Unit 3: How to mainstream gender in ILO operations

Gender analysis in technical co-operation projects

Tool: ILO’s Checklist of Gender Considerations in Summary Project Outlines (SPROUTs)

1. Background and justification
2. Objectives and indicators
3. Outputs, activities and inputs
4. Assumptions and prior obligations
5. Reporting, monitoring and evaluation schedules

[Note: This checklist is adapted from ILO’s "Guidelines for the Integration of Gender Issues into the Design, Monitoring and Evaluation of ILO Programmes and Projects", PROG/EVAL, ILO, January 1995, Geneva.]

1. Background and justification

1. Problem analysis

• Make sure that the data collected is broken down by sex.

• Undertake a gender analysis of the intended beneficiaries by identifying:
  • the division of labour between men and women, their roles and participation patterns in the socio-economic sector(s) concerned
  • The differences in men’s and women’s access to and control over resources and benefits
  • the needs men and women have
  • the constraints and/or opportunities in the economic, demographic, social, cultural, political, legal and institutional environment for the promotion of gender equality

• If the programme is geared towards institutional development assess the capacity of the institution(s) concerned in addressing the needs of men and women and promoting gender equality. Analyse the following issues:
  • the type of organisation, major areas of intervention and general capacity to plan and implement activities for women workers
  • the nature and extent of gender specific policies and activities, and experience with women workers’ issues
  • the organisational structure to address women workers’ issues
  • the concern with gender equality within the organisation and perceptions on gender issues among the staff at various levels of the organisation and how these affect their work
  Indicators of the above may be:
  • the type and scope of policies and programmes on women and gender issues
  • the proportion of male-female staff
  • the levels and occupations of men and women within the organisation
  • facilities and support systems for workers with family responsibilities

• If the above information is not available, indicate how it will be collected and taken into account in the design of the programme.

• If preparatory activities are needed to make the programme gender-responsive, describe clearly whether these activities will form part of the proposed programme (as a first phase, for example) or whether they will be undertaken as a separately funded activity prior to its start.

2. Formulation of the strategy

• Ensure that the outcome of the gender analysis is used when formulating the strategy, i.e., undertake gender planning:
  • identify how men and women can equally participate in and benefit from the programme. Develop specific interventions and organisational arrangements needed for the promotion of gender equality. For example:
    • do women need additional training because of lower educational levels?
    • can women beneficiaries be effectively reached by male extension workers or is it necessary to reach them through female extension workers?
  • avoid increasing women’s workload and the use of women as unpaid workers

• The type of strategies to be developed will depend on the context and scope of the programme. Apply the following general principles and practical measures which have proven to effectively contribute towards the promotion of equality between men and women:
  • stimulate the active participation and mobilisation of women and their organisations
  • raise awareness and develop a capacity to address the needs of men and women and promote gender equality
  • include measures which address both practical and strategic gender needs
  • avoid linguistic and visual biases and gender stereotyping
  • allocate adequate human and material resources
  • apply a multi-disciplinary and phased approach
3. Target groups, partner organisations and the institutional framework
• Describe the major characteristics of the men and women intended participants/beneficiaries in terms of
  • occupation/employment status
  • economic sectors
  • socio-economic status
  • ethic and social origin
  • age
  Describe the differences between men and women and between women among the intended participants/beneficiaries.

• Describe to what extent women clients/beneficiaries and women’s organisations have been involved in identifying the problem and the development of the strategy.

• List the main partners involved in the programme and describe their capacity to serve male and female audiences (as identified during the gender analysis).

• Given that many representatives of partner organisations¾ the majority of which are men¾ may not have sufficient expertise in gender issues, ensure that they are informed about and agree on the promotion of gender equality through the programme.

• Ensure that the programme benefits, such as
  • training opportunities
  • provision of credit
  • provision of other services
  are distributed according to the existing men/women ratio. If women have so far been under-represented and/or benefited less than men, determine to what extent additional programme benefits should be made available to them.

• Ensure that representatives of women’s organisations and/or gender specialists from the partner organisations will be represented in the advisory or steering committee(s) of the programme.
3. International labour standards
• Ensure that the programme conforms with international labour standards, in particular those on basic human rights and the relevant technical fields.

• A number of standards specifically address subjects where many women workers face constraints. They explicitly address women’s basic rights and should be applied and promoted in all ILO programmes. These standards deal with:
  • equal remuneration
  • equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women in employment
  • workers with family responsibilities
  • maternity protection
2. Objectives and indicators
1. Immediate objectives
• When specifying the target groups, be precise and avoid general terms such as "informal sector workers" and "the rural poor". make sure that the immediate objectives explicitly refer to the men and women intended beneficiaries/participants.

• In institutional development (components of) programmes, if the organisation to be strengthened needs to build up a capacity to ensure that women will be reached and will benefit from the services provided¾ by undertaking specific measures or by setting up new organisational arrangements¾ formulate a separate immediate objective for this purpose.

• Similarly, in direct support (components of) programmes, if specific measures or organisational arrangements are need to ensure that women will be reached and that they will benefit from the services provided, formulate a separate immediate objective for this purpose.
3. Indicators
• Develop indicators to enable the measurement of progress made under the programme towards the promotion of equality of opportunity and treatment between men and women workers.

• Develop indicators to enable the measurement of the nature and extent of the benefits that accrue to men and women under the programme.

• Consider whether it is necessary to establish gender specific baseline data prior to or at the start of the programme to enable comparison between the pre-programme and the end-of-programme situation.

• Ensure the systematic collection of data necessary to assess the impact of the programme on men and women.
3. Outputs, activities and inputs
1. Outputs and activities
• Be gender specific when defining the outputs and activities.

• State clearly how many men and women will participate in and benefit from the different component(s) of the programme and in what way.
  • Policy advice:
    • ensure that women’s role and participation as well as specific constraints are explicitly addressed in the analysis of the technical field(s) or sector(s) covered
    • consider whether additional measures are needed to provide an enabling environment to women’s equal participation, for instance, by removing legal or socio-cultural barriers
  • Institutional development:
    • specify the male/female proportion among the clients of the institution and describe how men and women intended beneficiaries/participants are reached
    • consider whether explicit provisions have to be made to ensure that women will benefit equally from the services to be provided
    • determine the measures necessary to develop the institutional capacity towards the promotion of gender equality.
  • Direct support:
    • specify the male/female proportion among the intended beneficiaries.
    • consider whether explicit provisions have to be made to ensure that women will benefit equally from the services to be provided.
    • determine the need for organising information or advocacy sessions in the communities or at the workplace to ensure that the rationale for the promotion of gender equality is understood and accepted by men and women.
    • use communication channels that are accessible to women beneficiaries/participants.
  • Research:
    • disaggregate data by sex
    • collect detailed information about the situation, constraints and opportunities of women, particularly the most vulnerable
  • Training:
    • spell out exactly how many women among the intended beneficiaries and/or direct recipients will be trained, in what subject(s) and at what level(s)
    • consider whether women will need additional training¾ for example, because of lower educational levels or lack of confidence
    • ensure that training materials do not contain gender stereotypes or linguistic biases

• Organise activities in such a way that women beneficiaries and/or direct recipients are able to participate equally with men:
  • Consider the timing, location and duration of activities. Due to women’s double workload (domestic and other duties) they generally have less free time than men and cannot be absent from the household for long periods.
  • If women cannot speak freely in mixed groups, organise separate meetings or training for them and arrange for women staff to communicate with them.
  • Organise the following material arrangements such that women can participate:
    • duration of training
    • travel arrangements
    • accommodation and sanitary facilities

  • Given that women beneficiaries and/or direct recipients are often responsible for young children, arrange for child care facilities at the training venue.

• If necessary, raise awareness on gender issues by providing information sessions on the promotion of gender equality for policy makers and senior management of the partner organisations and community leaders and opinion makers among the intended beneficiaries/participants.

• Undertake job-related gender training with the staff of partner organisations and the target groups.
2. Inputs
• Ensure that sufficient human and financial resources are allocated for the gender specific components of the programme.

• Determine whether specific quotas or targets should be set for men’s and women’s participation.

• Allocate responsibility for the promotion of gender equality to all staff in the programme. Include the responsibility for the promotion of gender equality in job descriptions of personnel and the terms of reference for consultants.
• If women beneficiaries/participants cannot be effectively reached by male staff, determine the type and number of female staff required.

• Determine the need for employing gender specialists. Their services are required if there is a considerable degree of gender inequality or if the proposed programme is of particular relevance to women workers.

• Ensure that job descriptions, vacancy announcements and terms of reference for consultancy services are stated in gender-neutral terms and avoid linguistic biases.

• Encourage an equal balance among men and women staff.

• Provide equal remuneration to men and women for work of equal value.
4. Assumptions and prior obligations
1. Assumptions
• If there are indications that the political framework could become less conducive to the promotion of gender equality, include a statement to the effect that political support for the promotion of gender equality will continue.
2. Prior obligations
• If the project requires considerable inputs for gender specific activities from the partner organisations¾ for example, a certain number of women extension staff¾ it may be useful to include these inputs as prior obligations.
5. Reporting, monitoring and evaluation schedules
• Specify that all data to be gathered by the project have to be broken down by sex as part of the routine reporting, monitoring, and evaluation procedures of the ILO.

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This page was revised  by SF. It was approved by WRB. It was last updated on 2 November 1998.