree Competency Assessment instrument - is being
revised in 2008. The UNDG Task Team is coordinating with the UN Development Group
Office concerning this revision, and the links between the Scorecard and other appraisal
mechanisms. As the new RC appraisal system and Scorecard are rolled out through
2008, complementarity will be ensured.
1
With commitments ranging from agreement on the Beijing Platform for Action, to the UN
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, to the Millennium
Development Goals, including Goal 3: ‘Achieve Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment.’
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Users’ Guide June 2008
3. Using the Scorecard
3.1 Process for implementation, roll-out and review
Typically at the country level implementation of the Scorecard would proceed as follows:
Step 1: The Resident Coordinator initiates the Scorecard process. The majority
of the Scorecard should be implemented twice during the UNDAF period, once
during UNDAF planning and once at mid-term review. Certain areas related to
UNDAF planning should be implemented only once during the UNDAF period, as
noted in footnotes to the Scorecard.
Step 2: The UNCT/Gender Theme Group discusses the Scorecard and process
of implementation. Technical support is available to the UNCT/gender theme
group/national consultant for implementing the Scorecard, including a powerpoint
presentation, and phone and email support, via tonybeck@shaw.ca.
Step 3: A national consultant is identified and contracted for 10 days.2 A
generic terms of reference for a national consultant, including details of time
allocation, are provided as Annex 3. These terms of reference will need to be
adapted at the country level.
Step 4: The national consultant reads through the background material, refines
the generic questionnaire included as Annex 4, and sets up and carries out
interviews. The UNCT should provide a letter of introduction to counterparts
explaining why an interview is being requested.
Step 5: The national consultant provides a draft of the completed Scorecard
and accompanying narrative report to the RC; and makes a verbal presentation to
the RC/UNCT. During this meeting a follow-up tracking matrix should also be
completed – see Section 3.7. A generic outline for a narrative report is included as
Annex 5. The UNCT led by the RC will review this report and send comments within
two weeks. The national consultant should take these responses into account when
completing the report.
Step 6: The final Scorecard, narrative report and follow-up Table should be sent
to the RC, who will forward this to the Development Operations Coordination Office
(DOCO) with his or her comments.
Step 7: A debrief through email, including a questionnaire survey for the
UNCT/gender theme group, and national consultant.
Roll-out of the Scorecard is planned in 2008, for 2008 and 2009 UNDAF countries. This
will be on a pilot basis, and UNCTs will be requested to review the Scorecard content
2
During piloting of the Scorecard, most Country Teams expressed the opinion that the Scorecard
should be administered by an external consultant, supported by the UNCT/Gender Theme Group.
The rationale for this was that it would support greater accountability and allow a more objective
perspective.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
and process of implementation so that necessary revisions can be made. The UNDG
Task Team is planning a review of the Scorecard in 2008 as a result of the initial roll-out.
3.2 Technical assistance
The DOCO, based on the consultant’s report and RC comments, will facilitate provision
of appropriate technical assistance.
3.3. The Scorecard dimensions and indicators
The Scorecard has eight dimensions, following the UNCT planning cycle, that in
combination are a holistic measure of UNCT performance. These dimensions were
organized around the UNCT planning and programming process, and aim to capture all
important elements related to gender mainstreaming. Not all of the dimensions will be
relevant for every country. For example, where there is no UNDAF, but extensive joint
programming, Section 2.b will be the most relevant to complete. Which dimensions a
Country Team should complete should be self-evident.
The following Table explains the Scorecard columns.
Dimensions
Definition
Rating
Dimensions refer to
the overarching area
which needs to be
assessed.
This provides you with the
indicators against which
you will assess the UNCT.
The indicators have been
defined as precisely as
possible to help you rate
UNCT performance.
Include one of the following ratings, based on
the definition of indicators in the previous
column. A numerical score should be given,
as below.
This column also
includes the source
of the indicator, that
is the institutional
mandate from which
the indicator was
developed. See
Annex 6 for sources.
5 = exceeds minimum standards
4 = meets minimum standards
3 = Needs improvement
2 = Inadequate
1 = Missing
0 = not applicable
Include reviewer comments as to why a
particular rating was made, and the evidence
base such as interviews and documents
reviewed.
Dimension 1.d of the Scorecard is ‘Gender sensitive indicators included’. Good practice
in indicator development recommends the complementary use of qualitative and
quantitative indicators. It is important when reviewing gender sensitive indicators to
ensure that qualitative or difficult to measure areas such as gender-based violence and
empowerment are not overlooked. For more details on use of qualitative and quantitative
indicators, see the UNDP Cutting Edge Pack on Gender and Indicators.3
3
http://www.bridge.ids.ac.uk/reports_gend_cep.html#Indicators
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Users’ Guide June 2008
3.4 How to rate the dimensions
Before starting on the exercise of completing the Scorecard, read through the different
indicators to ensure that all are clear. As in all rating systems, there will likely be some
uncertainty at times, in particular between ‘meets minimum standard’ and ‘needs
improvement’. You will need to use your best judgment.
 Exceeds minimum standard: This rating should be used when UNCTs have
gone beyond the minimum standards, in other words where excellent work on
gender mainstreaming is taking place.
 Meets minimum standard: This is the minimum that a UNCT is expected to
achieve on gender mainstreaming, following UN institutional mandates included
in the first column of the Scorecard.
 Needs improvement: This rating applies to a situation where the UNCT is close
to meeting the minimum standard, and is likely to reach this standard over the
period of a year or two, if remedial action is taken.
 Inadequate: This rating is for dimensions that fall well below the adequate
standard and where significant improvement is required.
 Missing: This rating should be applied where the dimension is not included, for
example if no sex-disaggregated data is included or there have been no
consultations with women’s NGOs and networks.
 Not applicable: This rating should be applied when the dimension is not
relevant, for example where there is no Gender Theme Group, or Poverty
Reduction Strategy Paper or its equivalent.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
The following Table presents an example of rating.
Dimensions
UNCT comments and
evidence base
Definition
1. Planning (CCA/UNDAFs)
1.a – Adequate
UNCT review of
country context
related to
gender equality
and women’s
empowerment
Source: UNDAF
Guidelines
Exceeds minimum standards
 Includes an in-depth analysis of the
ways in which gender inequality is
reproduced, including the influence of
gender relations, roles, status,
inequalities and discrimination in access
to and control of resources.
 The analysis notes links to national
legal frameworks relevant to the
promotion of gender equality and
women’s empowerment, and specific
measures for follow up to CEDAW
reports and CEDAW Committee
concluding comments.
 All data is sex-disaggregated, or there
is a specific reason noted for not
disaggregating by sex.
 Critical capacity gaps are identified in
the area of the promotion of gender
equality.
Meets Minimum standards
(Score: 4)
The UNCT has made serious
attempts to mainstream gender in
its key planning documents, and
the CCA/UNDAF provides an
important framework for gender
equality programming.
Meets minimum standards
 Includes an in-depth analysis of the
ways in which gender inequality is
reproduced, including the influence of
gender relations, roles, status,
inequalities and discrimination in access
to and control of resources.
 The analysis notes links to national legal
framework relevant to the promotion of
gender equality and women’s
empowerment, and includes reference to
CEDAW reports and concluding
comments.
 All data is sex-disaggregated, or there
is a specific reason noted for not
disaggregating by sex.
Critical gender-related capacity
gaps were not identified in the
CCA/UNDAF, so an ‘exceeds
minimum standards’ rating was
not given.
Analysis includes :
 Detailed assessment of
gender relations and
roles
 Entitlement to property
and resources
 Consistent use of sex
disaggregated data
 Reference to CEDAW
reports and concluding
comments in UNDAF
Evidence base: CCA/ UNDAF
Needs improvement
Any two of the above three areas (under
Meets minimum standards) are met.
Inadequate
Any one of the above three areas (under
meets minimum standards) is met.
Missing
Not applicable
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Gathering data for the Scorecard will involve two main steps, the first a review of
background documents, and the second interviews with key stakeholders. Generic
questionnaires for interviews are provided as Annex 4; this will need to be adapted on a
country by country basis. The following Table provides an illustration of data sources
required to complete the Scorecard, organized by the Scorecard Dimensions.
Data sources
Dimension
1 Planning
2 Programming
Data source
CCA/UNDAF and other UNCT planning and programming
documents.
Background documents: National Plan of Action on Gender
Equality and/or Women’s Empowerment, CEDAW related
documents, PRSPs or their equivalent, UNCT joint programmes.
Interviews with relevant government ministries, Resident
Coordinator, Gender Theme Group, heads of agencies and agency
staff.
3 Partnerships
Interviews with UNCT and counterparts and partners such as the
Women’s/Gender Equality Ministry, Civil Society Organizations and
Government focal point for the UN.
4 Policies and Interviews with Resident Coordinator, Gender Theme Groups,
capacities
review of Gender Theme Group documents.
5 Decision-making Agenda and minutes of Heads of Agencies meetings, and/ or
interviews.
6 Budgeting
UNCT budgets, Joint Programme budgets, interview with Resident
Coordinator.
7: Monitoring and UNDAF Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, UNDAF and
evaluation
Resident Coordinator Annual Report, audits, evaluations and
annual reviews. Interviews with Resident Coordinator, Monitoring
and Evaluation Theme Group.
8: Quality control Readers’ Group comments, interviews with Regional Director,
and accountability Resident Coordinator.
3.5 How to analyse the data
The rating assigned should be included in the final column of the Scorecard. The
average score for each Dimension (planning, programming etc) should be included in
the narrative report (Annex 5). The average score for each Dimension should be
calculated by adding the ratings for that Dimension, and then dividing by the number of
elements in each dimension (e.g. in Dimension 1, planning, there are five elements, 1a1e).4
The Scorecard was not developed with the intention of producing a composite rating for
the UNCT, because of the issue of weighting the different Dimensions. Further analysis
across Dimensions will be carried out by the UNDG Task Team at the regional and
For 5a, ‘Gender Theme Group coordinator is part of UNCT Heads of Agency group’, which
requires a yes or no response, rate ‘4’ for yes, and ‘0’ for no.
4
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Users’ Guide June 2008
global levels. This will allow an assessment of how the UN is performing overall, as well
as global strengths and weaknesses in relation to gender mainstreaming.
3.6 Contributing to UN system-wide knowledge on gender mainstreaming
The Scorecard is also intended to assist the UN system to understand – across
countries and regions – how good practice in gender mainstreaming is achieved. Where
UNCT performance exceeds minimum standards, there is an opportunity to write up the
process and share this with other parts of the system. This information can also be
included in the narrative report.
3.7 Follow-up to rating
The presentation of findings by the national consultant to the RC/UNCT is an opportunity
to highlight strengths and weaknesses, and jointly identify areas which are a priority for
improvement. The national consultant should complete the following matrix during or
shortly after this discussion.
UNDG Gender Equality Scorecard follow-up matrix
Dimension Average
Main follow-up issues
Steps to be taken, including
numerical
technical assistance needed,
rating
time-frame, allocation of
responsibility, and resources
required
An example of a completed follow-up matrix, for Dimension 2 of the Scorecard, on
programming, is as follows:
Dimension
Average
numerical
rating
Main follow-up issues
Steps to be taken, including
technical assistance needed,
time-frame, allocation of
responsibility, and resources
required
Programming
3 (needs
improvement)
No Joint Programme on
gender being formulated,
and limited attention to
gender in Joint
Programmes
Joint programme on gender to be
formulated
Time frame: joint programme to
begin within 2 years.
Responsibility: RC
Resources required for planning: 0
Limited capacity
development provided to
govt. on gender analysis
in aid processes
Capacity development programme
initiated for relevant government
department on aid processes.
Time frame: 2008-2009
Responsibility: UNDP
Resources required: US$200,000.
This Table will be used in subsequent years to measure progress of the UNCT over
time.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Annex 1
Background Information to development of the Scorecard
Development of the Scorecard follows from the 59th Session of the UN General
Assembly, where Member States, in adopting the Triennial Comprehensive Policy
Review (TCPR) of Operational Activities for Development of the UN System (UN 2005:
13) called on all UN organizations to:
mainstream gender and to pursue gender equality in their country
programmes, planning instruments and sector-wide programmes and to
articulate specific country-level goals and targets in this field in
accordance with the national development strategies.5
Further, ECOSOC Resolution 2004/4 - Review of Economic and Social Council agreed
conclusions 1997/2 on mainstreaming the gender perspective into all policies and
programmes in the United Nations system requested: ‘the Secretary-General to ensure
that all United Nations entities develop action plans with time lines for implementing the
agreed conclusions 1997/2, which address the gap between policy and practice
identified in the Secretary-General’s report, with a view to strengthening commitment
and accountability at the highest levels within the United Nations system as well as to
establishing mechanisms to ensure accountability, systematic monitoring and reporting
on progress in implementation.’
As a direct follow-up to the TCPR, and to ensure a comprehensive response to many of
its recommendations, the UN Development Group (UNDG) created a Task Team on
Gender Equality as a sub-group of the UNDG Programme Group. The goals of the Task
Team are: to support more consistent and coherent action among UNDG member
agencies to mainstream gender equality and promote women’s empowerment at the
country level; and to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment are
mainstreamed into the wide range of tools and processes that emerge from the UNDG
for use by UN Country Teams (UNCTs).
In 2006 the UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality commissioned a background paper
on accountability mechanisms in UNDG agencies. This paper6 reviewed accountability
for programming in support of gender equality in ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and
WFP7 and found that:
A common understanding of how to apply gender mainstreaming in UN
operational activities is needed. This is because if there is no agreement on what
constitutes a minimum level of actions to support gender equality, how will it be
possible to hold agencies and UN Country Teams accountable for this?
Reaching agreement across agencies on what constitutes a minimally
acceptable performance to support gender equality, through an agreed set of
indicators, would contribute to stronger guidance and accountability.
5
UN (2005) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly. 59/250. Triennial comprehensive
policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system. New York:
A/RES/59/250.
6 http://www.undg.org/search.cfm?x=0&y=0&by=keywords&q=tony+beck&country
7 The four ExCom agencies were chosen, along with ILO because of their well-recognized work
on gender audits.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Subsequently this background paper was endorsed at the UNDG Principals’ meeting in
July 2006, where agreement was reached on development of a UNCT-level ‘Accounting
for Gender Equality’ Scorecard that sets minimum standards for UNCTs to assess their
performance, and to identify gaps and progress across the system.
General background to scorecards
The use of scorecards for strategic planning originated with the concept of the Balanced
Scorecard in the early 1990s - planned to enable businesses to turn their vision and
strategies into action8, and currently considered one of the most important business
planning tools. Instead of measuring performance by financial outcomes alone, the
Balanced Scorecard incorporates four perspectives: financial; business process;
learning and growth; and customer perspective. The intention of moving beyond financial
information was to provide managers with richer and more relevant information about
activities they are managing. Over time the design of Balanced Scorecards evolved to
include causal links between an organization’s strategic goals and the four perspectives;
causal links between strategic objectives within the different perspectives; and the
inclusion of a Destination Statement, which acts as a final check on objectives,
measures, and targets chosen in the development of a scorecard9. However, these
authors argue that since the initial task of designing a scorecard is challenging: ‘many
management teams are persuaded to use less demanding design processes, with the
result that perhaps a majority of Balanced Scorecards fail.’ (ibid: p.5). Some of the
challenges of developing a scorecard are the process of choosing specific measures to
report, and clustering – deciding how to group measures into perspectives.
Scorecards in the public sector
Like many evaluation and strategic planning tools, the scorecard concept has been
picked up on by the public sector. In the public sector, including the UN, management
consultants are increasingly brought in to improve strategic planning. The UNDP
Balanced Scorecard for example uses many of the techniques introduced in the original
scorecard concept, including destination statements. However, in the public sector, at
least among development agencies, scorecards appear to have been used more for
monitoring and evaluation than for planning – that is for ‘keeping score’ in the
organization, rather than for planning and attempting to maintain a balance between
different organizational functions. Because of this, public sector scorecards often
resemble a revised Logical Framework Analysis format. Below are three recent
examples of gender scorecards.
The UNDP Gender Mainstreaming Scorecard10 is to be completed by all Headquarters
Bureaux, Regional Centres and Country Offices every six months. The Scorecard
covers six areas: corporate commitments; implementation mechanisms; internal
capacities; gender mainstreaming in the project cycle; accountability; and culture. In the
8
Arveson, P. (1998) What is the Balanced Scorecard? Balanced Scorecard Institute.
Washington, D.C. Accessed on-line: January 17, 2007
http://www.balancedscorecard.org/basics/bsc1.html
9 Cobbold, I. and G. Lawrie. 2002. The development of the Balanced Scorecard as a strategic
management tool. 2GC Conference Paper, mimeo
10 UNDP (2006) Gender Mainstreaming Scorecard. New York: mimeo.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
scoring system for the Scorecard, UNDP uses a six-point scale, and has taken a mainly
quantitative approach, with cut off points at 25, 50 and 75 per cent.
The UNDP’s Rwanda Gender Audit Project11 used a Balanced Scorecard to better
understand the extent to which policies on gender equality were being incorporated into
programmes and interventions, and to see if internal policies reflected the agency’s
commitment to gender equality. An anonymous questionnaire of all project staff was
generated, and the Scorecard considered four perspectives:
accountability to
heaquarters; internal operations and competences; innovation and learning; and
reputation with partners, clients and constituencies.
UNESCO’s Scorecard on Gender Equality and Girls’ Education in Asia 1990-200012
faced complex conceptual and data issues, particularly related to conceptualization,
measurement, quality and accessibility of data. The scorecard was built around four
measures that are considered indicators of girls’ access to and retention in schooling:
girls’ net attendance rate at primary school; girls’ survival rate over 5 years in primary
schooling; girls’ secondary net enrolment rate; and the country gender development
index. Despite the methodological constraints, it was concluded that the Scorecards
generated some useful insights with regards to the MDG achievements.
11
UNDP (2006a) Rwanda Gender Audit Project, Internal Self-Assessment Questionnaire, mimeo.
UNESCO (2004) A Scorecard on Gender Equality and Girls’ Education in Asia 1990-2000.
Bangkok: UNESCO.
12
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Annex 2
Scorecard methodology
The Scorecard is based on a background literature review, a review of a number of
similar initiatives, and substantial interaction with UNDG agencies. Development of
Scorecard dimensions, phrasing of the explanation of dimensions – the performance
indicators, and the rating system, went through a review by the Gender Equality Task
Team. The Scorecard and this Users’ Guide also went through a peer review process in
seven Country Offices, with comments received integrated as appropriate. In total four
drafts were formulated and discussed.
The performance indicators included in the Scorecard were drawn from international
mandates on gender equality and the empowerment of women, and UNDG guidance.
The source for each indicator is provided in the left hand column of the Scorecard, and
these sources are outlined in Annex 6 of this Guide. The Scorecard indicators are not
meant to supersede individual UN organization indicators. Rather, the Scorecard was
developed based on a review of what exists, consolidated and built on indicators used
by a number of UN organizations, and has developed new indicators where none
existed.
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Annex 3
Terms of reference for national consultant
1. Background
At the 59th Session of the UN General Assembly, Member States, in adopting the
Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR) of Operational Activities for
Development of the UN System called on all UN organizations to:
mainstream gender and to pursue gender equality in their country
programmes, planning instruments and sector-wide programmes and to
articulate specific country-level goals and targets in this field in
accordance with the national development strategies.13
Further, ECOSOC Resolution 2004/4 - Review of Economic and Social Council agreed
conclusions 1997/2 on mainstreaming the gender perspective into all policies and
programmes in the United Nations system requested: ‘the Secretary-General to ensure
that all United Nations entities develop action plans with time lines for implementing the
agreed conclusions 1997/2, which address the gap between policy and practice
identified in the Secretary-General’s report, with a view to strengthening commitment
and accountability at the highest levels within the United Nations system as well as to
establishing mechanisms to ensure accountability, systematic monitoring and reporting
on progress in implementation.’
As a direct follow-up to the TCPR, and to ensure a comprehensive response to many of
its recommendations, the UN Development Group (UNDG) created a Task Team on
Gender Equality as a sub-group of the UNDG Programme Group. The goals of the Task
Team are: to support more consistent and coherent action among UNDG member
agencies to mainstream gender equality and promote women’s empowerment at the
country level; and to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment are
mainstreamed into the wide range of tools and processes that emerge from the UNDG
for use by UN Country Teams (UNCTs).
In 2006 the UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality commissioned a background paper
on accountability mechanisms in UNDG agencies. This paper14 reviewed accountability
for programming in support of gender equality in ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and
WFP and found that:
A common understanding of how to apply gender mainstreaming in UN
operational activities is needed. This is because if there is no agreement on what
constitutes a minimum level of actions to support gender equality, how will it be
possible to hold agencies and UN Country Teams accountable for this?
Reaching agreement across agencies on what constitutes a minimally
acceptable performance to support gender equality, through an agreed set of
indicators, would contribute to stronger guidance and accountability.
13
UN (2005) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly. 59/250. Triennial comprehensive
policy review of operational activities for development of the United Nations system. New York:
A/RES/59/250, p.13.
14 http://www.undg.org/search.cfm?x=0&y=0&by=keywords&q=tony+beck&country
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Subsequently this background paper was endorsed at the UNDG Principals’ meeting in
July 2006, where agreement was reached on development of a UNCT-level ‘Accounting
for Gender Equality’ Scorecard that sets minimum standards for UNCTs to assess their
performance, and to identify gaps and progress across the system.
2. Purpose of the Scorecard exercise
 To assist UNCTs in identifying areas in which they are meeting or not meeting
minimum standards.
 To stimulate a constructive dialogue within the UNCT about the current status of
support for gender equality and women’s empowerment and how it can be
improved.
 To identify where technical assistance can support the achievement of minimum
standards.
 To share good practice in supporting national priorities to advance gender
equality and women’s empowerment.
3. Purpose and requirements of the consultancy
A consultant is required to implement the Scorecard as follows:
Activity
Number of days
Background document review:
3
 Scorecard and Users’ Guide
 CCA and UNDAF
 UNDG. Common Country Assessment and United
Nations
Development
Assistance
Framework.
Guidelines for UN Country Teams on Preparing a CCA
and UNDAF. February 2007.
 UNCT planning and programming documents
 National Plan of Action on Gender Equality and/or
Women’s Empowerment, CEDAW related documents,
PRSPs or their equivalent, UNCT joint programmes
 UNCT budgets, Joint Programme budgets
 Readers’ Group comments, 180 degree assessment
materials
Interviews:
4
 Resident Coordinator
 Gender Theme Group
 Monitoring and Evaluation Theme Group
 Other UN staff
 Regional Director Team
 Counterparts, including women’s machinery, other
government ministries (eg planning), and civil society
Approximately 15-20 interviews
Completion of draft Scorecard and narrative report
1.5
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Users’ Guide June 2008
Verbal debriefing with RC/UNCT, completion of final Scorecard,
narrative report and follow-up matrix, and debrief with UNDG
Task Team
Total
1.5
10
4. Competencies required




In-depth knowledge of the UN programme in-country
At least 10 years experience of work on gender mainstreaming
At least five years experience of work on results based management
Ability to complete the Scorecard, narrative report and follow-up matrix in English
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Annex 4
Questionnaires for UNCT and counterpart interviews
While the basic format of the following questions should be used during interviews, they
should be adapted at country level to ensure relevance to the country context. Who is to
be interviewed should be determined with the UNCT, based on UNCT programming.
Scorecard Dimension 1 on planning is not included because it is based on document
review rather than interviews. However, the consultant may make note of any relevant
information that arises concerning planning during interviews.
Scorecard dimension 2. Programming.
Interviews with relevant government ministries, Resident Coordinator, Gender Theme
Group, heads of agencies and agency staff.
2a – Gender perspectives are adequately reflected in programming
Does UNCT programming directly address the gender-related opportunities and
challenges highlighted in key planning documents (CCA/UNDAF, MDG report etc)? Can
you provide examples? Are these programmes adequately funded?
Are there joint initiatives in place in support of gender equality and women’s
empowerment? What is the quality of these joint initiatives? How successful has it been
in meeting its objectives?
2b – Joint programmes
Is a Joint Programme on gender equality in place? To what extent does this Joint
Programme address key national gender equality priorities? Please give examples.
To what extent are other Joint Programmes gender mainstreamed?
What mechanisms are in place (e.g. screening or peer review) to determine if UNCT
Joint Programmes are adequately gender mainstreamed?
How successful has the Joint Programme on gender been? Has it met its objectives?
Have the objectives in other Joint Programmes related to promoting gender equality
been successful?
2.c - UNCT support for national priorities related to gender equality and/or
women’s empowerment
To what extent does the UN’s budgetary allocation support the following:
- The National Plan of Action on Gender Equality and/or Women’s Empowerment.
- implementation of CEDAW, and follow-up to CEDAW Committee concluding
comments.
- collection and analysis of sex-disaggregated data at the national level.
- gender mainstreaming in ministries other than the women’s machinery.
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What level of resources are being allocated to these priorities? Is this a constant figure or
has it changed over time? How successful has this support been in terms of meeting
objectives? What are the measures of success?
2.d - UNCT support to gender mainstreaming in programme based approaches
To what extent has the UNCT been involved in the following:
-Capacity development for relevant government ministries for mainstreaming gender in
Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers or national development plans.
-Capacity development for relevant government ministries for mainstreaming gender in
General Budget Support programming.
-Capacity development for relevant government ministries for mainstreaming gender in
Sector Wide Approaches or National Development Plans.
How successful has this capacity development been? Has it met its objectives? What
have the measures of success been?
2.e - UNCT support to gender mainstreaming in aid effectiveness processes
To what extent have the following been achieved:
-Promotion of gender-sensitive budgeting in the Ministry of Finance and other key
ministries.
-UNCT takes lead role in improving the Government’s ability to coordinate donor support
to promoting gender equality.
-UNCT supports monitoring and evaluation of gender mainstreaming in Poverty
Reduction Strategy Papers, General Budget Support programming, and Sector Wide
Approaches.
How successful has this support been? Has it met its objectives? What have the
measures of success been?
Scorecard Dimension 3 Partnerships
Interviews with UNCT and counterparts and partners such as the Women’s/Gender
Equality Ministry, Civil Society Organizations and Government focal point for the UN.
3.a - Involvement of National Machineries for Women / Gender Equality and
women’s departments at the sub-national level – to be completed once during the
CCA/UNDAF period
To what extent has the women’s machinery/department participated in:
-Consultations about CCA/UNDAF planning (e.g. the prioritization retreat).
-Development of UNDAF outcomes, inputs and indicators.
-Monitoring and evaluation of UNDAF results.
Has there been full participation? How is this being tracked? Full participation means that
the women’s machinery/department is present at meetings, is involved in decisionmaking, and that recommendations made are followed-up and there is involvement at the
implementation level.
What is the role of the women’s machinery in supporting achievement of UNDAF
outcomes? Is this role clearly defined?
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3.b - Involvement of women’s NGOs and networks – to be completed once during the
CCA/UNDAF period
To what extent have women’s NGOs and networks participated in:
-Consultations about CCA/UNDAF planning (e.g. the prioritization retreat).
-Development of UNDAF outcomes, inputs and indicators.
-Monitoring and evaluation of UNDAF results.
Has there been full participation? How is this being tracked? Full participation means that
women’s NGOs and networks are present at meetings, involved in decision-making, and
that recommendations made are followed-up and there is involvement at the
implementation level.
What is the role of women’s NGOs and networks in supporting achievement of UNDAF
outcomes? Is this role clearly defined?
3.c - Women from marginalized groups included as programme partners and
beneficiaries in key UNCT initiatives
To what extent are the capacities and livelihood strategies of women from all
marginalized groups clearly identified in UNCT country level analysis?
To what extent does the UNCT proactively involve women from all marginalized groups
in planning, implementation, decision-making, and monitoring and evaluation?
To what extent are women from all marginalized groups participants and beneficiaries in
key UNCT initiatives, e.g. in UNDAF outcomes and outputs? How is this tracked, and
what are the measures of success?
Scorecard Dimension 4 UNCT capacities
4.a - Multi-stakeholder Gender Theme Group is effective
Interviews with Resident Coordinator, Gender Theme Groups
Is the Gender Theme Group adequately resourced, and resourced equally to other
Theme Groups? How is allocation of resources determined?
Who are members of the Gender Theme Group? Do all key stakeholders participate (e.g.
national partners, Bretton Woods institutions, regional banks, civil society, the private
sector, donors, and international NGOs).
Are Gender Theme Group recommendations taken into account in preparation of
CCA/UNDAF? Are there any examples?
Does the Gender Theme Group have a clear terms of reference?
4.b - Capacity development of UNCTs in gender equality and women’s
empowerment programming
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Does the Resident Coordinator systematically promote, monitor and report on capacity
development activities related to gender equality and women’s empowerment? How does
this take place? What kinds of reports are produced?
Is there a regular review of capacity of the UNCT to undertake gender mainstreaming?
How often does this take place?
Is the impact of the gender component of training programmes regularly reviewed? Is so,
what changes are made based on the review?
What training do UNCT staff take on gender mainstreaming? How often does this training
take place? How effective is the training, and how is this measured?
Do gender specialists and gender focal points receive specific training? How often does
this training take place? How effective is the training, and how is this measured?
4.c - Gender expert roster with national, regional and international expertise used
by UNCT members – the roster can be maintained at national or regional levels
Is there a gender expert roster? Is this regularly updated? Does it include national,
regional and international experts?
To what extent do gender experts participate in key UNCT activities (e.g. UNDAF
planning, development of Joint Programmes on gender equality)? What is the outcome of
this participation? Please provide examples?
How often do UN agencies use the Roster? Is this tracked on a regular basis?
Scorecard Dimension 5: Decision-making
Interviews with Resident Coordinator and Heads of Agencies
5.a - Gender Theme Group coordinator is part of UNCT Heads of Agency group
Is the Gender Theme Group coordinator part of the UNCT Heads of Agency group?
5.b - UNCT Heads of Agency meetings regularly take up gender equality
programming and support issues
How often is gender equality programming and support issues almost included during
Heads of Agency meetings?
How are decisions related to gender equality programming and support issues followed
through? Who has responsibility for this? What happens if decisions are not followed
through?
Scorecard Dimension 6: Budgeting
Interview with Resident Coordinator
6.a - UNCT Gender sensitive budgeting system instituted
What budgeting system does the UNCT have in place? Does this system track UNCT
expenditures for gender equality programming? What are the levels of resource allocation
for promoting gender equality?
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6.b - Specific budgets allocated to stimulate stronger programming on gender
equality
Are there specific budgets allocated for the following:
-Capacity development and training.
-Gender equality pilot projects.
-Support to national women’s machinery.
-Support to women’s NGOs and networks.
-Maintenance of experts’ roster.
-Promotion of gender mainstreaming in CCA/ UNDAF exercises (e.g. for the preparation
of background documentation, gender analysis capacity building, technical resource
persons, etc.).
-Research on gender equality and the empowerment of women.
What is the level of these budgets, both in absolute terms and as a percentage of overall
UNCT expenditure?
Scorecard Dimension 7: Monitoring and Evaluation
Interviews with Resident Coordinator, Monitoring and Evaluation Theme Group.
7.a - Monitoring and evaluation includes adequate attention to gender
mainstreaming and the promotion of gender equality
How often during the UNDAF period is a gender equality evaluation carried out?
How often during the UNDAF period is a gender audit undertaken?
Does the UNDAF Monitoring and Evaluation Framework adequately measure genderrelated outcome and output expected results?
Is data related to gender-sensitive indicators in the UNDAF Results Matrix being gathered
as planned?
Is all monitoring and evaluation data sex-disaggregated (or a specific reason is noted for
not disaggregating by sex)?
If results are not being achieved as planned, what remedial action is taken? How effective
is this?
Scorecard Dimension 8: Quality control and accountability
Interviews with Regional Director, Resident Coordinator.
8.a - CCA/UNDAF quality control – to be completed once during the CCA/UNDAF
process
To what extent are gender experts involved in CCA/UNDAF preparation?
Do Readers’ Group comments refer specifically to gender equality? What changes have
been made to the CCA/UNDAF based on Readers’ Group comments concerning gender
equality?
Was relevant assessment on gender equality from the CCA quality review template taken
into account in revising the CCA?
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Was relevant assessment on gender equality from the UNDAF quality review template
taken into account in revising the UNDAF?
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Annex 5
Narrative report outline
Length of the report should be about 800 words. It should include a title page noting the
country covered, the name and contact details of the consultant, and the date of the
report.
1. Methodology (100 words). Outline the methods used, and any constraints faced (e.g.
lack of time, lack of access to documents or staff).
2. Findings (500 words)
This section should be organized into two parts, one on strengths and one on
weaknesses. It should be based on both the scoring in the Scorecard and interviews.
For example, a UNCT may be strong on planning, but weak on budgeting. The driving
forces to good quality gender mainstreaming (e.g. good leadership, government and
agency commitmen)t, as well as the constraints to improved practice (e.g. lack of gender
theme group, government opposition to gender mainstreaming) should be noted here.
The average score for each Dimension should be included in this section, using the
following Table:
Dimension
1 Planning
2 Programming
3 Partnerships
4 Policies and capacities
5 Decision-making
6 Budgeting
7 Monitoring and evaluation
8 Quality control and accountability
Average score
Any good practice in gender mainstreaming should also be highlighted here, including
the factors which led to this good practice.
3. Follow-up (200 words)
The completed follow-up matrix should be included
Dimension
Average
Main follow-up issues
numerical
rating
Steps to be taken, including
technical assistance needed,
time-frame, allocation of
responsibility, and resources
required
Annex
Note the documents reviewed, and the names and institutional positions of those
interviewed.
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Annex 6: Key source documents
ECOSOC 2006. Resolution 2006/36 Mainstreaming a gender perspective into all policies
and programmes in the United Nations system
ECOSOC 2005. Resolution 2005/31 Mainstreaming a gender perspective into all
policies and programmes in the United Nations system
ECOSOC 2004 Resolution 2004/4 Review of Economic and Social Council agreed
conclusions 1997/2 on mainstreaming the gender perspective into all policies and
programmes in the United Nations system. E/2004/INF/2/Add.2
ECOSOC 1997 Agreed Conclusions 1997/2: Mainstreaming the gender perspective into
all policies and programmes in the United Nations system.
TCPR. Triennial comprehensive policy review of operational activities for development
of the United Nations system. A/62/424/Add.2, 18 December 2007.
UNDG. Common Country Assessment and United Nations Development Assistance
Framework. Guidelines for UN Country Teams on Preparing a CCA and UNDAF.
February 2007.
World Summit Outcome 2005 Resolution adopted by the General Assembly
60/1.
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