commonwealth national women’s machineries...

Report of the

COMMONWEALTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S MACHINERIES MEETING

1–3 March 2013African Union Conference Centre, New YorkThe Westin New York Grand Central Hotel, New York

COMMONWEALTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S MACHINERIES MEETING | 1-3 MARCH 2013 33

Report of the

COMMONWEALTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S MACHINERIES MEETING

1–3 March 2013

African Union Conference Centre, New York

The Westin New York Grand Central Hotel, New York

COMMONWEALTH NATIONAL WOMEN’S MACHINERIES MEETING | 1-3 MARCH 20134

Commonwealth Secretariat Marlborough House Pall Mall London SW1 Y 5HX United Kingdom

© Commonwealth Secretariat, 2013

Published by the Commonwealth Secretariat Wherever possible, the Commonwealth Secretariat uses paper sourced from sustainable forests or from sources that minimise a destructive impact on the environment.

Cover photographs by John Oko Nyaku


Contents

Acronyms 7

SUMMARY 9

A African Union and Commonwealth Secretariat: Africa and Small States Meeting 14

Joint Session 14

Annexes 22

I. Agenda 23

II. Participants List 24

B 10th Meeting of the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) 27

Day One - Afternoon Session 27

Day Two - Morning Session 34

Day Two - Afternoon Session 39

Annexes 43

I. Agenda 44

II. Chair’s Report to the 10th CGPMG 47

III. Information Note: 10th CGPMG Meeting 50

IV. Background Note: Civil Society Representation (CSO) on the CGPMG 62

V. Background Note: Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015, Draft Framework for the End Term Review Report 64

VI. Information Note: Gender at Work – Conceptual Model and Case Studies Template 67

VII. Information Note: Global CGPMG Work-plan 2012–2013 69

VIII. Information Note: List of CGPMG Members – 2012/2013 and 2013/2014 71

IX. Participants List 73

C. Annual Consultation of Commonwealth National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) 77

Morning Session 78

Afternoon Session 94


Annexes 106

I. Agenda 107

II. Chair’s Report to the 2013 NWM 110

III. Guidance Note: Country Reports on Women’s Political Participation 113

IV. Information Note: Equitable Governance and Women’s Leadership in the Commonwealth 114

V. Information Note: Jurisprudence of Equality on Violence Against Women (VAW) – Towards Judicial Leadership 117

VI. Participants List 119


Acronyms

AU African Union

AUC African Union Commission

BPFA Beijing Platform for Action

CARICOM Caribbean Community

CBC Commonwealth Business Community

CBW Commonwealth Business Women

CEDAW Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

CGPMG Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group

CHOGM Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting

CPA Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

CSO Civil Society Organisation

CSW Commission on the Status of Women

CWP Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians

ETR End Term Review

GWIN Global Women Investors and Innovators Network

IGO Intergovernmental Organisation

M&E Monitoring and Evaluation

MDG Millennium Development Goal

MTR Mid-Term Review

NGO Non-governmental Organisation

NWM National Women’s Machinery

OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

PIFS PacificIslandsForumSecretariat

PoA Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015

RBM Results-based Management

SADC Southern African Development Community

SPED Strategic Planning and Evaluation Division

STPD Social Transformation Programmes Division

UN United Nations

UNECA United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

VAW Violence Against Women

WACSI West Africa Civil Society Institute

WAMM Women’sAffairsMinistersMeeting

WPC Women’s Parliamentary Caucus


Summary

The Commonwealth annual consultations of national women’s machineries (NWMs)withseniorofficials,strategicpartners and civil society organisations have become important events on the calendars of the Commonwealth and United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women (CSW). The consultations have enabled the Commonwealth, which represents the largest grouping of 54 countries within the UN system, to dialogue and contribute to the global agenda of advancing women’s rights and achieving gender equality. This year’s meeting, on the eve of the 57th CSW, was also importantforfinalisingtheSecretariat’splansfortheTenthWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting (10WAMM), to be hosted by the Government of Bangladesh in Dhaka on 15–19 June 2013.

The Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA), endorsed by Commonwealth Heads of Government, represents the Commonwealth’s commitment to eradicate poverty, promote economic

growth and achieve sustainable, peaceful development for women, men, girls and boys. It is within the framework of the PoA that the Commonwealth contributes towards achieving global targets set out in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW, 1979), the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA, 1995), the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs, 2000), UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security (2000) and its follow-up resolutions, as well as other legal commitments and obligations under international human rights law.

It is now clear that the ‘post-2015 gender agenda’ is gaining momentum throughout the Commonwealth and globally. As the UN begins the process of evaluating the MDGs, the Commonwealth and its partners are continuing to make every efforttofurthertheprogressofgenderequality and women’s empowerment at the national, regional and international levels. Reviewing progress on the MDGs is intrinsic to developing Commonwealth gender priorities for the post-2015


development agenda. Progress has been uneven within Commonwealth countries and regions. According to the ONE’s 2013 Data Report1 on progress of MDGs in countries, three of the goals have been achieved by sixteen Commonwealth countries prior to the 2015 deadline – halving extreme poverty, halting the spread of HIV and AIDS and providing universal primary education – in Bangladesh, Gambia, Ghana, Guyana, India, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, St Vincent & Grenadines, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea andUganda.Hencemoreeffortsarerequired and a stronger global partnership among governments, the private sector, academia and civil society is needed to accelerate achievement of the goals.

An important focus of this year’s consultation was preventing and eliminating violence against women (VAW), also the priority theme for the 57th session of the CSW. In acknowledging the theme, the Secretariat convened a meeting with the African Union (AU) and Commonwealth small stateson‘EffortstoEliminateCyclicalViolence Against Women and Girls’. Held on the morning of Friday 1 March 2013 in New York, the meeting was opened by H.E. Mr Tete Antonio, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the AU to the UN. Discussions centred on (1) examining post-MDG activities as they relate to gender issues in Africa and in developing and small Commonwealth states; (2) the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women

and girls; (3) highlighting corporate accountability in the private sector as it impacts women’s leadership; and (4) promoting government and civil society partnerships for inclusive and sustainable development.

The meeting recognised that women represented 50 per cent of the population in the Commonwealth (52 per cent in African countries) and were breadwinners in their societies. Yet, violence against women was disturbingly persistent. In addition to rape, violence against women was also carried out through acid attacks, witch hunting, honour killings, gang violence, STD/HIV transmission, lack of maternal care and domestic violence. The AU-Commonwealth group stressed that VAW was a social, economic and psychological issue and resulted in a loss of production days, and had detrimental psychologicaleffects.Securingwomen’seconomic empowerment was critical for their independence, growth and development.

The AU-Commonwealth group aimed to fortifyitscollectiveeffortsandinvolveyoung people, men and boys in the dialogue. Political will in governance as well as skills training, access to financeandprivateandpublicsectorprocurement (i.e., access to goods and services) was also agreed to play a key role in facilitating and advancing gender equality and empowerment. Strong regional and national collaboration (including innovation and technology transfer), government and corporate accountability, enforcement of the

1 ONE 2013 DATA REPORT: Financing the Fight for Africa’s Transformation accessed from http://one.org.s3.amazonaws.com/pdfs/ONE_DataReport_2013_FINAL.pdf 29 May 2013


law, multicultural and multi-sector approaches, public education and improving data collection continued to be important aspects of the process. At the end of the session, it was clear that members of the Commonwealth and the AU recognised their shared problems and they ardently stressed the importance of partnership. It was through such partnership that the 10th Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) and NWMs meetings were held at the AU Conference Centre in New York.

This year’s CGPMG meeting took place on 1–2 March 2013, and members reviewed progress made on the implementation of the PoA. The meeting (1) considered the draft framework for the PoA End Term Review (ETR); and (2) provided training to members to strengthen their capacity to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA and provide strategic policy advice to member governments and stakeholders. As a collective, members of the CGPMG noted that they looked forward to continued and steady progress in achieving their goals during the 2013–2014 period. The two-day meeting was attended by 42 delegates from 15 countries and resulted in a lively and rich exchange, which brought to the fore many important points. The meeting was chaired by the Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister for Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa.

Harmonising reporting on the PoA with other international and regional gender mechanisms was emphasised, and the challenges of members in holding sub-regional meetings was acknowledged

with a proposal that future sub-regional meetings be convened in the wings of UN regional meetings. The meeting endorsed a proposal to increase representation of civil society organisations (CSOs) on the Group to include the Europe and Southern Africa regions and noted that the next CGPMG Chair (for the period 2014–2016) would be from the West and East Africa region.

The 10th CGPMG was followed by the Annual Consultation of Commonwealth National Women’s Machineries (NWMs), held on Sunday 3 March 2013 and chaired by the Secretariat. The theme for the 2013 meeting was ‘Women’s Leadership for Sustainable Democracy and Development in the Commonwealth’, anchored on MDG3 on promoting gender equality and empowering women. Leading the discussion on women’s leadership and democracy was the keynote speaker, Hon. Alix Boyd-Knights, Speaker of the House of Assembly of Dominica, who recommended a three-pronged strategy involving mentorship, motivation and mobilisation to ensure the participation of young women and men in politics. The need to recognise the contributions of innovative women throughout the Commonwealth was identifiedasanimportantissue,andreference was made to the all-women election observer mission in West Africa asafirstontheAfricancontinent.Acountry case study of South Africa further served as a commendable model for the Commonwealth.

After its Chair had delivered the report of the 10th CGPMG meeting, the NWM meeting centred on (1) progress made


in implementing the PoA during the 2012–2013 period, including an update on the ETR framework; (2) preparations for 10WAMM; (3) country case studies showcasingmembers’effortsatincreasing the representation of women in leadership roles and mechanisms legislated to ensure equitable representation of women at all levels of decision-making; and (4) determining gender priorities for the post-2015 global development agenda. Gender priorities from the Commonwealth, UN and AU perspectives were deliberated and delegates were encouraged to advocate for broader international recognition that all existing development goals were inextricably tied to and driven by women’s equality and empowerment. Delegates were also encouraged to focus on clear, sustainable initiatives.

A session dedicated to the Jurisprudence of Equality on VAW, led by Botswana Judge Memooda Ebrahim-Carstens from the UN Dispute Tribunal in New York, also included Judge Sarah Ondeyo from Kenya and Judge Fiona Mwale from Malawi. The session emphasised that ending all forms of violence against women was critical to ending poverty and required the involvement of both men and women in the change process. The issues of judicial reform, re-education and the impact of traditional or cultural leaders were also examined in detail.

The Secretariat expressed its hope that, going forward, the outcome(s) of this year’s 10WAMM would lead discussions in the areas of VAW, economic transformation, women’s enterprise development and leadership and national-

regional commitments. The meeting will be hosted by the Government of Bangladesh, which aims to spotlight its ongoing commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The 2013 annual women’s meeting was well attended by 12 Commonwealth ministers as well as ambassadors, senior officials,UNagencies,internationalNGOs, civil society leaders and women’s business and advocacy representatives. Over 30 partnering organisations were in attendance as well as delegates from 30 Commonwealth countries. The increased presence of male delegates, all of whom expressed a strong commitment to enhancing gender equality and women’s empowerment, was also a welcome addition.

Among the partners and distinguished guests were: the Hon. Alix Boyd-Knights, Chair of Commonwealth Women’s Parliamentarians (CWP) within the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and Speaker of the House of Assembly in Dominica; Ms Lakshmi Puri, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director of UN Women; Judge Memooda Ebrahim-Carstens, UN Dispute Tribunal, New York Registry; Dr Amany Asfour, AU Commission; and Dr Aruna Rao, Gender at Work.

Key achievements of the meeting included strengthened partnerships between ministers towards institutionalising mechanisms to advance women’s political participation and the identificationofCommonwealthgenderpriorities for the post-2015 development agenda. The Secretariat further contributed to the global debate by calling


for MDG3 on women’s empowerment and gender equality to be maintained in the post-2015 gender agenda.


A African Union and Commonwealth Secretariat: Africa and Small States Meeting

Friday 1 March 2013

Overview

Currently, 19 Commonwealth countries are also members of the African Union (AU), and it is evident that the two groups share similar development challenges. This year delegates from the Commonwealth, along with representatives from the AU, gathered in New York to share their individual experiences and strengthen their collective efforts. The resounding message that came out of the meeting was that members of the Commonwealth and the AU must have ‘One Voice’.

Joint Session

1. Welcome, Introductions and Opening Remarks

The joint AU-Commonwealth Secretariat meeting was held at the African Union Conference Centre. Opening the session, Ambassador H.E. Mr Tete Antonio, Permanent Representative of the AU to the UN, extended a warm welcome to all delegates and reminded them that the reality had to match the rhetoric, and vice versa. He stressed that attitudes towards gender equality and women’s empowerment needed to change and all members had a responsibility to support this. Ambassador Antonio also set the tone for the day’s session by reminding delegates of their shared interests and values.

Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, Social Transformation Programme Division (STPD) and Head of Gender Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat, emphasised the numerous overlaps in the challenges faced by members of the Commonwealth and the AU and the many opportunities to learn from shared experiences. She encouraged delegates to work together to engage the global debate on how to prevent violence against women (VAW) in the post-2015 genderagenda.Shealsoaffirmedthatjustice and equality had to be available for


both women and men, as well as girls and boys; therefore, lawmakers needed to be alert and responsive.

Ms Eghobamien then reminded delegates that women were the market of the future, giving as examples the fact that women’s 2009–2010 global earnings combined were greater than those of China and India and that women represented more than half of the individuals who entered into small to medium-sized enterprises. In agreement with the perspectives expressed by Ambassador Antonio and Ms Eghobamien, Ms Litha Musyimi-Ogana, Director of the Women, Gender and Development Directorate at the AU Commission, also emphasised the commonalities between members of the AU and the Commonwealth. In particular, shehighlightedthebenefitofhavingashared language (i.e., English), derived from a common history and the way in which this eased understanding and improved communication. Ms Musyimi-Ogana also expressed thanks to the Ambassador and the Secretariat for their work in facilitating the joint session.

2. Session I – Regional Perspectives on the Elimination and Prevention of All Forms of Violence against Women and Girls – 57th UNCSW Priority Theme

Session I was facilitated by Ms Musyimi-Ogana, who updated delegates about the AU’s preparations for the 57th session of the CSW. She reported that from 14 to 16 January 2013, 225 delegates from 39 AU countries, civil society organisations (CSOs) and intergovernmental

organisations had met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopiaforthefirsttimeto:(a)reflectand propose strategies for the post-2015 agenda; (b) forge a common understanding of the CSW outcomes and hold governments accountable; (c) exchange knowledge and best practices; (d) propose recommendations for global, regional and national action; and (e) develop a strategy to determine outcomes.

Four overarching points were acknowledged as a result of this pre-CSW meeting:

• Preventing violence against women (VAW) was a development priority and a global human right. This included the prevention and eliminationoftrafficking,earlyandforced marriage, forced pregnancy, rape as a tool of warfare, violence against human rights defenders, gender-based killings, female genital mutilation and poor sexual and reproductive care.

• VAW caused problems even in times of peace through rape and sexual discrimination.

• Religious and traditional values needed to be considered when trying to prevent and eliminate VAW.

• Recognising the rights of women required that all parties uphold agreed-to international charters, declarations and other legal instruments. Action, commitment and zero tolerance with regards to VAW should be the norm. The AU looked forward to the leadership of UN Women and the United Nations


Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in furthering this aim.

In response to these acknowledgements, members of the AU had committed to taking concrete steps to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment. Ms Musyimi-Ogana reported that from 2013 onwards, members of the AU would:

• strengthen existing positive cultural practices while empowering women at the grassroots;

• engage and involve traditional leaders, men and boys in VAW initiatives;

• promote awareness, sensitisation and training of the police, prosecutors, judiciary, military, cultural and traditional leaders and the general public;

• document harmful practices that perpetuated VAW;

• formulate, monitor and scale up best practices as well as enforce all protocols at regional, national and local levels;

• enforce a policy of not granting amnesty to perpetrators of sexual violence in situations of armed conflict;and

• review and align education curricula at all levels to VAW and sexual and reproductive health protocols.

Discussion

Members of the AU expressed a determination to take action in a number of other areas. These included: being able to set clear targets and indicators for eliminating VAW in the post-2015 agenda, implementing multi-sectoral approaches

(e.g., one-stop centres), enhancing multi-sectoralministerialbuy-in(e.g.,finance,economic planning, health, justice, education) and resource allocation and intensifying economic empowerment initiatives.

Keyareasforcontinuedconcertedeffortsinvolved being able to utilise existing advocacy campaigns, as well as being able to ensure that women were represented and participated in reconstruction, community initiatives and peace-building processes. The importance of involving civil society in regional and national norm setting, programming and governance delegations was also stressed. Delegates noted that inclusion of civil society would allow for a more comprehensive representation of regional and national concerns.

Fast tracking the investigation and persecution of perpetrators of VAW, as well as being able to establish regular data collection, analysis and dissemination mechanisms,werealsoidentifiedasareasthat needed increased strategic attention and action. It was agreed that data were essential for understanding current events, uncovering existing trends and shedding light on potential outcomes. In addition, members stated that a national, regional and global monitoring framework should be created to implement and/or respond to outcomes from the 57th CSW.

Commonwealth Perspectives on Violence Against Women

Ms Esther Eghobamien presented the Commonwealth perspective on VAW. She noted that current statistics tracking the incidence of VAW indicated that it was


prevalent throughout the Commonwealth and not merely in Africa. This suggested that, in addition to economic poverty, residents in both the Commonwealth and the AU were also mired in psychosocial poverty. She noted that VAW had many faces. At times, it appeared in the form of overt acts of violence (such as murder, rape, acid attacks and domestic and reproductive violence), but it could also exist in less overt forms (such as traditional and cultural norms, values and attitudes that reinforced misogyny).

The Commonwealth small states’ perspective on VAW was also presented by Ms Eghobamien. She noted that a major achievement was the availability of agrantfromthePacificRegionalFacilityFund to End Violence Against Women. This grant, which represented a new level of regional collaboration and coordination, would provide funding (US$10,000–$100,000 for 1–3 years) for technical assistance and capacity-strengthening

support to CSOs and governments in eightcountriesinthePacificregion.

Discussions

Delegates acknowledged the persistent barriers and challenges in addressing VAW in member states, ranging from tacit condoning of violations and a culture of silence to lack of political will, poor reporting systems, uncoordinated responsesandconflictsbetweenlegalsystems and customary laws. Moreover, the under-resourcing of NWMs had limited their ability to address these challenges. Governments, civil society, the private sector and international and regional bodies needed to work closely together to address persistent social and economic problems at all levels and across all sectors. A case study on the United Kingdom’s Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARCs) provided a good practice model for member states. These centres centralised relevant legal and medical


agencies and departments in a single space, thus providing immediate and one-stop services to victims and reducing the stress on victims of having to deal with multiple service providers and criminal investigators.

3. Session II – Dialogue on VAW in the Context of the Post-2015 Development Agenda

Session II of the joint meeting explored the post-2015 development agenda. The sessionoffereddelegatesanopportunityto take stock of what had happened

during the previous three decades and to agree on a way forward.

Delegates noted that VAW must be understood as both a social and an economic issue that had both social and economic costs. How countries dealt with the problem was crucial to their overall development. VAW also places a great psychological burden on families and the community at large. Limitations such as a lack of knowledge and enforcement of the law, stereotyping, skewed value systems, unequal access to justice, condoning of VAW, impunity, the absence of judicial experts and light penalties must

Outcome/Recommendation Action

A need for increased political will and regional coordination

ThePacificIslandForumSecretariattohandle regional coordination (including harmonising reporting processes).

An invitation to the Secretariat to attend the next Triennial Meeting of Ministers for Women and Senior Officials(CookIslands,October2013).

A need to alleviate financial and capacity building limitations

ThePacificRegionalFacilityFundtoEnd VAW will provide funding (USD $10,000 - $100,000 for 1-3 years), technical assistance and capacity strengthening support to CSOs and governments in eight (8) countries in thePacificregion.

A need for increased regional visibility

Proposal for the establishment ofaPacificregionalofficefortheSecretariat.

The Executive Committee of the CGPMG drafted a letter to the Secretary General with a formal request. Presented to CGPMG on 2 March 2013.


be seen as unacceptable at all levels and across all sectors. Therefore, integrated partnerships were deemed critical, as was achieving women’s economic equality and independence and concerted social justice reform.

Partnership was not new to the Commonwealth community. Apart from theintergovernmentaleffortsforgedby the Secretariat at the global level, a good example of integrated partnership at the regional level could be seen in theeffortsoftheAUandtheCaribbeanCommunity (CARICOM). The next step was forging and synchronising multi-sectoral collaboration and cooperation. This included partnership between CSOs, international organisations, donor agencies and regional and governing bodies.

Discussions

During the deliberations on the post-2015agenda,severalsignificantpointswere explored. Three central ideas pertained to:

• agreement ( i.e., ministers agreeing on future steps);

• being able to take advantage of every opportunity to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment (e.g., reinforcing AU and Commonwealth positions through advocacy and via the CSW); and

• being able to clearly understand who was responsible for the elimination and prevention of VAW (e.g., was it the government’s responsibility to provide adequate resources? Was it CSOs’ responsibility to promote culturally

appropriate initiatives that were inclusive of men and boys?).

Delegatesaffirmedtheircountries’sharedproblems,confirmedtheirreadiness to partner with other states and suggested opportunities for holding regional meetings before AU and Secretariat meetings (e.g., aligning with other UN and international annual meetings). It was further recommended that International Women’s Day on 8 March be used as a forum for public education, re-socialisation and the inclusion of young people, men and children. It was generally acknowledged that attention should be paid to young people and that action should match the rhetoric.

Moreover, a high correlation was noted between poverty and VAW. As a result, women’s economic empowerment was seen as instrumental to advancing gender equality and ending VAW. A recommendation was put forward to implement a state accountability project. This initiative would train the police, magistrates and men to stop VAW. It would also inform women about the steps they could take to secure and protect their human rights (e.g., reporting procedures on VAW or other crimes). Nigeria reported that draft national legislation to eliminate gender-based violence had recently been completed.

4. Session III – Way Forward

At the heart of the joint meeting was the issue of human development. Delegates confirmedthatdevelopingcountrieswerenow getting better data than previously and,asaresult,couldbetterdefineand


quantify existing problems. Based on the available information, countries were beginning to understand the scale of the problems that intersected with gender equality, women’s empowerment and overall social and economic progress. Taking the discussions forward were Ms Eghobamien, Ms Musyimi-Ogana and Dr Amany Asfour, representative from the AU Commission.

Dr Asfour noted that women without theirownfinancialresourcesoftenfound it impossible to leave a violent relationship, whereas economic empowerment gave them “a choice and a voice”. Ms Eghobamien drew attention to three priority strategies: advocacy; data collection, analysis and dissemination; and resource development and capacity building. Ms Musyimi-Ogana placed the emphasis on delegates working as a collective. She underscored the importance of them being able to use thesamelanguagetodefinecontext,emerging issues and priorities when presenting AU and Commonwealth agendas to their home countries and international bodies (such as the CSW).

Dr Asfour shared three priority outcomes:

• The importance of economic growth, structure, and transformation;

• The necessity for domestic ownership of existing problems via the prioritisation of gender equality, the provision of quality services and the recognition of goals and achievements; and

• The utility of tracking development outcomes such as structural improvements and growth (in jobs,

rural development, agro-industry, efficientresourceusage,optimisedtax potential, mobilised domestic resources, etc.).

She stated that real reforms were needed, particularly since Africa was the poorest of all the continents despite being the richest in natural resources. Development meant investing in human resources, investing in one billion people being educated and investing in social protection. She noted that many of the issues to be overcome related to preventing corruption, embracing the development and use of green technologies, empowering African industries, facilitating growth in the private and informal sectors, improving infrastructure and improving public-private partnerships – all of which affectedthelivelihoodsofwomen.According to Dr Asfour, research showed that women performed 80 per cent of the ground work in agriculture in many countries but the vast majority of them did not own the land or the business, adding that “We grow tomatoes and import ketchup”. She suggested this was also the reality in many countries in the Commonwealth.

In closing discussions, delegates reiterated that VAW was fuelled by social, economic and psychosocial poverty. They agreed that despite the long-term challenges and unachieved MDGs, existing partnerships had helped to strengthen MDG targets. This allowed for inclusive types of development, going beyond political targets, acknowledging ‘quick wins’ (such as getting men to speak out to support gender equality


and women’s empowerment), while also accepting the rule of law and the traditional role of government. They concluded that everyone needed to play a part in advancing human development, gender equality and women’s empowerment.


Annexes

I. Agenda

II. Participants List


TIME ITEM

08.30-09.00 Registration

09.00-09.30 Welcome Remarks

Opening Session

Remarks

• UN Agencies

• Commonwealth Secretariat

• African Union

09.30-10.45 Session I

Consideration of Regional Perspectives on the 57th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) priority theme: Elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls

• Africa Perspective

• Commonwealth Perspective

• Thematic Frameworks and Strategic Actions on VAW

Discussion

10.45-12.00 Session II

Dialogue on VAW in the Context of the Post-2015 Development Agenda

• Global advocacy on gender priorities in the post-2015 development framework

- Context setting

- Commonwealth Secretariat

- African Union

Discussion

12.00-12.15 Session III

Way Forward

12.15-13.00 Lunch

Annex I:

Agenda


Annex II

Participants List

BAHAMAS

Ms Christine CAMPBELLFirst Assistant SecretaryBureauofWomen’sAffairs

MOZAMBIQUE

Ms Josefa LANGANational DirectorMinistry of Women and Social Action

Ms Laurinda SAIDE BANZEFirst Secretary

NAMIBIA

Mr Erastus Ipinge NEGONGAPermanent SecretaryMinistry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare

Ambassador Tonata ITENGE-EMVULASpecial AdvisorMinistry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare

Mr Victor SHIPOHDirector of Gender Equality Ministry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare

Ms Magdalena KATIMBAGenderOfficerMinistry of Gender Equality & Child Welfare

NIGERIA

Dr Amina SMAILAMinister CounsellorPermanent Mission of Nigeria to the United Nations

Ms Bolatito LADITANDeputy DirectorFederalMinistryofWomenAffairs&SocialDevelopment

Ms Olufunke OLADIPOChiefWomenDevelopmentOfficerFederalMinistryofWomenAffairs&SocialDevelopment

ZAMBIA

Hon Inonge Mutukwa WINAMinisterMinistry of Gender & Child Development

Ms In’utu SUBAPermanent SecretaryMinistryofGender,CabinetOffice

Ms Christine KALAMWINADirectorMinistry of Gender & Child Development

PARTNERS

Dr Amany ASFOURAfrican Alliance for Women EmpowermentEgyptian Business Women Association

RESOURCE PERSON(S)

Ms Marianne PATIRAMRapporteur

AFRICAN UNION COMMISSION

Ms Leila BEN ALIHead of Gender Policy & Development

Ms Yetunde TERIBAHead Coordinator & Outreach Division

JOINT OFFICE FOR THE COMMONWEALTH PERMANENT MISSION TO THE UNITED NATIONS

Mr Michael MITCHELLSeniorExecutiveOfficer

Ms Adewunmi ALUGBINAdministrative Assistant


COMMONWEALTH SECRETARIAT

Ms Esther EGHOBAMIENInterim Director and Head of Gender, Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD)

Ms Kemi OGUNSANYAAdvisor, Gender & Political Development, STPD

Ms Kathy DANIELGenderProgrammeOfficer,STPD

Ms Evelyn OGWALResults Based Management Planning Advisor, Strategic Planning & Evaluation Division (SPED)

Ms Homaira SIKANDARYProgramme Assistant, STPD


Friday 1 March 2013 and Saturday 2 March 2013Overview

Members of the Commonwealth Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) convened in New York to consider the draft framework for the PoA End Term Review (ETR) report, provide training to members to strengthen their capacity to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA, provide strategic policy advice to members governments and stakeholders and deliberate on future priorities post 2015.

The meeting was dynamic and raised a number of valuable insights, all of which affirmed that gender equality and women’s empowerment were key to human development. During the 2013-2014 period, members of the CGPMG anticipated vastly improved regional, national and multi-sectoral efforts and the steady progress that such strong partnerships could facilitate, sustain and propel.

Day One – Afternoon Session

1. Welcome, Introduction and Opening Remarks

The 10th Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) meeting was opened by the CGPMG Chair, Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister of Women, Community and Social Development in the Government ofSamoa.Beforepassingthefloorto Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director of the Social Transformation Programme Division (STPD) and Head of Gender Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat, Minister Leiataua reminded delegates of the CGPMG’s history and its mandate to support gender equality in the Commonwealth through monitoring, evaluating and advising on the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA).

Ms Eghobamien then took participants through the agenda, which outlined the aims of the meeting as: (1) to review progress made since the 9th CGPMG meeting and decide priorities for the next two years; (2) to consider the draft framework for the End Term Review

B. 10th Meeting of the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group


(ETR) report of the PoA; (3) to provide training to members to strengthen their capacity to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA; (4) to agree the CGPMG Chair for 2014–2015 and discuss proposed expansion of civil society organisation (CSO) membership on the Group; and (5) to update members on the arrangements for the Commonwealth 10thWomen’sAffairsMinistersMeeting(10WAMM). Ms Eghobamien stressed that members should work to ensure goals were sustainable and that they needed to consider the long-term, post-2015 implications for the CGPMG’s work. To improvetheoveralleffectivenessofthe Group, she also urged members to critique its performance and strategies.

2. Session I – Global CGPMG Performance Review and Progress Report 2012–2013

This session began with the report from the CGPMG Chair identifying progress made by the Group since its 9th meeting, including (a) the production of a Baseline Assessment Report for the Plan of Action (PoA), which (among other things) identifiedthebaselineyearforthePoAas 2004; (b) a meeting of the Executive Committee, which had considered the Baseline Assessment Report and reviewed and revised the PoA indicators; (c) the production of a draft framework for the ETR report; and (d) the convening of asub-regionalmeetinginthePacificon7–8 February 2013 in Fiji. [See Annex II, ‘Chair’s Report to the 10th CGPMG’ for a full summary.]

However, despite important achievements, it was clear that the

CGPMG still faced many challenges, particularly sub-regional collaboration and coordination. During 2012–2013, only thePacifichadbeenabletoholdasub-regional meeting. Its key outcomes and recommendations provided an excellent example of what could be agreed upon and what could be put into action at the sub-regional-to-national and sub-regional-to-global levels.

In addition, Minister Leiataua shared his experiences of being Chair and outlined thepersonal,politicalandfinancialcommitment that was required of a Chair and/or his/her government. He also sharedthebenefitsthatthepositionofferedtheChair’scountryandregion.Atthe top of the list were opportunities for increased visibility and increased resource allocation for ministries of gender. He suggested that the experiences and outcomes of Bangladesh in the upcoming 10WAMM would spotlight this advantage in the sharing of good practices by the Ministries of Finance and Women and ChildrenAffairs.

Ms Esther Eghobamien then outlined the issues that members needed to have in their minds when assessing the previous year’s progress via an examination of CGPMG performance, including lessons and challenges, opportunities for reform and improvement and recommendations. In regards to the CGPMG’s operations and functions, she stressed the importance of policy advice exchange between the Secretariat and member governments on the PoA, generating lessons and providing strategic guidance for decision-making. In terms of governance, all parties should consider clarity, relevance and


effectivenessintheirdeliberationsandallendeavours had to be sustainable.

The importance of the CSO members of the CGPMG was also discussed. Some of their top priorities were sharing CSO perspectives on the PoA with the CGPMG, NWMs and relevant partners; partnering with NWMs on the PoA; and promoting information exchange and networking. Top priorities for the CGPMG were to enhance information sharing, advise on the ETR process, data analysis and reporting, sub-regional review, production of a Group work-plan, and the role of the CGPMG at 10WAMM.

Discussion

Thefloorwasthenopenedforadiscussion. In answer to a question about how the CSOs were rotated, it was explained that this followed a two-year time frame in the same manner as NWMs. The Commonwealth Secretariat agreed with a suggestion that it needed anincreasedpresenceinthePacific,anda bilateral meeting was suggested to explore this.

3. Session II –Sub-regional CGPMG Progress Updates

This session reviewed sub-regional progress and challenges. Updates were provided by Nigeria (for East/West Africa), Mozambique (for Southern Africa), Trinidad and Tobago (for Canada/Caribbean)andTonga(forthePacific).Tonga also informed the Group about thePacificCGPMGsub-regionalmeeting held in Fiji in 2013. This had resolvedthatthePacificIslandForumSecretariat would be responsible for the

coordination of reporting at a regional level. It had also proposed that the CGPMG consider recommending the establishmentofaPacificregionalofficefor the Commonwealth Secretariat, and an invitation was extended to the Commonwealth Secretariat to attend the next Triennial Meeting of Ministers for WomenandSeniorOfficials,tobeheldinthe Cook Islands in October 2013.

Group members expressed frustration about the volume of reporting that was required of them and also the impact of poor communication among members, which had made coordinating and holding sub-regionalCGPMGmeetingsdifficult.Potentialreasonsidentifiedwere:

• a lack of political will;

• a lack of information sharing;

• difficultymeetingatamutuallyconvenient time;

• a lack of resources (e.g., personnel shortages,limitedfinanceandcapacitybuilding, poor Internet/web facilities), which stagnated and/or delayed the process; and

• the lack of visibility of the Commonwealth Secretariat (i.e., no sanctioned international presence to strengthen engagement).

The Group debated whether any action could be taken against non-performers and it was agreed that all members had the responsibility to demonstrate the importance and value of active participation. It was agreed that the CGPMG Executive Committee would consider this issue at its next meeting. Concern was expressed that members


had not moved forward from the previous year in terms of monitoring, and they were reminded that they needed to improve their role in analysing progress by providing data so that they had something to scrutinise when they met sub-regionally. Members agreed that they needed to support each other more and that the people of the Commonwealth couldnotaffordtheirinertia.Theyidentifiedpossiblesolutions,including:

• Coordinating sub-regional meetings with global or other meetings and activities (e.g., UN, Southern African Development Community advocacy and outreach programmes for HIV and AIDS, sexual and reproductive health awareness);

• Coordinating reporting efforts at the regional level;

• Ensuring that the PoA reflected the collective needs of the Commonwealth. Members should speak up about concerns they had regarding the appropriateness and efficacyofthePoAintheircountryorregion. It was important to understand why governments did not follow through – was there no agenda, information or data? How could governments be motivated?

• Providing the Commonwealth Secretariat with specific suggestions and/or requests. This helped to identify who messages should be sent to and who should be mandated to respond to requests;

• Enhancing the Commonwealth Secretariat’s visibility at the regional level (e.g., attending regional meetings);

• Ensuring all NMWs were updated on actions, whether they were currently on the CGPMG or not;

• Sharing successful examples of where reporting had been harmonised; and

• Ensuring the involvement of CSOs.

Minister Leiataua and Ms Eghobamien agreedthatlogisticaldifficultieswerereal, but that the Commonwealth needed to persevere. The latter also thanked thePacificregionforbeingopenandtransparent about their challenges and needs. She pointed out that although the Secretariat had been unable to attend thePacificsub-regionalmeeting,ithadrecorded and sent a presentation. This statement led to discussions about the use of media and/or video conferencing as a medium for enhancing logistical coordination.

Members of the Group then mandated the Chair to write to the Commonwealth Secretary-General highlighting that its abilitytoeffectivelymonitorthePoAwasconstrained by inadequate resources and technical support. They requested the Secretary-General to ensure:

• More concrete engagement of the Secretariat with NWMs including at a sub-regional level;

• More visibility of the Commonwealth SecretariatinthePacificregion,inparticular, and the presence of the Secretariat at the next Triennial Meeting of Ministers for Women and SeniorOfficialsinCookIslandsinOctober 2013;

• Increased resources, both technical andfinancial,tosupportsub-regions/members to implement the PoA,


prepare for the ETR and enable it to strategise on Commonwealth gender priorities in the post-2015 global development agenda;

• Improvedfinancialresourcestoenablethe participation of the Chair of the CGPMG at all CGPMG meetings; and

• Support to networks and partnerships with regional bodies and organisations to develop and implement interventions on women’s empowerment and gender mainstreaming.

Members met in their sub-regional groups over tea to discuss mechanisms for improving sub-regional CGPMG co-operation and communication, and it was agreed that this issue would be discussed by the Executive Committee of the CGPMG.

4. Session III –Commonwealth Secretariat and Commonwealth Foundation’s Progress Reports

Ms Eghobamien updated the Group about the progress made by the Commonwealth Secretariat since the previous meeting. Over the past year, the Secretariat had aimed to make cutting-edge research and literature readily available (i.e., empowerment through education). These texts pertained to VAW as well as areas of political, economic and social development. For example, a handbook was being produced on gender-responsive investment (GRI) and would be available in June 2013. The Secretariat had also been working to popularise ‘Who Cares?’, its book on the burden of unpaid care work for those looking after people living with AIDS. The book provided data

on selected Commonwealth countries andreflectedonhowgovernmentsconstructed their social protection programmes.

Ms Eghobamien said that a compendium promoting “anticipatory and transformative social protection” would also be available in June 2013, while a resource piece for judges and a post-MDGs position paper were currently being put together. The former would explore how to deal with VAW, and the latter would examine Commonwealth gender priorities for the post-2015 gender agenda. A number of other books, both available and forthcoming, would be made available, and it was hoped that they would become key mechanisms for informed change.

Other positive events during the year that Ms Eghobamien highlighted was the launch of the institutional Gender EqualityPolicyin2012;thefinalisationof the implementation and reporting framework; the CGPMG Executive Committee meeting (June 2012); the completed baseline study; the submission of national case studies requested for qualitative reporting; the draft End Term Review (ETR) of the PoA; monitoring and evaluation (M&E) training for CGPMG members (2 March 2013); supporting thePacificsub-regionalCGPMGmeeting (February 2013); and the 2013 International Women’s Day event on ‘Gender Agenda: Gaining momentum in the Commonwealth’.

In 2012, political development initiatives had been held in Ghana (March), Samoa (May) and Sri Lanka (September). In 2013, a number of exciting initiatives had


been or would be undertaken to address needs in all areas of the Secretariat’s mandate. These included: a capacity-building workshop for savings and credit organisations (February 2013); the joint AU-Commonwealth meeting (March 2013); and 10WAMM, which would focus on ‘Women’s Leadership for Enterprise’ (June 2013). The Secretariat was also planning to work closely with the Government of Canada to provide routinestafftraining(e.g.,genderanalysistraining).

Ms Atungire-Ocaya, Programme Manager at the Commonwealth Foundation, informed the meeting that although theFoundationdidnothaveaspecificgender programme, it continued to encourage the work of the CGPMG and responsible governance was key to its 2012–2016 strategy. She also presented a proposal to expand CSO representation by two members from Southern Africa and Europe, which would match the representation of the NWMs and help improve CSO/NWM partnerships in all regions.

Discussion

During the discussion that followed the reports, three pertinent issues were considered:

1. Influence and impact: How could impact be measured and shared? How could the work of the Commonwealth Secretariat be measured to ensure itwasprovidingeffectivesupporttoNWMs? How could NWMs be better resourced to use the information they received and improve engagement with CSOs? How could the CGPMG be moreinfluential?

It was suggested that every opportunity be used to evaluate and disseminate critical information. For example, reports could and should be utilised at UN and other meetings where direct results could be seen, such as gender and trade and the Birmingham Spring Fair which had connected women entrepreneurs with Europe’s largest markets in 2012. The monitoring framework for the PoA could be shared with NWMs when finalised.TheSecretariatnotedthatitcarried out cutting-edge research and is working with partners to ensure its dissemination and utilisation.

Likewise, in terms of political impact, raisingtheprofileofwomenleadersatthe national and UN levels provided a giant step in the right direction. The current more systematic M&E and use of revised indicators would allow for increased mainstreaming of gender and accountability in government administrations. This should ultimately lead to more funding and the integration of gender in decision-making.

2. Change and the past: What had changed? What had worked? In the past, institutional arrangements hadbeendifferent.Forexample,many governments had not had a department that considered gender. Currently, however, countries not only had departments that considered gender but were also working towards furthering the integration of gender across all departments (e.g., ministriesoffinance,energyandagriculture). The Secretariat was also able to pilot


new programmes to international organisations such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), as well as introduce or suggest the use of new tools to government ministries (e.g., gender-responsive budgeting).

3. Reporting, resources and duplication: How could duplication be avoided in reporting requests to NWMs? How could the Secretariat avoid creating materials similar to those already produced by other bodies? It was noted that the Secretariat tried not to duplicate, and that if it appeared that duplication had occurred, this would have to be examined in more detail. Reporting not only brought issues into the open but also provided the basis for analysis and evaluation of outcomes. It provided a 360-degree perspective on every issue that restricted gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Commonwealth.

As such, cutting-edge research and reporting uncovered unacknowledged issues as well as working in untested areas. For example, through the piloting of new initiatives countries were able to explore new means of addressing persistent issues. The problems of gender inequality and women’s lack of empowerment were not new issues (historically). Over the last few decades humanity has been examining, testing and employing differentstrategiestosolvetheseproblems.

In respect to ongoing resource needs, the Secretariat agreed that more assistance was needed, and

acknowledged its own resource limitations.

The meeting then discussed and agreed that the CSO representation on the CGPMG be expanded with the addition of members representing Southern Africa and Europe. The Commonwealth Foundation would manage the process and inform the Group of the outcome.

4. Session IV – Global CGPMG Work-Plan 2013–2015

During this session the Group reviewed the 2013–2015 work-plan, which identifiesthreeareas–M&EofthePoA, national and regional actions and 10WAMM – as priorities. Many of the issues highlighted during the day (such as the importance of sub-regional meetings, capacity building and mechanisms for monitoring and reporting on the PoA) would help to inform future priorities and the development of a road map for NWMs. In closing, the Chair reminded delegates to make the most of their time as a member of the CGPMG. He recommendedusingtheleverageofferedby domestic, regional and international partnerships to advance domestic legislation, political will and engagement.

5. Closing

Thefirsthalf-daymeetingofthe10thCGPMG meeting was productive and ended with enthusiasm expressed for the second day. Members looked forward to the training that would help strengthen their capacity to track, document and analyse change and also to developing good case studies that would inform the ETR and PoA post-2015.


Day Two – Morning Session

6. Welcome, Re-cap of Day One, Introductions and Objectives

The second day of the 10th CGPMG meeting opened with a hearty welcome that set the tone for an interesting and lively gathering. Ms Eghobamien provided a recap of the previous day’s meeting and shared the agenda for the second day. She noted that its primary purpose was to present and agree the draft framework for the PoA ETR report and provide training to members on monitoring, evaluating and reporting on the PoA. The training would be led by Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Gender at Work, and Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results Based Management Adviser at the Commonwealth Secretariat. The latter portion of the day would then deliberate on gender priorities in the Commonwealth post-2015, while taking into account the end of the PoA and the MDGs.

Ms Eghobamien reiterated the Commonwealth Secretariat’s policy, which did not allow for funding of the CGPMG, its members or Chair. The meeting once again advocated for increased government involvement in regional-global meetings and emphasised that the CGPMG’s function must be aligned with the needs of the Commonwealth community. This could only be ensured though on-going participation, as well as transparency in the sharing of countries’ needs and challenges.

7. Session V – Draft PoA End Term Review Framework Presentation

Dr Aruna Rao introduced herself and expressed her pleasure at being able to lead the day’s training. She explained her role in producing the ETR framework with Dr Patrick Spaven. She underscored the importance of the reporting process, noting that if a report was to have utility, it should be useful for the work that countries were doing and should inform decision-making, chart progress, provide lessons learned, share experiences and identify priority issues.

Dr Rao summarised the challenges to date in monitoring and reporting on the PoA and outlined the draft framework for the ETR report. She said that the Secretariat expected that the ETR report would:

• ask what happened and why/how it happened;

• shed light on what was being done and the results;

• uncover ways to improve policy and practice; and

• provide a medium for continued tracking and strategic learning.

Therefore, the ETR report would help identifycontext-specificsolutionsthatwould direct future action. The draft framework proposed the following elements for the report.

• An analysis of trends based on secondaryreportinganddefinedby the nine PoA indicators (to be produced by the Commonwealth Secretariat);


• A map of significant outcomes based on country reports using the Gender at Work conceptual model and framework;

• Twelve (12) in-depth case studies that would analyse how social change institutions and discriminatory norms affectedalloutcomes(what?why?andhow?); and

• Short, specific action and results reports that examined good results, significantchangesorineffectiveefforts(typically4-5pagesinlengthand guided by the PoA mandate – 50 in total would be needed from across the Commonwealth).

Dr Rao said that trend analysis using already existing secondary data was recommended due to the on-going lack of clear, consistent data. In addition, a few in-depth case studies were recommended because they would help to bring about an understanding of how to make change happen. They would answer questions such as: How did people think? How were their values shaped? What unusual or not-so-obvious connections existed between all kinds of people, as well as between people and their life circumstances? What was happening rightnow?Howwerepeopleaffectedbythese factors? Short action reports that hadbeencarriedouttosolvespecific


problems were also recommended, because they would provide targeted solutions, recommendations or advice.

Discussions

Members welcomed the ETR framework and requested that data for the trend analysis could be taken from a number ofdifferentsources.Concernwasexpressed that as the report would be a public document, members would not necessarily want to be completely open. It would be important to ensure members included CSOs and other bodies such as National Human Rights Commissions in assessing implementation at a national level.

8. Session VI – Gender at Work Framework – What Are We Trying to Change? – Plenary Presentation and Group Work

Dr Rao introduced the Gender at Work conceptual model and framework. It responded to the growing consensus that tomakeasignificantimpactongenderinequity, the institutions (i.e., stated and implicit rules) that maintained women’s unequal position in societies had to be changed. It enabled a deeper analysis of what worked and what did not work in specificcontexts–andwhy–intermsofadvancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. It was a diagnostic tool to map NWMs’ theory of change.

Dr Rao suggested that one of the most important aspects of change was the fact that it had to happen in a numberofdifferentareas:individualand institutional/systemic, informal and formal. Change was also almost

always about what was visible or tangible. In terms of women’s equality, Commonwealth countries had achieved a number of things that could be counted and measured (e.g., laws and policies). Yet,moreeffortwasneededtomovechange from the informal public realm to the formal public realm. This would provide better access to resources and opportunities for women (i.e., institutional/systemic change).

In contrast, Dr Rao said, intangible areas of change were changes that occurred in the mind or in consciousness. This kind of change was closely linked to informal and/or cultural values and norms (the rules of the game, who had voice, etc.), anditofferedinsightintothethinkingthat created existing circumstances. Effectingchangeintheseareaswasverydifficult.Itrequiredagreatdealofcareandspecificity.Fortunately,thewomen’smovement was also about shifting norms sothatdifferentvoicesandvaluescouldenter into the decision-making process. Similar to tangible change, intangible change had to happen in more than one area.

Dr Rao went on to say that there was also an important interplay between the


effectsoftangibleandintangiblechange.By working together, these two kinds of change provided a comprehensive view of change. Such change was evidenced via personal leadership, shifting social and cultural norms and increased access to decision-making, etc. In addition, if a change occurred, the change itself and the reasons behind it occurring were equally important. For example, if a behaviour was changed, why was it changed? How was it changed? Was the change expected/calculated or unexpected/ uncalculated? She gave an example of a behavioural change campaign called the ‘Bell Bajao (Ring the Bell): Halt Domestic Violence’ campaign, which focused on getting young men to interrupt and disrupt violence.

According to Dr Rao, at the governmental level this research would allow leaders to identify where the big changes were happening and would also enable them to assess how they could invest in areas where change needed to happen. For example, would it be in resources or in advocacy or law and policy?

Dr Rao noted that the Gender at Work Framework would help members look at outcomes and theories of change. It would take Commonwealth countries a step further by answering all the questions that arose after a change, for better or worse, had occurred. From that vantage point, it would then utilise key methods/transferablemethodsineffortsto solve related problems in related areas.

In terms of the case studies, Dr Rao explained that these should be based on available research and programmes that werenotolderthanthreetofiveyears.

She said the Commonwealth Secretariat would provide consulting support, and case studies would come from across all regions of the Commonwealth and across the four critical areas of the PoA. A total of 35-45 short action reports were needed. The following questions should be used:

• Who were the actors (who was involved)?

• What were the geopolitical realities in the region?

• What was done? What happened?

• What strategies were used? What was the rationale for them?

• How were they used? When? Where? Why?

• How did the process evolve? How did social institutions, etc. evolve?

• Whoorwhatwereaffectedbythesechanges? How?

• Howwasthischangedifferentiated?How was it measured and tracked?

• What enabled change? What entrenched it? Why?

• How did this change impact local, national or regional priorities?

• What were the lessons learned?

Members were then divided into three groups and asked to choose one of the PoA critical areas and map it using the Gender at Work framework (above). They were to analyse/test the utility of the framework against their intervention needs: (a) What interventions did they know that had addressed social institutions and discriminatory norms?


(Was the framework useful?), and (b) What did the interventions do? How? What outcomes resulted? (Did it inspire any compelling insights?).

Discussion

Members expressed a wide range of support for the Gender at Work framework. There was appreciation for the framework’s applicability and utility as well as its systematic approach. However, there were also varying degrees of apprehension about being able to obtain the required number of case studies (12).

Some insights provided in the groups’ feedbackpointedto:thesignificanceofsocial leadership (by women and individual leaders); the impact of power relations between women and men; the necessity to shift consciousness into the individual realm (i.e., educate and empower men, women, girls and boys – “laws can be enforced, but the people being arrested have to understand why they are being arrested”); the importance of time and consistency; the multiplicity of ways that cultural norms could be shifted; the contribution of policy and practice; and theadvantagesthatinterventionoffered.

Groups also enthusiastically discussed a recent case study from Trinidad and Tobago that used mangos to illustrate therippleeffectofwomen’seconomicempowerment on a society. The study mapped how women’s economic empowermentbenefitedallmembersofsociety and began shifting norms within that society. The case study touched on all four quadrants in the Gender at Work framework.

Members stressed the importance of ensuring NWMs were involved alongside any consultants in the production of case studies so that it could be a fully collaborative process and a capacity-building opportunity for them. The case studies needed to focus on relevant issues that could be generalised so that there could be proper learning across countries. Any consultants needed to be mindful of local realities including the use of language and needed to ensure that thefinalversionsfeltownedbytheregion.Any reporting template needed to be finalandtohaveclearguidingprinciples.Case studies needed to ensure that they articulated the theory of change used so as to be most useful.

Morespecificconcernscentredonbeingabletoobtainsufficientdatawithoutoverburdening national ministries or CSOs. Long-term but indirect concerns related to maintaining international standards, being able to provide a consistent message and being able to spread this message in a local language. It was hoped that the open discussion would help to raise and address all concerns. As a result, the following points were reiterated/shared:

• Collaboration was recommended between CSOs, NWMs and other outside bodies that could add value.

• The trend analysis would draw on a variety of information/sources that alreadyexistedindifferentareas,aswell as comprehensive information (including secondary sources).

• Case studies would be new studies, not generated from older studies,


and would have some regional representation.

• Reporting should be done within the context of the country or countries doing the reporting.

• States should decide whether they wanted to carry out the work themselves; in earlier discussions it had been noted that most NWMs did not have the capacity to carry out the work. Collaboration again became an asset.

• Consultants would be engaged via the Commonwealth Secretariat to work alongside selected countries. It was also suggested that consultants be recruited from within each regioninordertobenefitfromtheirlocal expertise as well as support a potentially long-term resource in the region.

• Case studies would ultimately be analysed for commonality and relevance (i.e., to facilitate learning across all of the case studies).

Day Two – Afternoon Session

9. Session VIII – Group Work on Case Studies and ‘Action and Results’ Reports and Plenary Discussion

Members met in groups to discuss further the case studies and ‘action and results‘ reportsandthenfedbacktheirfindingstothe plenary.

Group One’s task was to brainstorm innovative interventions that could be usefully documented in case studies identifying actions that resulted in changes in social institutions and

discriminatory norms. They agreed these could include: work in The Bahamas on including men; the mango case study and changing the age of marriage from Trinidad and Tobago; the case of BRAC; women in agribusiness; the burden of care-giving for HIV and AIDS; and Caribbean women in leadership. In all instances, they noted that funding, the main enabler of interventions, was often heavily politicised.

Likewise, capacity training for women in decision-makingpositionswasidentifiedas being similarly politicised. The discussion examined why some female leaders sometime failed to support or advance legislation or initiatives that supported gender equality and women’s empowerment. Two questions that arose were whether too much was expected of women leaders and whether numbers mattered. The group also considered related areas in which the same issues arose.Theseincludedeffortstoenhanceregional leadership, HIV and AIDS care, effortstoincreasewomen’sownershipinagribusiness,theefficiencyofcapacity-buildingtrainingandtheeffectsofengagingmeninthefightforwomen’sempowerment and gender equality.

Group Two was asked to brainstorm a process for (a) generating or identifying case study writers/consultants, (b) case study analysis and (c) case study finalisationandpresentation.Toenhance the potential for positive case study outcomes, they recommended supporting local experts and exploring differentmodalitiesforregionalmeetings (such as video conferencing, teleconferencing, etc.). They also said it


was important for each region to assess its skills gaps and address capacity building in these areas while building partnerships between NWMs and CSOs. They noted that it was important to optimise inclusion. In addition, they recommended that the reporting format be open and allow for the use of video, documentary and written material.

These points were further explored during the plenary discussion. Delegates identifiedthreedifferentlevelsofcasestudy generation (country, regional and global) and put forth the idea that a consultant could be shared across countries in a particular region. However, the Secretariat noted that one of the lessons that had been learned through past experience was that regional consultantswerenoteffectiveandtended to carry the risk of duplication. The aim was for regions to collaborate but not replicate, as case studies varied from region to region and country to country.

The Secretariat asked that each country internally generate its own consultant who had knowledge and expertise that was in line with the country’s internal circumstances. The Secretariat also discussed the political dimension at the global level of national and regional capacity building. For example, the Board of Governors who supported funding to the Secretariat might want to know why X country did not have a pool of local experts; each country must be able to communicate their experiences to the wider Commonwealth community.

Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results Based Management Adviser at the Commonwealth Secretariat, reiterated

that the trend analysis segment of the reporting process should draw from information that was already available, and all stakeholders should ideally be involved in the process. Consultants should therefore be drawn from a local pool of potential candidates (e.g., local academics). In respect to costs and guiding principles, Ms Ogwal recommended that countries look at a large number of short studies (25–34) and identify the common thread, which should make it easier to select which area the country would report on in the in-depth case study. Dr Rao added that a large number of studies needed to be examined first,becausesomewouldbeinformativewhile others would reveal nothing.

Delegates were advised that (a) national trends analysis would tell each country where they were in terms of solving a particular problem/issue, and (b) in-depth case studies would tell them why the particular problem/issue was happening and provide alternative solutions to solving that particular problem/issue. A wide scope was needed so that key issues andtrendscouldbeascloselyidentifiedas possible. This information could then be explored further through an in-depth case study; the many would inform the in-depth.

Group Three’s task was to utilise case studyfindingsandexplorehowthisinformation could inform current or future work (e.g., replicating best practices, partnership, networking, advocacy, resource development, policy, legislation). The key issues the group reportedweredifficultyinconvincingleaders that a particular step should be


takenanddifficultyevidencingoverallsocietalbenefitsFiguresprovidedleaderswith a roadmap and helped to inform evidenced-based policy decisions. Therefore, the group advocated for the setting of clear objectives, targets and context(s). These parameters should be definedpriortoestablishingasuccessfulintervention strategy because they affectedthequalityoftheworkthatwould be amassed during the research and reporting process.

During the plenary discussion, participants were told that reports should demonstrate what had worked in their country and/or region. Reports should also function as a tool for advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. Although every country wasinadifferentsituation,knowledgecentres could be built and data could be used to strengthen the work that was being done on the ground and in government.

10. Session IX – Global CGPMG Work-plan 2013 – 2015, Next Steps and Closing

The 10th CGPMG meeting concluded after one and a half days of invigorating discussions. Members were informed that the next CGPMG Chair for 2014–2016 would come from East/West Africa. Nigeria has nominated themselves but Uganda requested that the process be discussed further and so it was agreed that the Executive Committee would hold discussions and inform members of the outcome. The proposed letter to the Secretary-General discussed in Session II was also agreed.

The hope was expressed that the day-long training had helped members identify and strengthen their ability to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA as well as inform post-2015 priorities.

In closing, Minister Leiataua expressed appreciation for the work being


undertaken by all members, keynote speakers,thestaffoftheSecretariatandrecord keepers. He also thanked the AU and its personnel for providing the space for the meeting. He commended the wealth of knowledge and information that was currently being shared and that would be shared in the future. He indicated that the participants in the CGPMG meeting looked forward to strengthened and fruitful outcomes, as well as the presence of more women leaders across the Commonwealth.


I. Agenda

II. Chair’s Report to the 10th CGPMG

III. Information Note: 10th CGPMG Meeting

IV. Background Note: Civil Society Representation (CSO) on the CGPMG

V. Background Note: Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality, 2005 – 2015, Draft Framework for the End Term Review Report

VI. Information Note: Gender at Work – Conceptual Model and Case Studies Template

VII. Information Note: Global CGPMG Work-plan 2012–2013

VIII. Information Note: List of CGPMG Members – 2012/2013 and 2013/2014

IX. Participants List

Annexes


Annex I

Agenda

TIME ITEM

Day I – Afternoon Session

12:00–13:30 Registration and Lunch

13:30–14:00 Welcome and Introductions Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister for Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa and Chair of the CGPMG

Objectives of Meeting and Adoption of Agenda Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD)/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

14:00–14:45 Session I

Global CGPMG Performance Review and Progress Report 2012-2013 Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister for Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa

Presentation of global CGPMG Chair’s Progress Report.

Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, STPD/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

Plenary discussion

Issues for CGPMG consideration and status of Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality, 2005-2015 (PoA) monitoring

14:45–16:00 Session II

Subregional CGPMG Progress Updates Progress, challenges and plans for implementation by each sub region Presentations on subregional CGPMG meetings

Plenary discussion

16:00–16:15 Refreshment break


TIME ITEM

16:15–16:45 Session III

Commonwealth Secretariat and Commonwealth Foundation’s Progress Reports Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, STPD/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

Commonwealth Foundation’s progress report Ms Diana Atungire-Ocaya, Programme Manager, Commonwealth Foundation

16:45–17:00 Session IV

Global CGPMG work-plan 2013-2015

Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister for Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa

Presentation of global CGPMG Chair’s Progress Report.

Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, STPD/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

17:00 Closing

Day 2 – Morning Session

08:30–09:00 Registration

09:00–09:30 Welcome and Re-cap of Day 1 Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister of Women, Community and Social Development, Government for Samoa and Chair of the CGPMG

Introduction and objectives of the day Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director Social Transformation Programmes Division/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

9:30–11:00 Session V

Draft PoA End Term Review Framework Presentation Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gender at Work Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results-Based Management Advisor, Commonwealth Secretariat

11:00–11:30 Refreshment break and group photograph


Annex I: continued

TIME ITEM

11:30–12:00 Session VI

Gender at Work Framework Presentation – What Are We Trying to Change? Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gender at Work

Presentation and plenary discussion

Day 2 – Afternoon Session

12:00 –13:00 Lunch

13:00 –15:00 Session VII

Working with the Gender at Work Framework – Small group work Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gender at Work

In-depth case study and “action and results” reports templates presentation Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gender at Work Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results-Based Management Advisor, Commonwealth Secretariat

15:00–15:15 Refreshment break

16:15 –17:15 Session VIII

Group Work on Case Studies and ‘Action and Results’ Reports and Plenary Discussion Dr Aruna Rao, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gender at Work Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results-Based Management Advisor, Commonwealth Secretariat

17:15–17:30 Session IX

Global CGPMG Work-plan 2013 – 2015, Next Steps and Closing Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, STPD/Head of Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat

Next Steps and Closing Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister for Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa and Chair of the CGPMG


Annex II

Chair’s Report to the 10th CGPMG

1. INTRODUCTION

The 9th Meeting of the CGPMG was held in February 2012 and the Chair passed from Bangladesh to Samoa. The meeting focused its work on the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA) including:

• A post Mid-Term Review of the M&E Framework for the PoA;

• Assessing good practice case studies provided by members, identifying lessons learnt and on-going challenges;

• How the process of M&E on gender in theCommonwealthcouldbesimplifiedand strengthened.

Building on the outcomes and recommendations of this meeting the work of the CGPMG in 2012-2013 focused primarily on the following:

2. CGPMG EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING IN JUNE 2012

This two-day meeting was organised by the Commonwealth Secretariat and was held in June in London. The meeting was chaired by the Associate Minister for Women from the Government of Samoa, Hon. Gatoloaifaana Amataga Alesana Gidlow. It was attended by the Governments of Bangladesh, as the immediate past Chair of the CGPMG, sub-regional spokespersons - India (representing Asia), Mozambique (representing Southern Africa), Nigeria (representing East and West Africa), Trinidad and Tobago (representing Caribbean and Canada) and the UK (representing Europe). It was also attended by the Executive Director of

Eastern African Sub-regional Support Initiative for Advancement of Women (representing civil society). The Gender Section from the Commonwealth Secretariat and Commonwealth Foundationstaffwerealsoinattendance.

The participants considered the Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA, discussed regional and national mechanisms for M&E given the need for harmonising effortstowardstheendtermevaluationof PoA implementation and reviewed and revised the PoA quantitative and qualitative indicators.

The meeting also deliberated on regional/sub-regionalCGPMGeffortsinlinkingthe PoA with regional plans of action on gender equality. This would allow for harmonising of monitoring, evaluation and reporting mechanisms to avoid placing unnecessary and/or additional burdens on NWMs and key gender institutions.

In addition, participants discussed the TenthCommonwealthWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting (10WAMM), which will be held in Dhaka, Bangladesh in June 2013.

The meeting concluded with a courtesy visit to the Deputy Secretary General Smith who was pleased to learn of the progress on the implementation of the PoA and thanked the CGPMG for its work and recommendations for future action.

The following conclusions and recommendations were reached. It was agreed that the Secretariat would work on:

• Revisions to the indicators; (since completed).


Annex II: continued

• Communicate to member countries the agreed base year for reporting on the PoA; (NWMs informed in October 2012).

• Finalise and disseminate the PoA baseline report according to the comments made at the meeting (finalisedanddistributedinOctober2012).

• Commence the PoA ETR which would inform 10WAMM; (draft Framework commissioned).

Member countries agreed to initiate the collection of case studies based on the discussions from the meeting and to commence the regional PoA performance evaluations and some have begun this process.

3. FINALISATION OF THE BASELINE ASSESSMENT REPORT

A Baseline Assessment Report for the PoA was produced by Rose Namara. Its purpose was to:

• Produce an independent baseline assessment of the status of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Commonwealth countries, using the PoA as a guiding framework;

• Provide a comprehensive picture of theextentofprogresstowardsspecificPoA objectives and critical priority actions in Commonwealth countries;

• Identify and compile good practice examples of PoA implementation by Commonwealth countries;

• Review PoA indicators;

• Review the qualitative reporting framework which will guide NWMs

in monitoring and evaluating PoA implementation.

• Identify a baseline year against which the End-Term Review (ETR) of the PoA could be conducted.

The baseline year was established as 2004. The report also proposed a revised set of quantitative and qualitative indicators across all of the four PoA critical areas for Commonwealth Action. The report and the indicators were then reviewed and endorsed by the CGPMG and distributed to all NWMs in October 2012.

4. END TERM REVIEW OF THE COMMONWEALTH PLAN OF ACTION FOR GENDER EQUALITY, 2005-2015

The PoA comes to an end in 2015 and Dr Patrick Spaven and Dr Aruna Rao have produced a draft Framework for the End Term Review of the PoA. It will be presented to the CGPMG meeting tomorrow for discussion and then to the NWMs on Sunday for their endorsement. It will then be presented to the Ministers at 10WAMM. This review will come at a critical time as it will provide evidence and information which will help inform decisions on Commonwealth gender priorities and strategies in the context of post-Millennium Development Goals from 2015.

NWMs will play a crucial role in reporting on their country’s progress on PoA implementation and providing case study examplesofsignificantchangethatoutline the intervention, the context, strategy and impacts of change that have worked in their country which could


be considered for replication in other countries. The Secretariat requested such case studies from all NWMs at the end of last year to help inform the ETR draft Framework development. Thanks to those who have provided so far. To help strengthen the capacity of NWMs to carry out monitoring, reporting and evaluation and to be able to provide strong examples training will be provided tomorrow.

5. COMMONWEALTH TENTH WOMEN’S AFFAIRS MINISTERS MEETING (10WAMM)

Invitations have been issued by the Government of Bangladesh to the CommonwealthTenthWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting. It will be held in June 2013 in Bangladesh. It’s theme is “Women’s Leadership for Enterprise” and you will hear more about this during the meeting. This is a key meeting to consider progress, priorities and strategic direction for gender in the Commonwealth, particularly in the context of the end of the current PoA and Millennium Development Goals in 2015. It is therefore very important that we have strong high level representation from across all regions to ensure a successful meeting at such a crucial time. All members of the CGPMG have a crucial role to play in lobbying for Ministerial attendance at 10WAMM and additionally I look forward to working with theSecretariattohelpdeliveraneffectivemeeting.

6. ENHANCED SUB-REGIONAL CGPMG EFFORTS

TheCGPMGhasidentifiedthatmanychallenges still remain in raising the level of visibility of the PoA and ensuring its effectivemonitoringandimplementationin member countries. In order to help address these concerns it was decided at the annual meeting of the NWMs and CGPMG in 2011 to establish regional sub-committees to engage with the work programme regionally between globalmeetings.ThePacificsub-regionheld a meeting of the CGPMG in Fiji from 7-8 February 2013 which I chaired. It was attended by representatives from the Governments of Kiribati, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. (Hon. Minister to provide comments on the meeting and outcomes).

I now invite the Secretariat to lead our discussions on the status of PoA monitoring and implications for the CGPMG post the End Term Review of the PoA.


Annex III

Information Note: 10th CGPMG Meeting

1. BACKGROUND TO THE 10th CGPMG MEETING

The Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) was established in 2005 to function as a mechanism for monitoring, evaluating and reviewing the implementation of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005-2015 (PoA). The PoA highlights four critical areas for Commonwealth action - i) Gender, democracy,peaceandconflictii)Gender,human rights and law iii) Gender, poverty eradication and economic empowerment, and iv) Gender and HIV/AIDs

The CGPMG is made up of a rotating core of 25 members, 21 from National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) and four civil society organisations (CSOs). Members are usually heads of NWMs and representatives of CSOs from Commonwealth regions.

The CGPMG meets annually in conjunction with the Commonwealth Consultation of NWMs held prior to the sessions of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW) in New York.

2. COMPOSITION AND ROLE OF THE CGPMG

a) Membership

Members sit on the group for a term of two years beginning directly after the annual CGPMG global meeting in New York in February/March each year. When members are not on the group they act as Observers. A list of members can be found in document CGPMG-NY/2013/2(INF).

b) Chair

Since its inception, the CGPMG has had four Chairpersons – Ambassador Rosalyn Hazelle (St Kitts and Nevis), Ms Segakweng Tsiane (Botswana), Hon. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury (Bangladesh) and the current Chair, Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua (Samoa). The Chair from 2014 will be from East/West Africa and NWMs from that region are currently discussing their nomination which will be announced at the CGPMG and NWM meetings in March 2013.

c) Executive Committee

The CGPMG Executive Committee is comprised of the current Chair of the CGPMG, the immediate past Chair of the CGPMG and the Head of Gender Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat. It last met in June 2012 in London.

d) Sub-regional meetings

Thegrouphasidentifiedthatmanychallenges still remain in raising the level of visibility of the PoA and ensuring its effectivemonitoringandimplementationin member countries. In order to help address these concerns it was decided at the annual meeting of the NWMs and CGPMG in February 2011 to establish regional sub-committees to engage regularly and actively with the CGPMG work programme in between the annual meetings. In order to assist with this engagement and help improve communication it was agreed that sub-regional meetings would be held in each region between the annual meetings of the NWMs.


e) Terms of Reference

The 7th CGPMG meeting in Dhaka, Bangladesh,identifiedtherolesand responsibilities of the CGPMG Chairperson, the members and the Secretariat.Themeetingalsoidentifiedoperational issues and discussed various structural and communication modalities for the Group, see Annex I.

f) CGPMG achievements

To date some of the achievements of the CGPMG include:

• Facilitated the development of the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Framework for the PoA, adopted at the2007Women’sAffairsMinistersMeeting.

• Further developed the 2007 M&E Framework to provide guidance for the 2010 mid-term review of the PoA.

• Reviewedandrefinedthequalitativeand quantitative PoA indicators in 2012.

• Approved the Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA in 2012.

• Definedmodalitiesforthefunctioningof the Group including developing guidelines on the rotating membership of the Group and on the regional mechanisms for monitoring.

g) Issues and challenges

Membership

The CGPMG biennial membership rotation policy has 21 countries represented in any given year. The rotation policy however does not facilitate equal representation and voice of all members from certain regions,

e.g. Africa, which is represented by 17 countries. In addition CSOs have requested increased representation. A separate paper on this has been prepared and will be discussed at the March 2013 meeting.

Communication

The Secretariat has not been in a position to regularly communicate with the NWM network partly due to lack of time and resources. This includes communication with the CGPMG outside its annual and bi-annual meetings. Consequently, there is limited awareness among members about the PoA and its monitoring and evaluation requirement. In order to improve this the Gender Section at the Secretariat is now using Commonwealth Connects. This is a secure online space for professional knowledge sharing as well as a dynamic platform to support collaborative working. It is comprised of individual workspaces where invited participants share information and documents, and hold discussions on their areas of work. It allows participants to access all information in one place quickly and easily. The Gender Section at the Secretariat has created two networks to host all information, documents and updates relating to the NWM meeting and CGPMG meeting. A network will soon be created to help prepare for the 10thCommonwealthWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting (10WAMM) to be held in June 2013 in Bangladesh. Other networks can be set up in future to improve communications between NWMs and the Secretariat outside of these key meetings.


Annex III: continued

Monitoring Framework

The Secretariat and the CGPMG have now produced a PoA monitoring framework and sets of indicators which have been distributed to all NWMs. However, given available capacity and resources of CGPMG members, the extent to which they can lead and undertake the PoA monitoring process remains unclear. As members are representatives of NWMs theydonotnecessarilyhavespecifictechnical expertise on monitoring and evaluation. Training will be provided at the CGPMG meeting on 2 March 2013, which will begin to address this gap.

2. The POA BASELINE ASSESSMENT REPORT AND INDICATORS

a) Background

As part of the PoA mandate member countries and the Secretariat are required to establish mechanisms for monitoring and evaluating their progress towards achieving the aims of the PoA. This will assist both member countries and the Secretariattoeffectivelychartprogress,learn lessons, share experiences, identify priority issues and make informed decisions to improve policy and practice for advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment across the Commonwealth.

In 2009, under the supervision of the CGPMG, the Secretariat embarked on a Mid-Term Review (MTR) of the PoAcoveringthefive-yearperiod2005 – 2010. The aim of the MTR was to assess progress made, by both Commonwealth countries and the Secretariat in implementing the PoA’s key recommendations and identifying

persistent challenges, gaps and priority issues that required attention. However, no monitoring framework had been adopted since the approval of the PoA. The PoA monitoring and evaluation framework that informed the design of the key MTR data collection tool - a survey questionnaire – was overambitious as it sought to address baseline and other database gaps. The questionnaire had been purposefully designed to mirror the Beijing +15 questionnaire so that it could be completed simultaneously placing no extra burden on NWMs however, it was perceivedasaduplicationofeffort,andthis led to a low level of response. There was also an uneven quality of responses to the survey as some countries left many questions unanswered, making meaningful analysis challenging. NWMs therefore recommended that the Secretariat take the lead in PoA monitoring - through desk-based research - in order to reduce the data collection burden placed on often under-resourced NWMs.

b) Objectives

To address some of the issues outlined above the Secretariat commissioned a PoA baseline assessment of the status of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Commonwealth countries. It had the following objectives:

• To design and carry out an independent baseline assessment of the status of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Commonwealth countries, using the PoA as a guiding framework;


• To provide a comprehensive picture of theextentofprogresstowardsspecificPoA objectives and critical priority actions in Commonwealth countries;

• To review PoA indicators;

• To identify and compile good practice examples of PoA implementation by Commonwealth countries;

• To review the qualitative reporting framework which will guide NWMs in monitoring and evaluating PoA implementation.

• To identify a baseline year against which the End-Term Review (ETR) of the PoA could be conducted.

c) Conclusions

The report was published in October 2012 and distributed to all NWMs. It provides the necessary benchmarks and information on selected indicators of the four PoA critical areas for Commonwealth action. It established 2004 as the baseline year and concluded that based on the available data and the results of the study:

• The CGPMG should set macro targets in relation to international standards and positions, and NWMs should set national targets which may be similar tothemacrotargetsordifferentdepending on local context;

• The CGPMG supports NWMs to develop a complete performance measurement framework; agree on a mechanism for NWMs to meet in their respective regions to report on progress towards PoA implementation, possibly annually or biannually, and require NWMs to send quantitative data to coordinated data centres;

• The CGPMG asks NWMs to document good practices in PoA implementation following a standardised framework to enable the system to capture only those practices that are relevant to the PoA;

• The PoA supports the establishment of a desk/focal person with relevant skills in M&E to coordinate monitoring effortsincountry.Thefocalperson/desk would champion the process of integrating data on PoA indicators into the regional or international databases. Such a person would follow up the documented good practices and promote replication and scale up. They would also map actors in the country/region per theme and per indicator to understand what others are doing and be able ascribe contribution at evaluation stage;

• The CGPMG should hold discussions and decide on both quantitative and qualitative indicators, which must be tracked per critical area of concern. This may also involve conducting outcome mapping and further elaborate PoA theory of change (projected or anticipated changes that are directly attributable to PoA implementation) to identify expected behavioural changes in the lives of the targeted population;

• The absence of and scanty nature of data suggest that NWMs might be weak in M&E. There is a need to ascertain the exact M&E knowledge and skills gaps in NWMs as well as to build capacity in this area.



d) Revised indicators

As part of the baseline assessment the indicatorsidentifiedintheMTRwerereviewed and revised. This revised set were considered further and agreed at the Executive Committee of the CGPMG attheirmeetinginJune2012.Thefinalagreed indicators are in Annex II

TERMS OF REFERENCE: COMMONWEALTH GENDER PLAN OF ACTION MONITORING GROUP

1. Preamble

This Terms of Reference for the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action (PoA) Monitoring Group was developed through the following process:

• A critical review of the original Terms of Reference of the CGPMG, which included:

a) consideration of experiences and recommendations of the current and past Chairs of the CGMPG;

b) the commissioning of a proposal towards new strategic action by the Group, with recommendations for a revised Terms of Reference that willeffectivelydirecttheworkofthe Group post Mid-Term Review of the PoA, and help to provide more actionable ways of working for the Group;

c) discussion and feedback on the proposal for strategic action at the 7th Meeting of the CGPMG in Dhaka, 7–8 December 2010, with amendmentsandfinalagreementby members towards creation of this revised Terms of Reference;

• Circulation and feedback from Commonwealth Ministries of Women’s Affairs(pending).

2. Background

The CGPMG was established in 2005 to function as a mechanism for monitoring, evaluating and reviewing the implementation of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA).

The original Terms of Reference for the Group were agreed in 2005. They contained within them four key responsibilities for the Group to take forward:

1. To provide advice to the Commonwealth Secretariat on the development of PoA indicators;

2. To identify the most appropriate monitoring and evaluation framework for the PoA;

3. To provide advice to the Commonwealth Secretariat on the mid-term review of the PoA in 2010; and

4. To consider any issue that may be referred to it by Ministers Responsible forWomen’sAffairs,relatedtotheimplementation of the PoA, and work with the Secretariat as necessary to develop ToRs, including membership, for the Commonwealth Working Group on Gender, Peace and Security (UNSCR1325).

The work and successes of the CGPMG so far include:

• Facilitating the development of the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Framework for the PoA, adopted at


the2007Women’sAffairsMinistersMeeting. The M&E Framework sets out indicators to enable countries to systematically track progress in gender equality, and it will be the main tool for undertaking the 2010 mid-term review of the PoA.

• Developing the ToRs of the Commonwealth Working Group on Gender, Peace and Security;

• Definingsomemodalitiesforthefunctioning of the Group. This has included developing guidelines on membership rotation.

The CGPMG has met annually in conjunction with the Annual Consultation of NWMs held in the wings of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) in New York. In 2010, two further meetings of the CGPMG were convened: in the wings of 9WAMM in June, and in Dhaka, Bangladesh, in December.

The 7th Meeting of the CGPMG, held in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 7–8 December, was convened by the Chair to discuss and take decisions on ways of enhancing the Group’sperformancetowardseffectiveimplementation of the PoA. It was agreed at that meeting that revised ToRs should beproducedtomoreeffectivelyguidethe work of the Group. The following particularsofthisdocumentreflecttheoutcomes of that meeting.

3. Goal and objectives of the CGPMG

Goal:

To promote gender equality in the Commonwealth through monitoring, evaluation and review of the implementation of the Commonwealth

Plan of Action (PoA) for Gender Equality 2005–2015.

Objectives:

i. Topromoteeffectiveimplementationof the PoA at national, regional and Commonwealth levels;

ii. To provide oversight and advice to member countries through enhanced M&E mechanisms for the PoA;

iii. To update PoA priorities in the light of emerging issues with a view beyond its current tenure (2005–2015);

iv. To advocate on the PoA at national, regional and international levels.

4. Strategic activities of the CGPMG

i. Engaging with member countries at national and regional levels on progress in the implementation and M&E of the PoA;

ii. Responding to issues referred by Ministers Responsible for Women’s AffairsontheimplementationofthePoA;

iii. Overseeing the development and strengthening of the PoA M&E framework to facilitate member countries’ reporting processes;

iv. Contributing to the operationalisation of the Commonwealth’s key thematic areas through active engagement with Secretariat programmes;

v. Promoting the visibility of the PoA and Commonwealth priorities and comparative advantages at national, regional and international levels;

vi. Encouraging information, material and technical exchange, particularly the



collection and collation of data and good practices;

vii. Identifying strategic partnerships for enhanced advocacy, harmonisation and impacts;

viii. Working jointly to facilitate greater dialogue and bridge government and civil society approaches.

5. Membership composition, duration and rotation

The membership of the CGPMG is comprised of 25 cross-regional members. This includes 21 National Women’s Machinery representatives and four civil society representatives.

The NWM composition of the Group is as follows:

From East/West Africa: Four members

From Southern Africa: Three members

From Europe: One member

From Asia: Four members

From Canada/Caribbean: Four members

FromPacific:Fivemembers

Civil society membership will be one organisation each from Africa, the Caribbean,AsiaandthePacific.

The membership term begins immediately AFTER the New York meeting. The year is normally from March to February. Length of service is two terms/years, except for Canada, which stays on every year. Membership will be rotated alphabetically, with one country per region rotating out each year at the end of the New York CGPMG meeting. Civil society rotation will be arranged by the Commonwealth Foundation.

6. Nomination and duration of the Chair

Nomination of the Chair will be rotated between regions, with candidates to be drawn from the pool of NWMs currently serving on the CGPMG. The Chair is chosen by the region and will serve for two years, dependent on approval from theGroupattheendofthefirstyearofChairmanship. Nomination of a new Chair will take place at CGPMG meetings held in New York.

Although membership tenure is only two years, a nominated representative for Chair will still be allowed to potentially fulfiltwoyearsasaChairinordertoensure continuity. This means that countries who serve as Chair will have tenure on the CGPMG for a possible total ofthreeyears:afirstyearasmember;and a possible further two years as Chair (pending approval of the second year by Group members). Strategically, this provides greater stability to the Group.

7. Strategic roles and responsibilities of the CGPMG

In delivering the goal, objectives and strategic activities of the CGPMG, the Chair of the Group and Group members arerequiredtoassumespecificstrategicroles and responsibilities.

7.1 Roles and responsibilities of the Chair

Strong leadership will be required from the Chair in order to guide the CGPMG towards its goal and objectives. In meeting those, the Chair will be required to:

• Update and communicate periodically with the Group, and with all Commonwealth NWMs and


Commonwealth Foundation civil society groups on behalf of the Group;

• Engage frequently and directly on behalf of the Group with Commonwealth Secretariat upper management;

• Identify opportunities for further advocacy and engagement at the international level, and direct the Group accordingly towards synergising with the work plan;

• Represent the Group at relevant meetings at national, regional and international levels.

Additionally, the Chair will also have the following functional roles:

• Communicate with the Group

- On all matters

- Signatory

- Can designate the Secretariat to sign on their behalf

- Can initiate via the Secretariat

- Follow-up with members to ensure activities are being carried out

• Communicate with the Secretariat

- Input from member countries

- Shares initial analysis/issues

• Role at CGPMG meetings

- Chairing of CGPMG meetings

- ReportingtoSeniorOfficialsonactivities and decisions taken at the NWM Consultation in New York

- Informing on constitution of CGPMG re: rotation

Letter to NWM prior to NY

- Convening meetings in consultation with the Secretariat (virtual or face to face)

- Overseeing development and finalisingtheworkplanoftheCGPMG.

7.2 Roles and responsibilities of members

Members are required to commit to advancing, reporting and actively participating in the work of the CGPMG to deliver on PoA Critical Areas by:

• Providing regular updates to the CGPMG on the progress of PoA implementation at national and regional levels;

• Acting as a conduit of communication to the relevant Minister in their respective countries;

• Facilitating concerns around regional priorities by bringing key issues to the attention of the Group;

• Identifying opportunities for engagement and advocacy at national and regional levels, and engaging with core regional organisations (e.g. SADC, CARICOM) on the work of the Group;

• Contributing substantively to the design and delivery of the CGPMG work plan, including active engagement in regional sub-Group activities;

• Advising the CGPMG and the Secretariat on national and regional next steps beyond the tenure of the PoA;

• Advising the Secretariat and identifying opportunities for engagement with its work;



• Documenting and sharing good practices and lessons learned;

• Providing support to the Chair as needed.

Additionally, NWM members of the Group arespecificallyrecommendedto:

• Actively engage as members of the CGPMG with other government sectors and regional political organisations on core areas of the PoA;

• Facilitate progressive dialogue with civil society colleagues on matters pertaining to the PoA.

Similarly, civil society members of the Grouparespecificallyrecommendedto:

• Actively engage as members of the CGPMG with other sectoral civil society groups at national and regional levels on core areas of the PoA;

• Facilitate progressive dialogue with government colleagues on matters pertaining to the PoA.

8. Working Arrangements

8.1 Frequency of CGPMG meetings

The CGPMG will meet twice a year. One of those meetings will be prior to the Consultation of NWMs in the wings of the Commission on the Status of Women in New York, and the second will be six months from that date in a designated locationfinalisedbytheChair.

8.2 Delivery of responsibilities by the Chair – Support Team

As a means of assisting the Chair in the delivery of her/his role and responsibilities, a Support Team for the Chair will be formed. Alongside the Chair, this team will comprise:

• PastChair–toofferguidanceandcontinuity through past experience;

• Head of the Gender Section, Commonwealth Secretariat – to help facilitate the Chair’s functionality;

• In-coming Chair (when nominated) – as a means of facilitating smooth transition and future continuity.

8.3 Delivery of responsibilities by members – regional sub-groups

Members will engage in their designated roles and responsibilities through regional sub-groups, providing an entry point for engaging directly with activities and tasks withintheworkplanbetweenofficialCGPMG meetings. Each regional sub-group will:

a. Convene as part of the agenda in both biannual meetings of the CGPMG;

b. Designate a regional spokesperson, who will communicate with the Chair on behalf of the sub-group;

c. Definetargetedworkingobjectivesand a list of regionally focused activities, alongside a set of indicators for measuring their work;

d. Agree to the most convenient form of communication within the sub-group;

e. Endeavour to convene sub-group meetings in the wings of other regional events.

8.4 Induction of new members into the Group

OfficialmembershipfornewcomerstotheCGPMGbecomeseffectiveimmediatelyafter the end of the last New York meeting. Countries due to join the Group continue to be invited to the


New York CGPMG meeting as observers prior to the start of their membership, inordertobeintroducedandofferedinduction into the working mechanisms. If they are unable to attend the CGPMG meeting, they will be contacted – if present – at the Consultation of NWMs and formally inducted as new members. They will be automatically added to the mailing list, receiving all up-dates and reports from the Chair from that period onwards.

8.5 Role and responsibilities of the Commonwealth Secretariat

The role of the Secretariat will be to act as a facilitator for the CGPMG, assisting in the functional delivery of the Group’s work by:

i. Assisting the Chair in the coordination of the CGPMG meetings in New York and elsewhere;

ii. Assisting the Chair to collect and collate their periodic updates to the Group and Commonwealth NWMs;

iii. Assisting the Chair with all other responsibilities pertinent to their role;

iv. Maintaining all relevant contact details for the Group’s members, and facilitating communication between members as needed;

v. Ensuring in-coming members are contacted in advance of the start of their membership and have been fully introduced to their roles and responsibilities, and have been inducted into the particulars of their regional sub-group. If new members are not present at the

New York meetings, the Secretariat is responsible for ensuring that new members are contacted and inducted by all other means available.



REVISED POA INDICATORS

Revised Quantitative Indicators

PoA themes Outcomes Indicators

Gender, Democracy, Peace and Conflict

Women’s equal and effectiveparticipationin leadership and peace processes realised

1. Proportion of seats held by women in parliament and local government

2. Proportion of managerial decision-making positions occupied by women in the public and private sectors

3. Existence and/or implementation of national action plans (NAPs) on UN Security Council Resolution 1325

Gender, Human Rights and Law

Laws and customs protecting women’s rights advanced

4. Number of laws addressing violence against women – domestic violence, sexual harassment, rape/defilementandsextrade

5. Number of progressive customary lawscodified

Gender, Poverty Eradication and Economic Empowerment

Women’s access to economic resources increased

6. Existence of laws promoting women’s ownership of land and other assets

7. Proportion of national women owned and managed enterprises

8. Proportion of women enterprises accessing credit

Gender and HIV/AIDS

Services and support for women and HIV/AIDS carers strengthened

9. Number of women accessing ARVs, counselling and testing services.

Total: 9 Indicators


Revised Qualitative Indicators

1. Institutional Mechanisms and Structures

What institutional mechanisms and structures exist to support and progress gender equality?

2. Financial & Technical Resources

Whatfinancialandtechnicalresources are allocated for gender mainstreaming? (national budget, private sector, development assistance – notes)

3. Legislative and Policy Frameworks

What legal, policy and regulatory frameworks exist to drive change? (Key drivers of change – notes)

4. Socio-cultural Context

Describe existing socio-cultural contexts that impact on gender equality. (positive and negative socio-cultural practices – notes)

5. Engagement with Women and CSOs

Describe the mechanisms that exist to facilitate government engagement with CSOs and stakeholders. How effectivearethesemechanisms?

(AGDI, all levels – notes)

6. Issues and Challenges

(PEST analysis; administrative, political, resource constraints etc. – notes)

7. Lessons Learned and Way Forward

(What support and gaps exist – notes)

8. Casestudies/significantchangestories

(proposals and recommendations – notes)


Annex IV

Background Note: Civil Society Representation (CSO) on the CGPMG

1. BACKGROUND

The Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) was set up in 2005 to support the function of monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the PoA, based on the four priority action areas: democracy, peaceandconflict;humanrightsandthelaw; poverty eradication and economic empowerment; and HIV and AIDS. The membership of the CGPMG is comprised of 25 cross-regional members including 21 National Women’s Machinery representatives and four civil society representatives. The current CGPMG recommended civil society composition is one organisation each from Africa, theCaribbean,AsiaandthePacific.In summary, the role of civil society organisations (CSOs) as stated in the terms of reference, is to:

• Actively network and engage as members of the CGPMG with other sectoral CSOs at national and regional levels on core areas of the PoA;

• Communicate CSO contributions to the PoA at CGPMG meetings (biannual and sub-regional);

• Provide CSO perspectives to CGPMG, NWM and relevant partners on PoA implementation and participate in review processes;

• Promote information exchange and networking between NWM and CSOs on matters pertaining to the PoA;

• Promote the PoA nationally regionally and internationally within Civil Society fora.

2. MEMBERSHIP 2012–2014

The current civil society representation on the CGPMG is:

• Africa/Europe region (22 countries) - Ms Marren Akatsa-Bukachi (Uganda)

• Asia region (8 countries) - Ms Sijal Aziz (Pakistan)

• Canada 2/Caribbean region (13 countries) - Ms Hazel Brown (Trinidad and Tobago)

• Pacificregion(9countries)-MsOfa-ki-Levuka Guttenbeil-Likiliki (Tonga)

3. ISSUES AND JUSTIFICATION

At the Executive Committee Meeting of the CGPMG held in London 30 June - 2 July 2012 Ms. Akatsa-Bukachi tabled a proposal (Annex 1) on behalf of CGPMG CSO members to request for an additional two civil society representatives on the CGPMG. The proposal was based on recommendations of the civil society consultative meeting held in New York on 24 February 2012.

Given the current categorisation of the CGPMG membership (agreed 17 January 2010),therearesignificantgapsinCSOrepresentation for the Africa/Europe group of 22 countries, which includes East/West Africa; Southern Africa and Europe.

2 CGPMG membership rotates every two years. Canada however, has a permanent seat on the CGPMG and therefore membership for this category is currently drawn from the Caribbean countries in line with the rotation for NWMs.


On behalf of the current CSO representatives on the CGPMG the Commonwealth Foundation requests that two additional CSO members join the CGPMG to represent Southern Africa and Europe. This will create proportionate CSO representation for a very diverse regional group (Africa/Europe), address the gaps in CSO representation and will ultimately lead to more effective CSO contribution to the CGPMG.

The Executive Committee and regional representatives agreed that they were, in principle, in favour of adding two additional regional CSO members to represent Southern Africa and Europe subject to approval by the full CGPMG membership at the meeting to be held in New York in March 2013.

4. REQUEST

On behalf of the civil society organisation (CSO) representatives on the CGPMG, the Commonwealth Foundation presents this proposal for consideration by all members of the CGPMG and seeks agreement to the recommendation of the CGPMG Executive Committee to add an additional two CSO representatives to the membership of the CGPMG.


Annex V

Background Note: Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015, Proposed Draft Framework for the End Term Review Report

1. BACKGROUND

The Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality (PoA) 2005 – 2015 provides the framework within which the Commonwealth contributes to advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. As part of its mandate member countries and the Secretariat were required to establish mechanisms for monitoring, evaluating and reporting on their progress towards implementation so that progress could be assessed and lessons learnt and good practice shared. It is monitored by the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG).

Since the launch of the PoA a monitoring and evaluation framework and accompanying quantitative and qualitative indictors have been developed,refinedandagreed.ABaselineAssessment Report was also published in 2012 and established the baseline year for the PoA as 2004.

The PoA comes to an end in 2015 and the Secretariat has begun the process to assess implementation by stakeholders via an End Term Review (ETR) Report. The Secretariat commissioned a draft Framework for the ETR which will be presented to the CGPMG for discussion and endorsement at the meeting on 2 March 2013. See document number CGPMG-NY/2013/5.

2. PROPOSED ETR REPORTING FRAMEWORK

Drawing on lessons learnt from the Mid Term Review of the PoA and gaps in monitoringeffortsoftheCGPMGadualapproach to the ETR has been proposed.

Quantitative indicators

The majority of the nine indicators agreed by the Executive Committee in June 2012 are very high level and are mostly long-term outcomes resulting from multiple factors and interventions. However, if data were available for these and similar indicators, particularly if they showed trends since the beginning of the PoA period, they would be valuable for identifying where challenges exist, and for informing decisions where to focus resourcesandeffortsinthefuture.Theywould indicate where action is needed, but not what action to take.

It is proposed that the ETR provides an analysis of trends broadly in the areas definedbythenineindicators.Toassistthis, outcomes of interest should be reviewed and agreed by the CGPMG and at the Commonwealth Tenth Women’s AffairsMinistersMeeting(10WAMM)inJune 2013. The ETR’s analysis should be based mainly on secondary reporting including from sources such as the World Economic Forum Gender Gap Report and the UN’s The World’s Women. This meansthattheETRwillbenefitfromthe most up-to-date data and from the expert analysis in the secondary sources. It would avoid burdening countries with unrealistic requests for quantitative data and allow all stakeholders to focus instead on framing useful qualitative data from which evaluative learning about what has worked and what has not will emanate.

Qualitative model

There is a growing consensus that to makesignificantimpactongenderinequity, the institutions (by which we


mean stated and implicit rules) that maintain women’s unequal position in societies must be changed. The proposed ETRqualitativemodelspecificallyaddresses this persistent problem and specifiesanaccessiblemethodologythatbuilds on the earlier guidance from the Commonwealth Secretariat and enables a deeper analysis of what works and whatdoesnotworkinspecificcontextsand why in terms of advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment. It is proposed that the Gender at Work conceptual model would be used to map significantoutcomesreportedinthecountry reports and case studies.

ThefigurebelowencapsulatestheGender at Work model. Its title is “What are we trying to change?” and it displays the four interrelated clusters of changes that need to be made. The top two clusters are individual and the bottom two clusters are systemic. The cluster on the right is of formal institutional rules as laid down in constitutions, laws and policies. The cluster on the left is the informal norms, cultural practices and discourses that maintain inequality in everyday practices. Change in one quadrant is related to change in the others.

In-depth case studies

The Framework proposes the production of twelve in-depth case studies which would provide information on the theory of change that underpinned the intervention, the context, strategy and impacts of the change. These in-depth case studies will be drawn from a range of Commonwealth regions and cover the four critical areas.

Case study template

The proposed case study template, developed by Gender at Work, is as follows:

Section I: What was the context?

Section II: What Happened/What Were the Strategies?

Section III: Impacts at different levels

Section IV: Tracking Change

Section V: Conclusion

These in-depth case studies would highlight the multiple factors from distinct political, economic and cultural contexts todifferenttypesoforganisationsandsystems contexts. The cases will address the questions:

• ‘What kinds of strategies are needed now to support institutional change towards gender equality?’

• What works and what doesn’t work in specificcontextsandwhytochangesocial institutions and discriminatory norms that prevent progress on gender equality?

Based on the quantitative data and to assist with case study selection, it is proposed that a preliminary analysis is undertaken of trends in gender equality and women’s empowerment in the PoA period to date. Findings would highlight areas that appear to need priority attention, and therefore suggest where to look for interventions on which case studies might be based. Preliminary decisions on this would be made at the CGPMG meeting immediately prior to 10WAMM in June 2013.


Annex V: continued

Short “action and results reports”

In addition to the in-depth case studies, itisproposedthatasignificantnumberof short “action and results reports” – typically 4-5 pages - are generated basedonspecificactionstakenunderthe PoA mandate. These could be about actions that have produced good results –significantchange-orthathavenotworked well. The important thing is that they identify lessons that might be of interest to other organisations and countries. Between 35 and 45 spread across all regions of the Commonwealth - would be required to make this component worthwhile. The proposed format for these action and results reports is given in the box below.

Format for action and results reports

1. What was the rationale for the action? What problem was it intended to address or what opportunity was it intended to seize?

2. What was done, by whom, when and where?

3. What are the known results? What and where is the evidence for these results?

4. What are the most important lessons to draw from this experience?

ETR outline

The ETR then would consist of three main components:

1. Full status and trend analysis of gender equality and women’s empowerment based on secondary sources.

2. Analysis of the macro-level reporting on PoA-instigated action and change using the Gender at Work model.

3. Analysis of the in-depth case studies, the action and results reports, relevant secondary source case studies, and any other evaluative research that is needed tosubstantiatethesefindingsanddetermine their replicability.


Annex VI

Information Note: Gender at Work – Conceptual Model and Case Studies Template

1. BACKGROUND

There is a growing consensus that to makesignificantimpactongenderinequity, the institutions (by which we mean stated and implicit rules) that maintain women’s unequal position in societies must be changed. Gender at Work is an organisation that promotes women’s empowerment and gender equality. They use a conceptual model which connects rights with institutions in a process of social change and posits a conception of institutional change as multi-factorial and holistic which the Secretariat proposes is used for PoA monitoring.

2. GENDER AT WORK CONCEPTUAL MODEL

Thefigureoverleafencapsulatesthe Gender at Work model. Its title is “What are we trying to change?” and it displays the four interrelated clusters of changes that need to be made. The top two clusters are individual (changes in measurable individual conditions - resources, voice, freedom from violence, access to health) and individual consciousness (knowledge, skills, political consciousness and commitment to change towards equality). The bottom two clusters are systemic. The cluster on the right is of formal institutional rules as laid down in constitutions, laws and policies. The cluster on the left is the informal norms, cultural practices and discourses that maintain inequality in everyday practices. Change in one quadrant is related to change in the others.

3. GENDER AT WORK CASE STUDIES TEMPLATE

To enable a deeper understanding of how to change social institutions and discriminatory norms it is important to produce in depth case studies which provide information on the theory of change that underpinned the intervention, the context, strategy and impacts of the change. The template for such case studies is below:

Section I: What was the context?

• What are the geo-political, economic and women’s rights realities of the community/country/region in which the case is taking place, as well as any other key contextual issues of influence?

• Who were the actors and what were the factors that led to the initiative described in the case to take shape?

• What was the theory of change?

• What were the social institutions and discriminatory norms that seemed to require a response? How do they relate to 4 areas of concern?


Annex VI: continued

• What,specifically,istheorganisational/systems context? What kinds of organisations and individuals are involved, what were their roles and how did they join together and work together?

Section II: What Happened/What Were the Strategies?

• What is a brief description of the change initiative?

• What strategies were used, how and why?Whichweremosteffective?Whichwereleasteffective?Why?

• What were the key decision points and choices that frame this change initiative? Who was involved? What weretheeffects?

• Whatreflectionsdothosewhowereinvolved have on these choices in retrospect? (including quotes and testimonies)

Section III: Impacts at different levels

• Whatwastheeffectofthisonindividuals who supported and engineered the change? (including quotes and testimonies)

• Whatwastheeffectontherelevantconstituency or community (e.g., those being served, trained, supported)? (including quotes and testimonies)

• Whatwastheeffectontheorganisations/systems involved? (including evidence, quotes and testimonies)

Section IV: Tracking Change

• How far did this initiative come in relation to its originally planned outcomes? What is happening now? How is it continuing?

• How was changed measured and how will it be measured? How, in particular, were changes in social institutions and discriminatory norms monitored and measured? What were the indicators? What lessons and dilemmas emerged about measuring and tracking?

Section V: Conclusion

• What are the social institutions and discriminatory norms that have been affected?Orthathavebecomefurtherentrenched?Howdotheyaffecttheareas of concern?

• What are future plans to push the change?

Such in-depth case studies highlight the multiple factors from distinct political, economic and cultural contexts to differenttypesoforganisationsandsystems contexts.

They address the questions:

• What kinds of strategies are needed now to support institutional change towards gender equality?’

• What works and what doesn’t work in specificcontextsandwhytochangesocial institutions and discriminatory norms that prevent progress on gender equality?


Annex VII

Information Note: Global CGPMG Work-plan 2012 – 2013

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Annex VIII

Information Note: List of CGPMG members – 2012/2013 and 2013/2014

The membership rotation table provided below indicates the list of countries rotating-in from March 2013 as well as those countries who have served their term and are rotating-out in March 2013. The membership term begins

immediately AFTER each New York meeting. The year is normally from March to February. Length of service is two terms/years, except for Canada which stays on every year.

Groups of countries: East/West Africa (8), Southern Africa (10), Asia (8), Europe (3), Caribbean and Canada (13), Pacific Islands (10)

Countries in the region

2012-2013 From March

2013-2014 From March 2013

Africa/Europe

East/West Africa From 2009 3 seats

Cameroon

Gambia

Ghana

Kenya

Nigeria

Rwanda

Sierra Leone

Tanzania

Uganda

Tanzania

Uganda

Cameroon

Rwanda

Uganda

Cameroon

Gambia

Rwanda

Southern Africa From 2009 3 seats

Botswana

Lesotho

Malawi

Mauritius

Mozambique

Namibia

Seychelles

South Africa

Swaziland

Zambia

Mozambique

Namibia

Seychelles

Namibia

Seychelles

Zambia

Europe From 2009 1 seat

Cyprus

Malta

UK

UK UK


Annex VIII: continued

*Civil Society membership managed by the Commonwealth Foundation

Countries in the region

2012-2013 From March

2013-2014 From March 2013

Asia 4 seats

Bangladesh

Brunei

India

Malaysia

Maldives

Pakistan

Singapore

Sri Lanka

India

Malaysia

Maldives

Pakistan

Maldives

Pakistan

Singapore

Sri Lanka

Canada/Caribbean From 2009 Caribbean 5 seats including Canada which has a permanent seat.

Antigua

Bahamas

Barbados

Belize

Dominica

Grenada

Guyana

Jamaica

St Kitts

St Lucia

St Vincent

Trinidad

Canada

St Kitts

St Lucia

St Vincent

Trinidad

Canada

St Vincent

Trinidad

Antigua

Bahamas

Canada

Pacific From 2009 5 seats, including one of New Zealand and Australia rotating between them

Kiribati

PNG

Samoa

Solomon Is.

Tonga

Tuvalu

Vanuatu

Australia

New Zealand

Samoa

Solomon Islands

Tonga

Tuvalu

New Zealand

Samoa

Tonga

Tuvalu

Vanuatu

Kiribati

Australia

Civil Society* 4 seats. 1 per region and for Africa/Europe region, CSO must come from Africa.


Annex IX

Participants List

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

Ms Sheila B ROSEAU Executive Director DirectorateofGenderAffairs

Ms Anne JONAS Coordinator, Planning, and Project Management Ministry of Education, Sports, Youth and GenderAffairs

AUSTRALIA

Ms Mairi STEELE Branch Manager, Women’s Branch AustralianGovernmentOfficeforWomen

Ms Jing-ting CHAN Section Manager, International Engagement and Human Rights AustralianGovernmentOfficeforWomen

BAHAMAS

Ms Christine CAMPBELL First Assistant Secretary BureauofWomen’sAffairs

CANADA

Mr Greg DEMPSEY Second Secretary, Human Rights and SocialAffairs Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations

MOZAMBIQUE

Ms Josefa LANGA National Director Ministry of Women and Social Action

Ms Laurinda DANZE First Secretary MinistryofForeignAffairs

NAMIBIA

Hon Rosalia NGHIDINWA Minister for Gender Equality and Child Welfare

Mr Erastius NEGONGA Permanent Secretary Ministry for Gender Equality and Child Welfare

Mr Victor SHIPOH Director, Gender Equality Ministry for Gender Equality and Child Welfare

NEW ZEALAND

Dr Jo CRIBB Chief Executive MinistryofWomen’sAffairs

NIGERIA

Mrs Bolatito LADITAN Deputy Director FederalMinistryofWomenAffairsandSocial Development

Ms Olufunke OLADIPO ChiefWomenDevelopmentOfficer FederalMinistryofWomenAffairsandSocial Development

PAKISTAN

Ms Zahra HAIDER Intern Pakistan Permanent Mission, UN

SAMOA

Hon Faiemoe Leiataua TOLOFUAIVALELEI Minister for Women, Community and Social Development

Mrs Foumalo LEIATAUA Government of Samoa


Annex IX: continued

Ms Kuiniselani TAGO ChiefExecutiveOfficer Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development

Ms Francella STRICKLAND Deputy Permanent Representative Samoa Mission, UN

Ms Ida FUIMAONO Samoa Mission, UN

SEYCHELLES

Ms Marie-Josee BONNE Special Advisor MinistryofSocialAffairs,CommunityDevelopment and Sport

Ms Tessa SIU SeniorResearchOfficer MinistryofSocialAffairs,communityDevelopment and Sport

SINGAPORE

Ms Adele LI First Secretary Permanent Mission of Singapore to the UN

TONGA

Hon Lord VAEA MinisterforInternalAffairs

Ms Polotu FAKAFANUA PAUNGA Deputy CEO MinistryofInternalAffairs

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Senator the Honourable Marlene COUDRAY Minister for Gender, Youth and Child Development

Ms Celise PATRICK-ALFRED ProjectExecutionOfficer,GenderAffairsDivision Ministry of Gender, Youth and Child Development

ZAMBIA

Hon Inonge M WINA Cabinet Minister Ministry of Gender and Child Development

Ms In’utu SUBA Permanent Secretary CabinetOfficeSpecialDuties

Ms Christine KALAMWINA Director Ministry of Gender and Child Development

CIVIL SOCIETY REPRESENTATIVES

Ms Marren AKATSA-BUKACHI Executive Director East African Sub-regional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI), Uganda

Ms Hazel BROWN Coordinator Network of NGOs of Trinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women, Trinidad and Tobago

Ms Gia Virginia GASPARD-TAYLOR NGOs, Trinidad and Tobago

Ms Brenda GOPEESINGH Representative Network of NGOs, Trinidad and Tobago

Ms ‘Ofa-Ki-Levuka GUTTENBEIL-LIKILIKI Director Women and Children Crisis Centre (WCCC), Tonga


CIVIL SOCIETY OBSERVERS

Ms Sheepa HAZIFA Director, Gender, Justice and Diversity Division BRAC, Bangladesh

Ms Doris BINGLEY President European Centre of the International Council of Women (ECICW), Malta

PARTNERS

Ms Diana ATUNGIRE-OCAYA Programme Manager Commonwealth Foundation

Ms Alex O’DONOGHUE ProgrammeOfficer Commonwealth Foundation

RESOURCE PERSON(S)

Dr Aruna RAO Co-Founder and Executive Director Gender at Work

Ms Marianne PATIRAM Rapporteur


Ms Esther EGHOBAMIEN Interim Director and Head of Gender, Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD)

Ms Kemi OGUNSANYA Adviser, Gender & Political Development Social Transformation Programmes Division

Ms Evelyn OGWAL Results Based Management Planning Advisor, Strategic Planning, & Evaluation Division (SPED)

Ms Kathy DANIEL GenderProgrammeOfficer STPD

Ms Homaira SIKANDARY Programme Assistant STPD

JOINT OFFICE FOR THE COMMONWEALTH PERMANENT MISSIONS TO THE UNITED NATIONS

Mr Michael MITCHELL Acting Senior Adviser

Ms Grace JOHN ActingSeniorExecutiveOfficer

Ms Adewunmi ALUGBIN Administrative Assistant


C. Annual Consultation of Commonwealth National Women’s Machineries (NWMs)

Sunday 3 March 2013

Overview

The theme of the 2013 Annual Consultation of Commonwealth National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) centred on women’s leadership and democracy as a medium for eliminating violence against women (VAW). A strong case was also made in favour of the idea that gender equality and women’s empowerment were driving factor for all existing development goals – at the national, regional and global levels. The roles of young people, the judiciary, traditional/cultural leaders and innovative women were also examined. In addition, the meeting prepared participants for the upcoming 10th Women’s Affairs Ministerial Meeting (10WAMM), which will focus on ‘Women’s Leadership for Enterprise’ and take place in Dhaka, Bangladesh in June 2013.

Present at this year’s meeting were a number of ambassadors, ministers and representatives of civil society organisations (CSOs) women’s business networking and advocacy groups, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and intergovernmental organisations (IGOs), as well as a welcomed increase in male participants.


Morning Session

1. Welcome, Introductions, Remarks and Commonwealth Connects

The 2013 Annual Consultation of National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) was held on Sunday 3 March at the African Union Conference Centre in New York. The theme for the meeting was ‘Women’s Leadership and Democracy’, which was used as a medium to examine eliminating violence against women (VAW) as well as bringing about gender equality and women’s empowerment. Sincere greetings were extended by Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director, Social Transformation Programme Division (STPD) and Head of Gender Section at the Commonwealth Secretariat, who also presented an outline for the day’s meeting. This included:

• a review of updates;

• the sharing of progress; and

• a discussion about post-2015 agenda-setting.

Additional key points of deliberation includedthe10thWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting (10WAMM), and the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) draft Plan of Action End Term Framework (PoA ETR). Commonwealth Connects, a resource tool that provided a secure platform for collaborative communication, information and technology sharing and networking, was also introduced. Participants were invited to register and take advantage of its instruments.

Statements from Key Partners

African Union (AU)

Ms Litha Musyimi-Ogana, Director of Women and Gender at the African Union (AU), applauded the successful partnership with the Secretariat exhibited during the previous days of meetings, inclusive of the use of the AU Conference Centre as the venue. She shared her thoughts on the Commonwealth Secretariat-AU partnership and recommended clear strategies on how to handle current development issues. She also noted that the AU had traditionally organised its meetings in the margins of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), but it had eventually realised that a broader partnership would help to expedite strategic agreement on pressing development concerns. Therefore, the AU welcomed a joint partnership with the Commonwealth community and envisioned unity and productivity going forward.

Commonwealth Foundation

The Commonwealth Foundation’s Programme Manager, Ms Diana Atungire-Ocaya, relayed the Foundation’s overarching commitment to sharing research and ensuring that civil society organisations (CSOs) were involved in the development process. The Foundation stressed the importance of everyone’s contribution to development, the growth of CSOs, consultative forums, accountability and responsible governance. It also fully supported the resource tool Commonwealth Connects and looked forward to this being utilised to further women’s political leadership and end gender-based violence.


Commonwealth Women’s Parliamentarians

On a similar note, Hon. Alix Boyd-Knights, Chair of Commonwealth Women’s Parliamentarians (CWP) and Speaker of the Dominica House of Assembly, expressed her support for the work that all NWMs were undertaking and acknowledged the role that jurisprudence played in the pursuit of women’s empowerment, gender equality and the elimination of VAW. She also applauded the increased presence of men at the 2013 NWM meeting as a sign of growing awareness and support for human and women’s rights.

Commonwealth Business Women (CBW)

Commonwealth Business Women (CBW) was described as a joint initiative of the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC), the International Federation of Business and Professional Women (BPW International) and the British Association of Women Entrepreneurs (BAWE). TheefforthadbeguninPakistanandexpanded into Australia and the United Kingdom. Currently CBW worked with small to large businesses in 30 countries and strongly believed that empowering women to fully participate in economic life was essential for a thriving economy.

Mr Arif Zaman, Adviser, Commonwealth Business Council, London, and Ms Freda Miriklis, International President of BPW International, both highlighted this belief and shared the CBW’s international strategy for promoting the advance of women in business, which asked where women could add value. The answer ultimatelylayinfivekeyareas:

• Potential – supporting and encouraging women’s economic potential;

• Progression – utilising technology and tools to support skills and leadership development, identifying and developing funding streams for women and putting in place strategies for women to progress as business owners, board members and senior decision-makers;

• Platform – creating a space for businesswomen to share experiences, resources, relationships and knowledge;

• Procurement – linking businesswomen to buyers by honing in on emerging private-public sector procurement and encouraging the adoption of preferential procurement policies; and

• Policy – crafting, communicating and consolidating key messages to policy makers.

Mr Zaman and Ms Miriklis were both of the opinion that it was an exciting time of incredible synergies that allowed entrepreneurs to connect with international trade centres as well as


multinational corporations, all of which were interested in the purchasing power of women. If stakeholders were able to leverage and further these opportunities, it would allow female entrepreneurs to empower themselves, their economy and their country. As an analogy, Ms Miriklis referenced the inspired saying by Victor Hugo, “Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come”.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Gendernet

Ms Patti O’Neill, Principal Co-ordinator at OECD Gendernet, delved into the issue of sex-disaggregated data and its relationship to public expenditure allocation (i.e., being able to migrate allocations to industries or sectors that wouldbenefitwomen).Shealsonotedthat 10 indicators had been assigned that would help to build the Commonwealth’s effortstotrackwomen’sdevelopment.Reporting on these indicators would also help raise each country’s or region’s visibility. Ms O’Neill also stressed that it was essential for the Commonwealth communitytofindconsensusandreach agreement across all countries, because strong conclusions would lead to accelerated action in important development areas.

PacificIslandForumSecretariat(PIFS)

Mr Feleti Teo, Deputy Secretary-General at the PIFS, noted that the Forum had been a long-term partner of the Commonwealth Secretariat and a majority of its members were members of the Commonwealth. Currently, the PIFS provides support in a variety of areas, e.g., agriculture,fisheries,education,health,

climate change adaptation and gender mainstreaming. Mr Teo further stated that collaboration had helped countries andregionstoavoidduplicationofeffortsand management of available resources. This was especially useful when tracking development data, which could become cumbersome when organisations or agencieswereunder-staffed.

Mr Teo further noted that countries and regions must be prepared to commit financialandtechnicalresourcesasajointefforttostrengthenwomen’sleadershipand address VAW. For example, in 2012, thePacificLeadersEqualityDeclarationhad announced that regional leaders should work to support nationally led efforts.ThePIFSalsorecommendedthatgovernments consider procurement, because it was potentially a tremendous asset for gender-equitable development and national-regional economic stability. Great appreciation was expressed to Australia and New Zealand for the financialandtechnicalsupporttheyprovided to the PIFS to further the goal of gender-equitable development.

UN Women

Ms Patience Stephens, Director of the Intergovernmental Division at UN Women, noted that the agency worked to improve women’s lives through formal and peaceful processes. Central to UN Women’s core beliefs was the idea that leadership was very relevant to development and sustainable democracy and that when women’s voices went unheard, half the world was silenced. In the past, UN Women had worked with the Commonwealth Secretariat in a number of areas (such as in the piloting


and mainstreaming of gender-responsive budgeting). Ms Stephens said that UN Women looked forward to engaging in negotiations on the draft conclusions of the 57th CSW and implementing its recommendations. The organisation also looked forward to the continued building of partnerships, involvement and action that would help to materialise commitments.

2. Session I – Report of the 10th Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) Meeting

The Hon. Minister Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister of Women, Community and Social Development in the Government of Samoa and Chair of the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG), presented an overview of the 10th CGPMG meeting. This drew attention to the training provided to members that was aimed at strengthening capacity in areas of monitoring and evaluation (M&E). The training had been delivered using the Gender at Work framework, in partnership with the Commonwealth Strategic Planning and Evaluation Division. It was hoped that the framework and training would help to facilitate the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action End Term Review (PoA ETR) process. Minister Leiataua also directed attention to the progress the Commonwealth was making in other areas, such as information dissemination through Commonwealth Connects. In conclusion he referred to the global CGPMG work-plan 2013–2015 and deliberations on the post-2015 agenda, noting that initiatives to further women’s

economic empowerment were critical to facilitate resources to end violence against women.

Following Minister Leiataua’s presentation, Ms Eghobamien expressed her appreciation for his dynamic leadership as CGPMG Chair. She also applaudedhisfacilitationofaPacificsub-regional meeting that had been held in Fiji earlier in the year and conveyed the hope that similar regional arrangements would be undertaken in the future. However, she recognised that there were still gaps tofillandhopedthatthisyear’sCGPMGcapacity-building was a step towards closing one such gap. Ms Eghobamien then announced that nominations for the incoming chair had been received and that details would be communicated to the wider Commonwealth community in the near future.

In support of the key strategies and ideas presented by the partners, Ms Eghobamien expressed her appreciation for continued collaboration. She also stressed that women’s political leadership wasakeymechanismforinfluencingpolicies and actions that would help uplift societies and individuals. It was suggested that the Commonwealth community could learn a lot from countries that already had high levels of women in decision-making positions. Such countries could provide good models on how to strategise, move agendas forward and steer mechanisms to advance women’s empowerment at the national level.


Update on Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005-2015 (PoA) Implementation and Critical Areas of Concern

Ms Kemi Ogunsanya, Gender Advisor at the Social Transformation Programme Division (STPD), Commonwealth Secretariat, then provided a forward-looking update on implementation of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA). The purpose of the report was to: (a) highlight the Secretariat’s comparative advantages in delivering gender-equitable policies and results; (b) provide information on progress towards implementing the PoA in critical areas since the 2012 NWM meeting; (c) present an update on planning for the PoA ETR and 10WAMM, and (d) indicate delivery strategies (which included policy reform and high level advocacy; research, knowledge creation and information sharing; technical assistance and capacity building; partnerships and modelling; and pioneering new models).

In addition to the work being done by the Secretariat, Ms Ogunsanya reported that the 10WAMM outcome document would aimtoinfluencetheCommonwealthHeads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) to institutionalise equitable principles, policies and practices to advance women’s participation at all levels and to allocate more resources for women’s effectiveleadershipandenterprisedevelopment. The next CHOGM would take place on 15–17 November 2013 in Sri Lanka. She also noted that the Secretariat had launched its institutional gender policy and was supported by a number of high commissioners.

Ms Ogunsanya stated that the Secretariat’s current mandates included CHOGM and WAMM conclusions, the PoA, Secretariat Strategic Plan objectives, the leveraging of international andregionalinstrumentsandthefirmingup of national gender policies and strategies. In 2012, several key initiatives had been undertaken in the area of political development. These included a series of activities to commemorate the 2011 Commonwealth theme: Women Leaders as Agents of Change, an Africa Regional Colloquium for Women Leaders in partnership with the Government of Ghana (March 2012), research studies on the impact of women’s leadership on democracy and development in three Commonwealth regions (Africa, AsiaandthePacific),theprovisionof technical expertise at the 24th Commonwealth Parliamentary Seminar for new Parliamentarians in Samoa (May 2012), the 58th Annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference and CWP Business Meeting in Sri Lanka (September 2012) and dissemination of a publication on gender, peace and security at the 12th anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (October 2012).

Ms Ogunsanya said that during 2013 the Secretariat aimed to: increase women’s accesstofinance,marketsandtechnicalassistance to members; strengthen partnerships (e.g., via Commonwealth Connects); and promote gender-equitable social protection policies and law (e.g., 21 countries to date had developed domestic violence laws). The Secretariathopedthattheseeffortswouldbeintensifiedandexpandedfollowing 10WAMM.


End Term Review Framework and Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA

Ms Evelyn Ogwal, Results Based Management Advisor at the Commonwealth Secretariat, led the discussion on the End Term Review (ETR) Framework and Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA. She said that there had been a lot of challenges in monitoring data, but the overall goal of the ETR was not to provide a view of comprehensive implementation (given that there was only 2.5 years left until the PoA deadline). Instead, the aim was to identify what worked and what did not work through qualitative and quantitative research.

Ms Ogwal said this aim would be accomplished through reliance on: (a) trendanalysis,(b)amapofsignificantoutcomes, (c) in-depth case studies and (d) short action plans. These four reporting elements would help to inform the aim of the ETR. [For a more detailed overview of the process, see Section B: 10th CGPMG Meeting’s, Day Two, Session V – Draft PoA End Term Review Framework Presentation and Session VI – Gender at Work Framework – What Are We Trying to Change?]

The reporting process would be managed by the Commonwealth Secretariat in collaboration with national governments and NWMs. The time frame for reporting extended from March 2013 to June 2015. Participants were encouraged to channel their questions and comments to Ms Ogwal. The Secretariat would also explore its ability to provide training on theGenderatWorkframeworktospecificNWMs.

3. Session II – Update on the Tenth Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting (10WAMM)

Presentation on 10WAMM

Md. Ashraf Hossain, Director-General, DepartmentofWomen’sAffairs,MinistryofWomenandChildrenAffairs,Bangladesh made a presentation on 10WAMM, to be held in Dhaka, Bangladesh in June 2013, and BRAC presented on the parallel 10WAMM Partners Forum. All participants were invited to attend and to participate in the wealth of activities andeventsthatwouldbeoffered.Themeeting’s theme would be ‘Women’s Leadership in Enterprise’, and it would focusonhowtoadvancetheeffortsoffemale entrepreneurs and strengthen women’s leadership in all sectors.

Md Hossain said that Bangladesh had constitutional provisions that provided for equal protection and rights for women and men and was also a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). However, Bangladesh also recognised that the reality on the ground did not line up with its constitutional law and its signed agreements. Social norms held the position of women to be less than


that of men, and girls were less valued than boys. Women also experienced greater social and economic deprivation and vulnerability, in conjunction with more limited access to a means of changing these conditions.

According to Md Hossain, the Government of Bangladesh – empowered by the National Women Advancement Policy of 2011 and through 10WAMM – had an unprecedented opportunity to reach across all sectors and genders. To improve women’s access to skills training, credit and market linkages, the Government would facilitate various initiatives.Specificattentionwouldbepaid to equipping rural and semi-urban women entrepreneurs with the necessary skills in sales, design, marketing and branding. The long-term goals were to: (a) enable women to establish popular and sustainable domestic and international brands, and (b) establish a physical facility that would train women in entrepreneurship.

10WAMM would formally involve the business community in this process and highlight some of the challenges that could potentially restrict or stagnate the development process. These challenges included being able to:

• transform immature entrepreneurs into professional entrepreneurs;

• penetrate established and highly competitive, male-dominated markets;

• ensure and maintain international quality standards on goods and services;

• establish a relationship with large domestic and international businesses; and

• overcome cultural and/or social barriers.

During 10WAMM, an inter-sectoral tool for tracking budgets would also be shared. A separate event would accommodate the private sector, and several other side events would serve to enhance the outcomes of 10WAMM. Md Hossain said that Bangladesh was home to the world’s oldest Chamber of Commerce, which was currently presided over by a woman. The country’s Federation Chambers of Commerce and Industry were also very visible and involved in the private sector.

In addition, BRAC – a development organisation that works in the Africa, Asia and the Caribbean – had been developing projects on women’s entrepreneurial skills and would provide some input to the process. Lastly, it was important to note that Bangladesh was a youth-focused country, and some young participants would be resourced and sponsored. With these factors in mind, the Government looked forward to a very enriching and rewarding 10WAMM for all participants.

4. Session III – Keynote Address

The Chair said that the 2013 consultation of NWMs was pleased to have the Hon. Alix Boyd-Knights, Chair of Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) and Speaker of the House of Assembly in Dominica, as keynote speaker for the meeting. In response, Hon. Boyd-Knights expressed her equal pleasure in being able to represent the CWP at the meeting and being able to


share the CWP’s lessons learned with the NWM delegates.

To set the tone for the remaining sessions, Hon. Boyd-Knights assured delegates that great men would not have formulated concepts of democracy and forgotten women – it made sense for the two genders to work together. She noted that the impediments to development currently experienced were well known and included religious, traditional and social barriers; political smear campaigns and parties that obstructed gender equality and women’s empowerment (i.e., intergovernmental factions and divisions); poor family systems that led to little or no family support for many young people; and leadership situations that resulted in women decision-makers promoting men ratherthanequallyqualifiedwomen,etc.From country to country many variations of these types of impediments could be uncovered, if they were not already flagrant.

Hon. Boyd-Knights described the CWP as a group of pioneers who had made it through such impediments, adding that, “We asked for no consideration of our gender, but instead asked to be able to simply prove that we were as good as the men”. She said this sentiment had been shared by all women leaders, from Sirimavo Bandaranaike in Sri Lanka to the recently deceased Margaret Thatcher in the U.K. Women leaders who understood this concept allowed other women to feel brave and, in doing so, enabled other women to step into decision-making positions.

However, Hon. Boyd-Knight said that such leaders were not always at the helm.

She gave the example of the Caribbean, where although women had been given opportunities for political liberation this had not consistently translated to leadership for women in the region (e.g., women’s gains in Barbados during the1980seventuallytaperedoff).Thisoccurred in spite of the fact that more women than men were receiving higher levels of education. According to Hon. Boyd-Knights, “The cream is simply not rising to the top in the corporate world, services or politics.” She said that these realities were simultaneously a warning about complacency as well as social injustice, unfavourable norms, self-marginalisation and a lack of sustainability. She advised women and men to remain vigilant in advancing the goal of gender-equitable development. As a result, the Commonwealth community should formulate mechanisms for furthering overall development goals.

Hon. Boyd-Knights noted that one mechanism was to enhance the number of women in parliament. However, to accomplish this, it was necessary to go beyond formal policy (such as quotas, affirmativeaction,politicalarrangements,etc.) because “parliaments established and run by men should have to include women”. In the case of Rwanda, after the war ended, it was the country’s women who took the responsibility to rebuild the shattered nation. A policy of re-socialisation should be at the forefront of gender-equitable developmental endeavours. Hon. Boyd-Knights recommended a three-pronged approach: mentoring, motivation and mobilisation.


In regards to mentoring, Hon. Boyd-Knights noted that most women MPs were known to have said that they had been inspired by a woman they admired, and that it was this simple fact that fuelled their desire for careers in governance and law. What was more, women brought diversity to parliament. A recent study had shown that boards that had high levels of diversity were more productive andeffective–infact,theirperformancewas 30 per cent higher than those without such diversity.

Consideration of Country Case Studies on Women’s Political Participation

Hon. Boyd-Knights’ well-directed thoughts and perspectives set the background for the presentation of country case studies. Those countries that had previously submitted their reports to the Secretariat presented on women’s political participation at the national level.

Antigua and Barbuda

Antigua and Barbuda was using the Caribbean Institute for Women in Leadership (CIWL) model, supported by a number of organisations and launched by the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2005, to increase women’s political participation. For thefirsttime,thecountryhadseenanincrease in the number of women in the electoral process. There were now two female ministers in government and fivewomenhadwonlocalelections.Antigua and Barbuda had also seen an overall increase in the number of

women coming forward to participate in governance, and the country attributed this shift to the promotion of women’s empowerment programmes (such as through the CIWL).

Australia

Australia was one of the few countries headed by a female Prime Minister, and the Government was currently involved in a number of support strategies aimed to enhance women’s politicalparticipation.Australiafirmlybelieved that greater gender equality in leadership improved decision-making,whichinturnbenefitedallofsociety’s stakeholders. As of July 2010, Australia had had a target minimum of 40 per cent of women and men on government boards, and also reported that there was a great deal of positive competition with regards to reaching the target. However, there were still somedepartmentsthatwereflaggingbehind, and it had been indicated that support would be needed for those departments.

Australia also recognised that mentoring was very important. The country reported that this realisation had been an outcome of 9WAMM, when leaders sought to understand why women in cabinets performed differentlythanmen.Theyfoundthat mentorship often did not result in sponsorship, and steps were now being taken so that mentorship could be progressed to sponsorship. The network BoardLinks aimed to provide more opportunities for women to be


appointedtotheirfirstboard,whiletheMale Champions of Change initiative encouraged male leaders to use their influencetoensurethatwomen’srepresentation in leadership was a top priority on the national business agenda.

Barbados

Barbados reported that there were four women in Parliament, two ministers and six senators, and it appeared that women’s political participation could and would be increased. Support for women’s political participation was enshrined in the country’s Constitution, which gave all citizens the right to participate in political life. On a related note, Barbados also reported that despite having no formal quota to ensure or force women’s political leadership, in a 2008 manifesto the Government had expressed a desire to increase the number of women in government to 50 per cent by the year 2016.

The country also reported that its parliamentary structures were open, and each gender was allowed an equal opportunity to participate in political life. However, there were noformsoftechnicalorfinancialresources available (per se) to either male or female campaigners. Like The Bahamas, Barbados also had to work against socio-cultural issues that restricted the roles of women and men and prevented them from equally sharing family responsibilities.

Botswana

In its report, Botswana indicated that women constituted the majority of supporters and attendees of all political rallies in the country. It was no surprise then that more women than men were registered voters. Yet, statistics showed that the percentage of women in Botswana’s Parliament had never reached even 20 per cent. However, in 2009 the percentage of women in public sector decision-making positions had risen to approximately 44 per cent. As of 2011 women held 39 per cent of senior management positions, and in 2012 they made up almost 51 per cent in the judiciary.

Thecountryaffirmedthatequalparticipation of women and men in decision-making was necessary toprovideabalancedreflectionof society’s composition. It was also a necessary mechanism for strengthening democracy and its proper functioning. To increase the number of women in decision-making positions, the Government was collaborating with a number of CSOs in the areas of public education, lobbying, advocacy and social mobilisation.

In addition, Botswana reported that some of its greatest challenges in increasing women’s political participation were due to women carrying the burden of household and family responsibilities, discriminatory practices in political institutions and women not wanting to engage in the adversarial or combative nature


of the work. Women were also underrepresented in law and academia.

Cyprus

Cyprus reported that despite the increasing number of women who were actively involved in public and political life, women were still underrepresented at the decision-making level (including the House of Representatives and in the Municipal Councils). This was despite the fact that there appeared to be a continuous increase in the number of women holding senior posts in the civil service, and the fact that a few women held high-ranking positions (both domestically and internationally). Cyprus aimed to secure the balanced participation of women and men in decision-making positions.

Through its National Machinery for Women’s Rights (NMWR), Cyprus had anumberofsignificantandongoinginitiatives that were working to further women’s political participation. It also relied on the strength of its Union of Municipalities, which focused on enhancing participation at the local level. Most political parties had also introduced a quota system. In addition, thecountrywasbenefitingfromhavinga competent statistical authority that was able to publish sex-disaggregated data in the sectors of employment, education, health, poverty, public life and VAW.

Ghana

Ghana reported that to a great extent the country had recognised women’s roles during the struggle

for independence, democratic establishment and in current campaigningandmobilisingefforts.Yet, the country also reported that women rarely occupied high-level decision-making positions in governance, and since independence in 1957 women’s political representation had remained below 10 per cent. Key government interventions to improve the situation included a draft affirmativeactionbillandarecentPresidential appointment of six women to important Cabinet positions (and forthefirsttimetherewasalsoavisually impaired minister). Ghana was a signatory to a number of international and regional conventions and treaties, the country’s Constitution guaranteed equality in political participation and representation and there were also ad hoc executive directives and policy guidelines.

Ghana said the challenge to women’s political participation was clearly not a lack of political mechanisms but appeared to be more a lack of social will, while culture and tradition remained the most cited reasons as to why women were unable to compete with their male counterparts in political life. Issues included: up-bringing that reinforced gender stereotypes and socialised women to be less assertive andconfident;lowlevelsofeducationamong women who wanted to partake in governance (i.e., political life in Ghana was deemed to be an elite process); a limited number of female role models and mentors; disproportionate expectations; and VAW.


Kenya

Kenya reported that around 2003 the country had realised that the percentage of women in its Parliament was far behind some others in Africa (such as Rwanda and South Africa). As a result, the Government had begun taking crucial steps to transform this situation. By 2006, a presidential decree had been issued that required 30 per cent of all positions of employment and promotion be reserved for women. By2010,affirmativeactionlegislationhad been passed and the Kenyan Constitution began to uphold equality and participation for everyone before the law and in political life. To ensure compliance, Kenya also established the National Gender and Equality Commission, which monitored both public and private agencies. Its work was complemented by the Kenyan Human Rights Commission.

However,financialandtechnicalsupport for women’s political campaigns in Kenya remained a challenge. To enter successfully into politics, aspirants had to be financiallysecure.Thischallengewas also related to a broader socio-cultural challenge. For example, tribes traditionally did not embrace the idea of women holding leadership positions in society, and older men sneered at the idea of being led by a woman. To overcome these challenges, the Government recognised that it was important to mainstream gender at all decision-making levels, provide strong enforcement of the law, pursue policies

that countered traditional norms and provide capacity building that included sensitisationandfinancialsupport.

Namibia

Namibia reported that 60–75 per cent of its population were women. In 2008, the percentage of women in Parliament totalled 30.3 per cent, and post-analysis found that there were onlyfivefemaleministers.Althoughthenumber of women in decision-making positions was low, Namibia did indicate that these women held positions of greatimportanceandinfluence,e.g.,MinisterofForeignAffairsandMinisterof Education. Going forward, Namibia would work to address the problem of women being underrepresented locally.

New Zealand

In general, New Zealand appeared to be enjoying an upward trend in women’s representation. Women made up 32 per cent of members of Parliament and approximately 42 per cent of senior leadership positions in the public sector. These statistics exceeded the PoA target of 30 per cent representation of women in decision-making positions in the political sector by 2015. Going forward, New Zealand hoped to improve women’s representation in the business sector and would like to see women occupy 25 per cent of board positions. Recent studies showed that at least 25 per cent women on boards were needed to achievethebusinessbenefit.

New Zealand also reported that government agencies were working


closely with educational institutions and private providers to deliver capacity-building programmes, as well as training, mentoring and scholarship opportunities. The Government acknowledged that achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment did not end when one set of targets had been achieved. Gender-equitable development required that governments remain alert and ever active in protecting the rights of all its citizens.

Nigeria

Nigeria aimed to build a nation that was devoid of gender discrimination and, like many countries, it recognised the importance of having and keeping as many women in Parliament as possible. Thisgoalandbeliefwasreflectedin three core agents of change: the Constitution, the National Gender Policy and the country’s partnerships (such as with the Commonwealth Secretariat and the UN). A recent addition had been the Nigerian Women Trust, which was designed to boost women’s political participation to a minimum of 35 per cent and employed a variety of strategies to achieve its aim. These strategies involved fostering transparency, capacity building, resource sustainability, networking and public education.

However, Nigeria also acknowledged that, as in so many other countries, tackling cultural, religious and traditional biases was equally as important as setting high political

targets. Such biases reinforced difficultsocialperceptionsofwomenand unfavourable political realities. These included: notions that women should not be allowed to go out alone; apathy towards politics among women; an inability to garner the resources that were necessary to compete in politics; low membership in political parties; political malpractice; being overburdened by family or reproductive life; a lack of mentorship; and a political environment that was characterised by violence. To overcome these barriers an attitudinal change was needed among both men and women.

Pakistan

Pakistan reported that women’s participation in governance was close to 20 per cent, and most women had beenelectedthroughaffirmativeaction policies in key decision-making positions as ministers in the federal and provincial governments. Women parliamentarians played key roles in committees and were among the most active legislators. There had been a call for a revival of the 33 per cent quota for all political parties at the national and local levels to ensure the inclusion of women in politics. One major success had been the founding of the Women Parliamentary Caucus (WPC), constituted in November 2008. The WPC had several objectives to advance women’s development and empowerment. It also lobbied for gender-sensitive legislation, ensuredeffectiveparliamentaryoversight of national and international


commitments on women’s rights and empowerment, and enabled women parliamentarians to work beyond andacrosspartylinesinanefforttoadvance women’s empowerment.

Since its inception, the Caucus had initiated several activities, paying particular attention to the issue of VAW with respect to victims of acid burning. Such actions had resulted in reforms topoliceproceduresandintensifiedstateeffortstobringperpetratorstojustice. Eight women parliamentarians had since allocated development funds for the establishment of Burn Units in Districts’ Hospitals. Key achievements included strengthening of women police stations, supporting internally displaced women and children and engaging in a range of peace-building activities.

Pakistan was now working to maximise theinfluenceoftwocoreprogrammesnested in the WPC: the Women’s Political Participation Project and Women’s Political School for increased dialogue, networking and partnership at the national and regional levels. Both initiatives shared the responsibility for providing capacity building, training andeducationandfillingexistinggaps.However, these initiatives remained a small but important step in the direction of eliminating other existing challenges. Some activities included engaging male colleagues to support gender equality in decision-making and removing cultural and social norms that disenfranchised women from political life. Although women might excel in any

given profession, after marriage it was often expected that they would stay at home.

Seychelles

Seychelles’ demographic indicators were on a par with those of many other small island states and some developed countries. The country had just over 43 per cent of women parliamentarians and over 70 per cent women as district administrators. These achievements had been supported by legal and constitutional provisions that supported women’s participation in political life, as well as the high level of visibility that women received as a result of living in a country that was small territorially.

Seychelles was focusing on ensuring that the younger generation of women entered into political life. Like many other countries, it too faced this challenge. Women still hit a glass ceiling in the employment arena when it came to executive and leadership positions, faceddifficultyreconcilingfamilyandwork responsibilities and had limited accesstofinancialsupport.

Singapore

Women held 25.3 per cent of parliamentary seats in Singapore. There was one female Speaker of Parliament,oneMinisterandfivewomenwhoheldpoliticaloffice.Both women and men in Singapore were protected against gender discrimination, and women were encouragedtoholdpublicoffice(eventhough a majority sought careers in the


private sector). However, Singapore was looking to adapt new and/or innovative strategies for increasing women’s political participation.

South Africa

Over the past 20 years South Africa had increased women’s political participation from 5 per cent to 43 per cent, and it could thus be said that the country had made progress. While making the transition to a post-apartheid world, it had been able to put in place comprehensive policies and legislative measures aimed at securing women’s participation in governance. To build on past progress, South Africa reported that it would now attempt to accelerate gender-equitable development by supporting legislation that would also transform women’s economic situation.

South Africa would also make it a point to meet the goals outlined in its recent Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill, which was up for public comment. The bill aimed to: set targets for women’s representation

and participation; build women’s capacity to participate; encourage men and boys to accept the capabilities and participation of women and girls as equal to theirs; and develop strong support mechanisms for women. Going forward, South Africa would like to achieve 50 per cent representation and participation of women in governance.

Tonga

Tonga reported that it had held its firstdemocraticelectionin2010and

that the current Government had consolidateditseffortstosolveruralissues. Tonga’s current Minister of Education was a woman. The country’s long-term development priorities were in education because the Government believed that a strong and competent education system would lead to democratic stabilisation. As the country stabilised, the Government looked forward to continuing and enhancing its support for women’s political participation, empowerment and right to equality.

Uganda

The current Speaker of Parliament in Uganda was a woman and the Ministries of Energy, Trade, and Health were also headed by women. It was no surprise then that women in Uganda held 44 per cent of the seats in local government and 34 per cent of the seats in Parliament. The number of women in Parliament was lower because it had become harder for women to lobby there. Nevertheless, Uganda was workingoneffortsandinitiativestobuild political engagement among women. The country had employed affirmativeactionpoliciestoencouragemorewomentoholdpoliticaloffice,and these policies had led to the promotion of one third of women in publicoffice.

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom had set itself the challenging aspiration that women would comprise 50 per cent of all new appointments to the boards of


public bodies by the end of the current Parliament. The proportion currently stood at just over one third. To fully support this work, the Centre for Public AppointmentsintheCabinetOfficehad been assigned greater involvement in public appointment processes. Other instruments included national legislation, such as the Equality Act 2010, which enabled political parties to engage in positive action if they wished to encourage participation of underrepresented groups. The United Kingdom was also working to improve the accuracy of its data collection in order to gain a better picture of the representation of women in government.

United Republic of Tanzania

United Republic of Tanzania agreed that it shared many of the same challenges that other countries had reported. These included: culture, customs and religious beliefs that regarded women as subordinate to men; unequal access to property ownership; inadequate support by fellow women; inadequate financialresources;andamale-dominated party system. To begin addressing these challenges Tanzania had been able to: (a) amend the national Constitution, which had resulted in women being able to attain 36 per cent participation in Parliament, and (b) introduce special seats in Parliament, which had resulted in a shift from 48 women in Parliament in 2004 to 102 women in 2012.

Tanzania recognised the importance of: garnering political will; furthering

women’s economic empowerment; making legal and policy provisions that enhanced gender-equitable participation and development; and providing training and capacity building. For example, experience showed that politicalwillmadeaffirmativeactionpossible, a reality recognised across the Commonwealth. Bahamas

In The Bahamas women made up 13 per cent of members of Parliament and 19 per cent of the Cabinet, and there were a number of women in other branches of government (including the seat of the Deputy Governor-General). However, one of the main challenges the country faced was that many women felt that a career in politics was too demanding, resulted in a loss of privacy and entailed women becoming expert jugglers, balancing their careers and the majority of responsibilities in family life (rather than sharing household responsibilities with their male counterpart/husband/partner). In many ways, cultural and social ideologies in The Bahamas were closely aligned to the notion that ‘no woman is going to rule over a man’.

Educating women about women’s issues was one way to overcome this barrier. In terms of women’s political participation, The Bahamas also recognised that training/workshops and political mentorship were important parts of the process. It was recommended that such mentorship be available to women and young girls right out of high school. At the same time, all political parties needed to give


greater support to female candidates, explore new ways of including women in political life and address cultural and religious ideologies that reinforced traditional gender roles.

Zambia

Despite being the majority in Zambia, women only held 14 per cent of seats in Parliament. Moreover, women lagged behind in both representation and participation. There were only 4 female cabinet ministers out of a total of 20 and 6 deputy ministers out of 38, and women in the legislative wing continued to be underrepresented. The same held true for women in the public service, although in both the judiciary and the corporate sector women were either holding top positions or rapidly making great strides.

The Government would continue employing strategies and practices that encouraged women to further their education and training. Zambia also aimed to strengthen its national laws and policies (i.e., via securing a quotasystem,affirmativeaction,CSOpartnership and constitutional review). While undertaking these tasks, Zambia would also keep in mind the need to halt the perpetuation of stereotypical notions of male dominance and women’s inferiority.

Discussions

The discussion that followed each country’s presentation brought out the key elements that underlined the need for countries to partner, collaborate and share best practices and lessons learned: most of them shared similarities in both their challenges and avenues of success. This further strengthened the idea that countries should and could reach consensus on CSW positions, and countries were recommended to do just that.

Hon. Boyd-Knights stated that it was very interesting to see the need for mentoring, education, encouragement and acceptance as a common thread. These necessities also brought out the fact that it was no easy task for women to enter politics and put more impetus behind the need to uncover why female constituents chose to vote for men instead of women. She said that the Commonwealth community needed to get the message out: women were the right leaders for the job.

Afternoon Session

5. Session IV – Panel on Women’s Political Leadership

Session IV of the 2013 NWM meeting was also chaired by Hon. Boyd-Knights, who introduced a panel of leaders who shared their experience on women’s leadership and political participation.

Bangladesh Case Study on Women’s Parliamentary Caucus

Mr Ashraf Hossain, Director-General, DepartmentofWomen’sAffairs,MinistryofWomenandChildrenAffairs,


Bangladesh presented a case study of the country’s Women’s Parliamentary Caucus (WPC). He reported that Bangladesh had reached consensus on an agenda for women’s socio-economic and political development, and it was also enabling women parliamentarians to work beyond andabovepartylinesinanefforttoadvance women’s empowerment. Financial support for the WPC was obtained through membership fees, donations from fellow parliamentarians or the Government and/or technical assistance or support from donors for targeted activities.

According to Mr Hossain, the WPC was working to make the electoral process more transparent, Inclusive and democratic. It was also working to empower women economically via entrepreneurship, franchising, access to credit, strengthening the National Commission on the Status of Women, dialoguing on CEDAW and adopting/sharing best practices. A number of laws and bills were also to be presented to Parliament, and special Acts had also aimed to protect women in distress and protect women from harassment. Some of the Acts had provided comprehensive income support and legal aid, while others focused on ensuring that families and children were not harmed by either society or the legal system.

Mr Hossain said that future plans for the WPC included continued and increased dialogue, networking and partnerships with key stakeholders at the national and regional levels. Key strategies included strengthening women police stations, supporting internally displaced women

and children and engaging in a range of peace-building activities. These included, for example, formulating resolutions that called for regional peace, condemning the indiscriminate killing of women and children in Gaza, condemning the bombing of girls’ schools, supporting women and child victims of terrorism, dialoguing with Afghanistan and organisingthefirstNationalConventionof Women Parliamentarians with the theme of ‘The Role of Women Parliamentarians in Peace, Security and Reconciliation’, leading to a unanimous declaration calling for women’s involvement in peace-building processes.

Women and Election Observation in West Africa – West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI)

The West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI) had pioneered the Women’s Election Observation Mission in West Africa, and its Director, Ms Nana Afadzinu, presented the case study. She said thatforthepastfiveyearsWACSIhadpartnered with women to create a security network and a space where key development issues could be discussed. The endeavour had arisen from a desire to see more women in decision-making positions in politics. WACSI believed that women who protected and promoted women’s empowerment and equality wouldinfluencepolicyandpracticeinsuch a way that all of society would be lifted. One recommendation was for stakeholders to look at new ways of addressing political change.

Therefore, according to its Director, WACSI had considered the question ofhowwomencouldinfluencethe


election process from beginning to end. One method that had been suggested and then put into practice was the idea of having an all-women’s elections observation team to track what was happening at the ballot box. Female election observers were then drawn from a pool of gender experts. In addition to observing whether elections followed the international code of conduct, these women also identifiedissuesthatcouldpotentiallyimpact gender-equitable development in favourable or unfavourable ways. For example, policies, bills, acts, laws and positions were critically analysed. Female observers evaluated the role of the media throughout the electoral process, as well as partnerships, facilities and physical locales that could limit female participation at the polls. They further interrogated the outcomes of the elections and the impact on women in decision-making, and shared best practices with key stakeholders including the media, governments and international observers.

Ms Afadzinu stressed the importance of obtaining accreditation from electoral management bodies of respective countries and overcoming the challenges offinanceandresourcecapacityastremendous assets for the missions. Otherwise women could be prevented from being deployed to missions at critical sites. She also recommended that partnership and coordination be considered, particularly during the pre- and post-election periods, and these should be factored in when observing elections on the ground. Moreover, local and national machineries could add to

or expand on what was happening by providing credible data for advocacy, etc. WACSIwascurrentlyofferinggendersensitisation training.

Perspectives of Women’s Leadership in thePacificRegion

Mr Feleti P Teo, Deputy Secretary-GeneralfromthePacificIslandsForumSecretariat (PIFS) presented an original perspective that he said would provide a concrete, in-depth contribution to gender-equitable political participation. ThePacificregionhadthelowestlevelofwomen’s political participation and, as of March 2013, participation remained frighteningly low. However, positive developments were occurring: during 2010–2011 seven women had been elected to parliaments. The region also had a number of good plans and initiatives in place that targeted the advancement of women and gender equality.

According to Mr Teo, a key strategy in the region was improving strategic processes by creating relevant policies. There were also recommendations for affirmativeaction,genderparityandforum leadership at the national and local levels.Forexample,thePacificLeaderEquality Declaration of 2012 called on all partners and relevant stakeholders to work in a coordinated, consultative and harmonised way to support nationally led effortstoaddressgenderinequality.

Mr Teo indicated that there was great interest in the region in empowering women, especially at the regional level. Women’s leadership at the regional level was particularly attractive because it could serve as a mechanism for


translating regional commitments into national obligations. He said that past experience had shown that sometimes piloted initiatives failed to meet their target – yet, awareness and public education, as well as the national and regional discussions generated, had created a much-needed public debate about women’s political representation.

Impact of Women’s Participation on Democracy and Development: Case Study of South Africa

Ms Colleen Lowe Morna, CEO and Executive Director at Gender Links, discussed the impact of women’s political participation in South Africa. During the past 25 years, the country’s landscape for women’s political participation had seen an absolute change, and women had had unparalleled success in attaining decision-making positions. She suggested, therefore, that it was important to ask why this had occurred.

Ms Lowe noted that one answer was a change in political will. South Africa

had a minimum target of 30 per cent for women’s political participation in governance, and women’s representation currently stood at approximately 42 per cent. The country had a zero tolerance policy for the idea of no women in politics and, according to many, the face of politics was changing and was both male and female. Women also held very high-level decision-making positions, such as inintelligence,foreignaffairsanddefence.Thecountryaffirmedthatwomen’saccess and participation in governance would lead to an internal transformation of services delivered.

However, South Africa was no exception in the area of VAW, and a host of other discriminatory cultural and traditional norms impeded the country’s social and economic stability and progress. Ms Lowe noted that one key solution lay in women being represented in governance at a critical mass. Although the percentage of women in South Africa’s Government was much higher than many other countries, a


critical mass of women was still needed to rapidly advance gender-equitable policies and practices.

Ms Lowe further emphasised the need to assess progress achieved, which could literally be measured through women’s access to resources and services (e.g., finance,credit,skillstraining,education,reproductive care, the elimination of VAW and reduction in poverty). It could also be measured through personal transformation. For example, did men support women’s empowerment and gender equality? Were women respected insociety(i.e.,notobjectifiedortrivialiseddue to their appearance)? Were their achievements/positive contributions/ingenuity recognised and celebrated?

In conclusion, Ms Lowe highlighted how the South African case study could serve as a good model for the Commonwealth, and indicated that she hoped South Africa and other countries would hold true to the maxim that women’s empowerment was “fundamental for [the] survival of normal society” (as stated by Phumzile Mlambo Ngcuka, former Deputy President of South Africa). Ms Lowe warned supporters of gender-equitable development that gains were fragile and could easily be rolled back. Therefore,

ongoing attention had to be directed to what was happening in the now, in norms, in trends, between the sexes and in all sectors and/or aspects of society.

Women’s Leadership and Innovation for Enterprise

Ms Bola Olabisi, CEO and Co-Founder of Global Women Investors and InnovatorsNetwork(GWIN)offeredan energetic, future-oriented and stimulating discussion on women’s leadership and innovation in enterprise. With a background in global knowledge management/sharing in areas of education, governance, industry, enterprise and voluntary organisations, shesaidthatshewasabletoofferdelegates a glimpse of the future as well as what was great at the present time.

Ms Olabisis said that GWIN had achievedsignificantmilestoneswithregards to membership, government and regional backing, partnership and innovation dialogue. For example, it had membership in the Network to promote Women in Decision-making in Politics and the Economy under the European Commission and at one point hadlaunchedtheAsiaPacificGWIINInnovators Awards.


According to Ms Olabisi, in order to increase women’s access to decision-making positions, members of the Commonwealth had to make it a point to celebrate the contributions of innovative women and women entrepreneurs. She said that this naturally included women in science and technology but also included women who provided unique services. As examples, she cited the African Women’s Development Fund (AWDF), Food for Infants, Dr Graham’s pharmaceutical manufacturing facility, and especially the two young girls who had been able to turn urine into a form of renewable energy in 2012.

Ms Olabisi said that this kind of spotlighting enhanced women’s perception of other women, brought something new to the table and showed the world what the Commonwealth hadtooffer.Lastly,shesharedGWIN’s understanding of innovation for enterprise, which included the perspective that innovation entailed:

• creating leading concepts, products or services that cut across any sector;

• activating business growth that had the ability to reinvent or set industry standards and radically create changes that had impact; and

• formulating new ideas, products and services that produced dynamic and lucrative new businesses.

Discussions

After hearing the rich and diverse perspectives on how women’s leadership could be transformed to include more women in decision-making positions and strengthen political empowerment,

delegates expressed feelings of both inspiration and impetus. They noted that they had been reminded that small shifts in unexpected, seemingly unrelated areas could result in a chain reaction of positive feedback, forward movement, accountability and ownership. Attending CSOs also made it a point to emphasise their readiness to collaborate with ministries and NWMs.

In addition, delegates recognised the “striking fragility” of progress, felt recharged and wanted to prevent backsliding (Pakistan) and recognised that “it takes a few generations for new values to become norms” (South Africa). Involving young people, especially young men, was noted as an important area of engagement and re-socialisation; and an examination of gender relations during school elections provided an interesting purview (Bahamas, Dominica and Samoa).

Systemic/institutional sustainability, sustained political will and the sustainability of personal transformation, as well as the ability to set values, acknowledge lessons learned, keep long-term strategies or planning in mind and findcreativesolutionswerealsonotedas key factors in preventing backsliding (Antigua, Ghana, Grenada, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zambia).

6. Session V – Panel on Jurisprudence of Equality Regarding Violence Against Women (VAW) – Towards Judicial Leadership

Session V centred on judicial leadership in the jurisprudence of equality regarding VAW, and three African judges were on the panel: Judge Sarah Ondeyo (Kenya), Judge Fiona Mwale (Malawi) and Panel


Chair Judge Memooda Ebrahim-Carsten (Botswana). The judges brought a wealth of knowledge and advice to the debate and touched on the issues of judicial leadership and reform, judicial re-education, judicial watch and the impact of traditional/cultural leaders.

Judge Ebrahim-Carsten, a member of the UN Dispute Tribunal in New York, raised the issue of judicial reform by examining workers’ rights as human rights. She stated that employment was a relationship between equals and honouring this contract enabled peace and security. However, even in the judicial system there were obstacles with regards to jurisdictional systems (mono or pluralistic), wherein one law might dictate over another. Yet, there had to be enforcement of the rule of law, and this also applied to international law.

Judge Ebrahim-Carsten stated that there was an obligation for judges to set standards and be role models. They had to provide insight into international organisations, civil service perspectives, competing social and cultural norms, etc. and show how these factors could become ingrained, latent or patent forms of psychological violence and VAW, which ultimately created hostile environments.

Likewise, she said judicial institutional arrangements had to allow for the timely handling of cases. Victims could sometimes be hindered from pursuing a case due to inadequate time and insensitive arrangements. The same could be seen very vividly in the setting up of a tribunal. Sometimes such processes stretched over long periods of time and left room for perpetrators to

fleeorcircumventthelaw.Therewasalsothe issue of immunity, and the extent to which immunity could lead to the violation of one individual’s or body’s liberty and rights while protecting the liberty and rights of another.

Judge Ondeyo,whowasoneofthefirsttrainers of judges and magistrates in Kenya and who also said that she held women and children’s rights close to her heart, spoke on related issues. She noted that due to the jurisprudence of gender equality, everyone was entitled to fundamental rights simply because they were alive. This was irrespective of class, language, race, etc. The UN Charter provided the basic human rights standards, along with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948.

Given these circumstances, she said there was every reason to believe that VAW, be it physical or psychological, could be defeated. What was little understood was the fact that VAW also impeded and inhibited the basic rights to equality that were given to all human beings; neither customs nor traditions could be used to defendsuchoffences.

Judge Ondeyo went on to say that environments that bred or allowed injustice to fester had to be challenged and changed. These included: limited protection of victims of VAW; gender-biased attitudes of upholders of the law (police, magistrates or judges); absence of legislation to prevent or criminalise VAW; outright discrimination against women; weak judicial services; failure of the judiciary to apply the law appropriately; trivialisation of the law; and the failure of governments to establish


gender-equitable legislative norms (i.e., social protection laws, legal aid in the case of domestic violence and access to free legal services, etc.).

As such, Judge Ondeyo emphasised that judges had to hold perpetrators accountable and sentences had to be on par with the crime that had been committed. There should be no excuses for judges who did not apply the law or, worse, reproduced harmful stereotypes, values and norms in their judgments. Furthermore, judges had to be trained and re-trained on a regular basis.

To accomplish this end, Judge Ondeyo said that governments should be held liable if judges failed to do their duty, because it was the obligation of the state to protect its people. Advocacy and judicial activism should be used to create and raise awareness. The gap between customary and statutory law had to be reconciled, because strong judicial leadership ensured that women who sufferedviolencewouldreceivejustice.The law should not be the problem or propagator of social ills; it should provide solution(s) to social ills.

Judge Mwale concurred with Judge Ondeyo’s perspectives, and further unpacked the issue of ending and preventing VAW. Though a recently appointed Judge of the Malawi High Court, she said that she was able to present an objective perspective of the judicial system and identify some of the best practices, which include continued learning on legal education. This was essential and valuable to judges because enforcing the law required vast amounts of knowledge. As knowledge itself was

continually being updated and amassed, judges needed to stay ahead by using new technology.

Judge Mwale described judicial watch as another important strategy for ensuring judges were not above the law. This consisted of volunteer judges monitoring and providing feedback on their counterparts. These volunteer judges could provide reports, redress, trending and overall statistics on the performances of judges in the courtroom, in evaluating judges’ handling of cases andreflectingonweaknessesintheapplication of the law.

Another strategy suggested by Judge Mwale was law reform. Judicial leadership was about the actual decisions a judge made, and a good legal framework was required to ensure that the law was just. Therefore, it might be necessary for judges to advocate as well as lobby ministers to suggest that bills and laws be introduced to address prevailing social ills. In the Commonwealth, almost every judicial institution had a law commission, but someone needed to ensure that these steps were being taken.

Plenary Discussion

During the plenary discussions, delegates concurred that judicial education was a must and suggested that traditional leaders and opinion leaders be included in the process in order to improve understanding of the cultural/social issues and harmonise with legal instruments. Delegates appreciated the system of judicial watch, which could help to monitor and prevent instances in which sentences did not match the crime. It was recommended that judges work


closely with the police to halt internal corruption, especially in circumstances in which the police failed to prosecute duetoconflictingpersonalinterests,etc.Such collaboration could be undertaken through police training and curriculum revision.

The importance of fast-track courts was also highlighted, especially in cases of rape, sexual assault and child abuse. To meet this need, states had to be accountable and should perhaps become involved in international state accountability projects. It was also recommended that gender-sensitive female judges could work to remove discriminatory language from legislation, highlight archaic laws and recommend corrective laws. However, it was noted that corrective laws had to be contextual (meaning, they should be applied on a case-by-case basis due to potential complexities in the law).

7. Session VI –Commonwealth Gender Priorities: Post-2015 Global Development Framework

Session V was chaired by Ms Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive Director at UN Women. She shared the panel with Dr Amany Asfour, consultant with the African Union Commission, who provided the AU perspective on the post-2015 global development framework, and Ms Patti O’Neill, Co-ordinator of the DAC Network on Gender Equality, OECD, who presented on the European perspective.

UN Women

Ms Puri expressed great pleasure at being able to participate in the 2013 NWM meeting and noted how critical the Commonwealth-UN Women collaboration was in preparing for the 57th CSW. She then touched on three main areas: ending VAW as a priority theme for the UN MDGs; previewing the CSW 2014 theme of ‘Challenges and achievements in the implementation of the MDGs for women


and girls’ and addressing the emerging issue of ‘Key gender equality issues to be reflectedinthepost-2015developmentframework’.

Ms Puri noted that several critical questions needed to be answered as the world moved towards 2015. These included: What aspects of the MDGs should be included in the post-2015 agenda? Looking at the current eight goals, what other goals were required or missing? And should the MDGs be enhanced to accommodate emerging issues? In responding to these questions, Ms Puri noted that gender equality and women’s empowerment were the driving forces behind progress in all the existing MDGs, as clearly indicated in the diagram she shared (see below).

Ms Puri urged countries to draw on both statistical data and qualitative research. Although numbers showed general trends, they did not explore root causes or deeper structural issues, many of which had been raised during the 2013 NWM meeting. Ms Puri further noted that gender equality had to be achieved, as a critical and necessary action, because it provided a comprehensive approach to achieving all existing development objectives.

Ms Puri went on to say that the international community already had the legislative framework that highlighted the importance and centrality of women’s empowerment and gender parity. Among others were the Beijing Platform for Action and the Rio Declaration, both of which indicated that goals should be guided by gender-sensitive targets across all priority areas (water, energy, sustainable cities and human settlements,

desertification,landdegradationanddrought, oceans and seas, disaster risk reduction, employment, health and reproduction, population growth, education, etc.). For example, in many places water services and infrastructure carried a direct impact on women’s lives because some women still travelled long distances to obtain water for their families. UN Water acknowledged that suchcircumstancesdirectlyaffectedwomen’s political participation and burden of work.

Ms Puri also stressed that partnership and engagement were key and that UN Women looked forward to working with all members of the Commonwealth in a participatory, inclusive and transparent processtodefinethepost-2015development objectives.

African Union (AU)

Dr Amany Asfour provided the AU’s recommendations on how countries could shape the post-2015 agenda. At the top of the list were partnerships with CSOs and regional organisations, which would help to propel change and ameliorate existing development challenges. She suggested the following objectives for post-2015 development:

• emphasising inclusive economic growth and structural transformation;

• re-orienting the development paradigm away from externally-driven initiatives towards domestically-inspired and funded initiatives that were grounded in national ownership;

• prioritising equity and social inclusion and measuring progress in terms of both the availability and the quality of service delivery;


• taking into account the initial conditions of nation states and recognisingtheeffortscountrieshadmade towards achieving the goals as opposed to exclusively measuring how far they had fallen short of global targets;

• incorporating the Rio+20 outcomes and the outcomes of UN forums such as ICPD+203; and

• focusing on development enablers as well as development outcomes.

In addition, Dr Asfour provided the three development outcomes that the AU had identifiedforthepost-2015priorities:

• Structural economic transformation and inclusive growth;

• Innovation and technology transfer; and

• Human development.

She said the AU recognised that inclusive economic growth would empower women economically, and that shift wouldbereflectedinallsectors–atthegrassroots, in cross-border trade, poverty eradication,financialindependence,enhanced inter-Africa trade (i.e., industrialisation and the empowerment of the African product), women in science and technology, access to health care and employment.TheAUfurtheridentifiedkey development enablers, including:

• Peace and security;

• Good governance, transparency and fightingcorruption;

• Strengthening local governance;

• Strengthening institutional capacity;

• Promoting equality and access to justice and information;

• Human rights for all;

• Domestic resource mobilisation;

• A credible participatory process that was culturally sensitive;

• Enhanced statistical capacity to measure progress and ensure accountability;

• Development agenda implementation and M&E resources;

• Prudent macroeconomic policy that emphasised fair growth;

• Developmental state framework (economic);

• An enabling global governance architecture;

• Scientificandtechnicaldecision-making support;

• Land monopoly controls;

• Improved service quality and access in all sectors; and

• Greater focus on agriculture.

Dr Asfour stressed that the CSO perspective went beyond economic growth, and transformation should be global. This would accelerate achievement of the existing MDGs.

Plenary Discussion, Conclusions and Closing

Delegates unanimously agreed on the strategies presented by the panel regarding the way forward for the post-2015 gender agenda. They concurred that strong goals were needed and that gender parity should be the top priority

3 The 20th anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) will be in 2014.


to infuse positive change in all other development areas. Delegates also affirmedthatpartnership,collaborationand coordination were tools that would help to fast track development and opportunities for development.

It was underlined that women representedasignificantproportionof the world’s population, yet in many parts of the world they still lived as disenfranchised citizens. Their potential was restricted and their value was diminished, and this tended to carry over to both their daughters and sons. Women’s equality and empowerment improved their lives and the lives of others. Therefore, delegates noted that it was important that the women-specificfocusdidnotbecomelostinthe post-2015 agenda. This goal should be implemented, along with the goal of ending VAW, by achieving economic empowerment and securing sexual and reproductive care and rights for victims.

Conclusions

Building on the day’s discussions delegates expressed strong support formakingeveryefforttoincreasethe number of women in decision-making positions. Some delegates also

recommended that gender equality and women’s empowerment be grouped within the education sector because this would inform and prepare future generations on the importance of gender parity. Moreover, the psychological impact associated with change should remain at the forefront of the gender agenda. Some delegates further expressed appreciation for the fact that women’s economic empowerment entailed equality in business and suggested a roadmap to include the corporate community essentially to implement mechanisms to increase women’s participation on boards and executive positions. Many intervention programmes tended to empower businessesinsteadofpeople,andeffortsshouldcentreontheneedforfinancialfruitfulness, which was closely linked to women’s ability to fully participate in political life.

In concluding the 2013 NWM meeting, members asserted that empowering women was an economic strategy, and were ready to establish strong and productive partnerships ahead of 10WAMM and its outcomes. Sincere appreciation and thanks were conveyed to all partners, stakeholders and delegates.


Annexes

I. Agenda

II. Chair’s Report to the 2013 NWM

III. Guidance Note: Country Reports on Women’s Political Participation

IV. Information Note: Equitable Governance and Women’s Leadership in the Commonwealth

V. Information Note: Jurisprudence of Equality on Violence Against Women (VAW) – Towards Judicial Leadership

VI. Participants List


Annex I

Agenda

TIME ITEM

Morning Session

08.30-09.00 Registration

09.00-09.30 Welcome and Introductions by the Chair Ms Esther Eghobamien, Interim Director& Head of Gender, Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD), Commonwealth Secretariat

Adoption of the Meeting Agenda

Presentation on Commonwealth Connects: Enhancing Communications with NWMs

Statements from Partners

• African Union (AU)

• Commonwealth Foundation

• Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA)

• Commonwealth Business Council (CBC)

• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)

• PacificIslandsForumSecretariat(PIFS)

• SecretariatofthePacificCommunity(SPC)

• UN Women

09.30-10.15 SESSION I

Report of the 10th Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) Meeting Hon. Tolofuaivalelei Falemoe Leiataua, Minister of Women, Community and Social Development, Government of Samoa and Chair of CGPMG

Update on Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005-2015 (PoA) Implementation and Critical Areas of Concern Kemi Ogunsanya, Gender Advisor, STPD, Commonwealth Secretariat

End Term Review Framework and Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA Evelyn Ogwal, Results Based Management (RBM) Planning Advisor, Strategic Planning and Evaluation Division (SPED), Commonwealth Secretariat

10:15-10:30 Refreshment Break


Annex I: continued

TIME ITEM

10.30-11.00 SESSION II

Update on the Tenth Commonwealth Women’s Affairs Ministers Meeting (10WAMM)

• Presentation by 10WAMM Host, Hon. Dr Shirin Chaudhury, StateMinisterforWomenandChildrenAffairs,GovernmentofBangladesh

• 10WAMM Theme: Women’s Leadership for Enterprise

• Consideration of 10WAMM Agenda and Planning

Presentation on 10WAMM Partners Forum Ms Diana Atungire-Ocaya, Programme Manager, Commonwealth Foundation

Plenary Discussion

11.00-12.30 SESSION III

Keynote Address Women’s Leadership for Sustainable Democracy and Development in the Commonwealth Hon. Alix Boyd Knights, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Dominica

Consideration of Country Case Studies on Women’s Political Participation

• Presentation of country submissions

Plenary Discussion

12.30-13.30 Lunch and Group Photograph

Afternoon Session

13.30-15.30 SESSION IV

Panel on Women’s Political Leadership

Panel Chair: Hon. Alix Boyd Knights, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Dominica

• Women’s Political Party Caucusing Md Ashraf Hossain, Director-General, Department of Women’s Affairs,MinistryofWomenandChildrenAffairs,Bangladesh

• Women and Election Observation in West Africa Nana Asantewa Afadzinu, Executive Director, West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI)

• PerspectivesonWomen’sPoliticalLeadershipinthePacificRegion Feleti P Teo,DeputySecretary-General,PacificIslandsForumSecretariat (PIFS)


TIME ITEM

13.30-15.30 cont...

• Impact of Women’s Participation on Democracy and Development: Case Study of South Africa Ms Colleen Lowe Morna, CEO & Executive Director, Gender Links

• Women’s Leadership & Innovation for Enterprise Ms Bola Olabisi, CEO and Co-Founder, Global Women Investors and Innovators Network (GWIIN)

Plenary Discussion

15.30-15.45 Refreshment Break

15.45-16.45 SESSION V

Panel on Jurisprudence of Equality regarding Violence Against Women (VAW) – Towards Judicial Leadership

Panel Chair: Judge Memooda Ebrahim-Carstens, United Nations Dispute Tribunal, New York Registry

• Strengthening Women’s Access to Justice Judge Sarah Ondeyo, Kenya

• Discussing Strategies for Judicial Leadership Judge Fiona Mwale, Malawi

Plenary Discussion

16.45-18.00 SESSION VI

Commonwealth Gender Priorities: Post-2015 Global Development Framework

• Gender priorities in the UN Secretary General’s post-2015 initiative Ms Lakshmi Puri, Deputy Executive Director, UN Women

• The Post-2015 Development Agenda: An African Perspective Dr Armany Asfour

• The Post-2015 Development Agenda: A European Perspective Patti O’Neill, Co-ordinator of the DAC Network on Gender Equality, OECD

Plenary Discussion

Conclusion and Closing


Annex II

Chair’s Report on the 10th Meeting of CGPMG to the 2013 NWM

On Friday 1 March and Saturday 2 March 2013 the Commonwealth Gender Plan of Action Monitoring Group (CGPMG) members gathered to review the progress made on the implementation of the Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005–2015 (PoA) since the 9th Meeting of the Group in 2012. The 10th CGPMG meeting was convened to consider the draft framework for the PoA End Term Review (ETR) report and provide training to members to strengthen their capacity to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA, as well as provide strategic policy advice to member governments and stakeholders. The two day meeting was well attended by 42 participants from 15 countries and resulted in a lively and rich exchange that raised many important points.

The 9th Meeting of the CGPMG had focused its work on the monitoring and evaluation of the PoA. Building on the outcomes and recommendations of the meeting the work of the CGPMG in 2012-13 focused on the following areas:

• A meeting of the Executive Committee of the CGPMG, which was held in June 2012, where members considered the Baseline Assessment Report of the PoA and reviewed and revised the PoA indicators.

• Production of the Baseline Assessment Report for the PoA, which produced an independent assessment of the status of gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Commonwealthandidentifiedthebaseline year for the PoA as 2004.

• Production of a draft Framework

for the ETR report, which members considered during this year’s CGPMG meeting and which will be presented to NWMs in the course of today and revised for presentation to the 10th CommonwealthWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting. The theme of the triennial meeting will be ‘Women’s Leadership for Enterprise’ and it will be held in Bangladesh in June 2013. Invitations for this meeting have been issued by the Government of Bangladesh and I look forward to seeing many Ministers there.

• Effortswerealsomadetoenhancesub-regional CGPMG coordination andvisibility,andIhostedaPacificsub-regional CGPMG meeting on 7–8 February 2013 in Fiji. However, thereremainsignificantchallengesincoordinating sub-regional meetings.

This year, during the 10th CGPMG Meeting several important issued were discussed. Firstly the group endorsed a letter that will be sent by the Chair to the Commonwealth Secretary-General and relevant authorities (including the 2013 Chair of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Planning Committee.) The letter conveyed the concerns of members and requests the Secretary-General to:

• Recognise the critical role of monitoring and charting progress in gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Commonwealth to inform strategic decision-making, improve policy and practice and ensure accountability of governments and stakeholders to gender commitments especially as outlined in the PoA.


• Provide increased resources (technicalandfinancial)tosupportthe implementation of the PoA, ETR preparations and strategies for advancing Commonwealth gender priorities in the post-2015 global development agenda.

• Ensure more concrete engagement of the Secretariat with NWMs through theprovisionoftechnicalandfinancialresources to NWMs.

• Increase the visibility of the Secretariat inthePacificregioninparticularand support the presence of the Secretariat at the next Triennial MeetingofPacificMinistersforWomenandSeniorOfficials,scheduledtotake place in the Cook Islands in October 2013, as an indication of the Secretariat’s commitment to the Pacificregion.

• Support networks and partnerships with regional bodies and organisations to develop and implement interventions on women’s leadership and empowerment as well as gender mainstreaming.

• Support the Chair of the CGPMG to carry out their role by providing financialassistancefortraveltoCGPMG and Executive Committee meetings.

CGPMGmembersalsospecificallyemphasised the importance of harmonising reporting on the PoA with other international and regional gender mechanisms to minimise reporting demands. In response to members’ ongoingdifficultiesinholdingsub-regional meetings, it was proposed

that future sub-regional meetings be convened in the wings of UN regional meetings.

Toenhancetheeffectiveperformanceof the Group and strengthen the CGPMG mandate, a proposal was also made for the CGPMG to consider sanctioning members who are not able to demonstrate commitment to the Group by actively participating in planned activities including sub-regional and annual meetings.

The meeting further endorsed the proposal to increase CSO representation in the Group by two additional members from Europe and Southern Africa regions to mirror the representation of the NWMs and help improve CSO/NWM partnerships in all regions.

Inresponsetotheneedsidentifiedbymembers to strengthen the Group’s capacity to monitor, evaluate and report on the PoA, a day-long training was provided at this year’s meeting by Dr Aruna Rao, Executive Director of Gender at Work and Evelyn Ogwal, Result Based Commonwealth Adviser from the Commonwealth Secretariat. The training equipped members with new skills and approaches that will assist theminproducingeffectiveregionalandnational case studies for the ETR Report of the PoA. This is aimed at boosting the qualitative report segment of the ETR and facilitating the Commonwealth gender priority setting post-2015 ETR.

Lastly, members considered the nomination for the next CGPMG Chair, who will come from the West and East Africa region for the period 2014–2016. Confirmationofnominationfromthe


Annex II: continued

regionwillbefinalisedbythenextmeeting of the CGPMG Executive Committee.

Your Excellency Prime Minister of Tuvalu, colleague Ministers, distinguished participantsandseniorofficials,thisreport is a summary of achievements of the Group since February 2012.


Annex III

Guidance Note: Country Reports on Women’s Political Participation

The Commonwealth currently has six women heads of state and government and several Governor-Generals representing HM Queen Elizabeth II. Only 14 countries have attained the targeted 30 per cent for female political representation in the upper and lower houses of parliaments, with Rwanda ranking the highest with 56 per cent, followed by Seychelles (43 per cent) and South Africa (42 per cent). Only a third of members have attained over 20 per cent of women in parliaments and local governance.

The country reports are intended to provide the Annual Consultation of Commonwealth National Women’s Machineries (NWMs) with key information on women’s political participation at the national, provincial and local/communal levels to enhance discussions, facilitate knowledge exchange and enable strategic programming that builds on lessons learned. NWMs are requested to identify oneprogrammethathaseffectivelyadvanced the participation of women in decision-making at all levels in your country for sharing at the 2013 NWM Consultation.

Good practice criteria for country submissions:

1. Legislative and policy frameworks that support women’s political participation.

2. Existing institutional mechanisms, parliamentary and political party structuresforwomen’seffectiverepresentation.

3. Financial and technical resources available to support women’s political campaigns.

4. Prevalent socio-cultural context that hinder or strengthen women’s political participation.

5. Engagements with women groups and CSOs for strengthening women’s political participation.

6. Identificationofspecificissuesandchallenges experienced by women and young women aspiring into politics.


Annex IV

Information Note: Equitable Governance and Women’s Leadership in the Commonwealth

1. Background

The Commonwealth Plan of Action for Gender Equality 2005 – 2015 (PoA) provides the framework to advance gender equality across the Commonwealth. The PoA, draws on international commitments for the realisation of women’s rights enshrined in the Convention on the Elimination of discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform for Action, the Millennium Development Goals and other agreements on health and education targets. The PoA recognises that socio-economic development, democracy and peace are inextricably linked to gender equality. One of the priority action areas of the PoA is to mainstream women’s participation in democracy and peace processes.

Democracy at the national and local levels promotes transparency and accountabilityandisessentialtoefficientandeffectivedeliveryofpublicservicesthus stimulating economic growth and reducing poverty. Elections are the most visible representations of democracy in action, and integral to all areas of democratic governance. Despite the importance of elections, a genuine representative democracy goes beyond holding free and fair elections. It should involve all social groups and contribute to women’s empowerment

2. The Commonwealth Context on Women’s Representation

The Commonwealth’s shared histories and values are guided by the recognition that democracy and development are interdependent. The 1991 Harare

Declarationalsoaffirmsthatgenuinedemocratic elections must contribute to women’s empowerment and strengthen gender mainstreaming at all levels of decision making. The 2011 Perth CHOGM similarly, emphasised on improving gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Commonwealth, and called on Heads to demonstrate commitment by entrenching measures at advancing women’s political participation and leadership at all levels of decision-making.

The growing recognition of women’s effectiveparticipationandrepresentationin democratic and peace processes has been widely acknowledged. Actions to realise the international and global targets especially the equitable representation of women in the political arena are constantly evolving. Member countries have sought to increase women’s representation in politics through the adoption and implementation of quotas andaffirmativeactionpolicies.Theproposed “target of no less than 30 per cent of women in decision-making in the political, public and private sectors by 2005”(5thWomen’sAffairsMinisters Meeting (5WAMM) report, 1996) is attracting increasing support from member countries. The majority of submissions by member countries to the Secretariat’s PoA Mid-Term Review (MTR) showed that this target was the most commonaffirmativeactionmeasurecitedby member countries.

Notwithstanding these policy prescriptions, steep challenges still impede achievement of the 30 per cent global target. The Secretariat


is committed to assisting members achieve equitable governance through its work on democracy, women’s political development and leadership in decision-making positions. The focus recognises the fundamental roles of good governance, transparency and accountabilityaskeydriversofefficientandeffectivedeliveryofgoodsandservices and overall economic growth.

3. Opportunities and Challenges to Women’s Leadership in the Commonwealth

a. Heads of Government and Cabinet Minister Level

Currently, there is a lack of gender balance in decision-making positions in government around the world and women continue to be under-represented in national parliaments. The share of women among Ministers averages at 19 per cent and presence at the highest position is even more elusive; only 20 of 193 Heads of State and/or Government globally are women. Seven of these are COMMONWEALTH MEMBER countries. They include, Prime Ministers Julia Gillard of Australia, Sheikh Hasina Wajed of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of Trinidad and Tobago, Portia Simpson-Miller of Jamaica; Presidents Pratibha Patil of India, Joyce Banda of Malawi, and Monique Ohsan-Bellepeau of Mauritius. In addition, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is represented by women Governor-Generals in Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, New Zealand and St Lucia.

b. Parliamentary Level

The target of 30 per cent of women in decision making in parliament and local government has been achieved to somedegreethroughaffirmativeactionmeasures such as quotas and reserved seats in some Commonwealth countries. 13 out of the top 40 countries noted for mainstreaming women into parliament are Commonwealth members – Australia, Canada, Guyana, Mozambique, Namibia, New Zealand, Rwanda, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uganda. Rwanda tops the list with 56 per cent women, closely followed by Seychelles with 43 per cent and South Africa with 42 per cent. In addition, the Caribbean region ranks high in the number of women in governance, followed by the Africa and Asia regions. Women have also been appointed as Speakers and Deputy Speakers of Parliament across the Commonwealth. Despite this increase, women’s representation still remains below 20 per cent: and is comparable with global statistics, indicating on average, only 19 per cent seats occupied by women.

c. Local Government Level

Across the Commonwealth, women have played a critical role in local governance. A third of the Commonwealth countries have over 20 per cent representation of women in local governance. Female elected councillors and mayors remain under-represented in all regions of the world. The constitutional amendments to reserve one-third of all local government seats in India in 1992, and institutional reforms to increase women’s active


Annex IV: continued

participation in Bangladesh in 1997, has seen over one million women been elected to India’s Panchayat Raj and 600 women elected to Bangladesh’s Union Parishad (UP). Similarly Australia, Canada, Lesotho, Namibia, New Zealand, South Africa, Swaziland and Uganda have also reached the global target of 30 per cent target of women representatives at the local government level. However a significantnumberofCommonwealthmember states are yet to achieve the PoA target.

4. Persistent Barriers to Women’s Political Participation

Since Beijing Platform for Action of 1995, women have only attained ten per cent increment in decision-making and leadership positions globally. More effortsarerequiredforwomentoattainthe 30 per cent representation by 2015. The reality is that a lack of gender balance still persists at all levels of decision-making, with particular weakness in the PacificIslandmembercountrieswherewomen represent an average of four (4) percent of all elected representatives, and nine (9) percent in the West Africa region. The under-representation of women’s participation is mostly symptomatic of persistentgenderstereotypes,conflictbetween family and work demands, patriarchy and the lack of an enabling political environment, inadequate funding to support female candidates, absence of special measures/quotas, low literacy levels, lack of job security in politics, the absence of female role models, politically motivated violence, corruption, and lack of training for political participation.

5. Rationale for Secretariat Programming on Women’s Leadership

The Commonwealth Secretariat pioneered Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) in the late 1990s and through strategic engagements with Commonwealth Finance Ministers. It promoted GRB as a tool that incorporates a gender equality perspective into processes and policies that underpin national budget systems to promote equality between women and men. By 2005, biannual reporting to Finance Ministers on progress in implementing GRB among members was instituted.

Onekeyfindingfromthe2009studyon status of GRB was that in countries where GRB had been integrated into national budgets, the process was driven largely by women leaders. The study therefore concluded amongst others, that promoting women’s leadership is pivotal to achieving development goals and targets. This was corroborated by the 2011 Lord Davies report on women’s representation in leadership in the corporate sector. Therefore just as in the political arena, the under-representation of women in executive and directorate levels is very real. Their absence at decision-making levels in mostsectorsmakesitextremelydifficultfor women to participate especially in the globalfinancialgovernancearchitecture.The realisation is that overcoming the complexity of barriers that create and sustain women’s exclusion from leadership demands strategic, multi-pronged and systematic approaches.


Annex V

Information Note: Jurisprudence of Equality on Violence Against Women (VAW) – Towards Judicial Leadership

Background

Violence against women (VAW), a critical issue of global concern, has been addressed in the Commonwealth throughSecretariatinitiativesandeffortsby national women’s machineries and partners. VAW is disturbingly persistent and pervasive with women’s subordinated status, prevalent gender-biased norms and practices including patriarchal mind-sets contributing to such violations. The enactment and implementation ofspecificevidence-basedlegislationaddressing domestic violence has long been held as a policy solution.

Most Commonwealth countries have eitheraspecificlawtoaddresstherightsof women who are battered by their spouses, male kin or male partners or broad legislation that covers domestic violence. However, the implementation of such laws has not been without problems as cultural norms and practices often impede women’s access to justice.

By virtue of belonging to the common law tradition, the judiciary of Commonwealth countries have contributed immensely to the determination and interpretation of the rights of women. Another factor influencingthefairdeterminationofwomen’s rights in many Commonwealth common law countries is the combined mixed legal system including, inter alia, constitutional/international human rights protection, the application of the common law, statutory legislation, Sharia and customary law.

Giventhesignificantbodyofworkaddressing domestic violence and the protection of women’s rights,

the Commonwealth Secretariat has fully utilised its convocation power and engagement platforms with law ministersandjudgestofocuseffortsonstrengthening of jurisprudence of equality on violence against women.

Core outputs from these interventions are:

1. A review report on pan-Commonwealth case law on violence against women to inform the privileging of women’s rights through increasing women’s access to justice; and

2. A judicial forum for Commonwealth Southern and East African jurisdictions, which discussed strategies and proposed recommendations on judicial leadership in developing a jurisprudence of equality on VAW.

Addressing VAW at the annual consultation of Commonwealth national women’s machineries (NWMs)

The session addressing VAW at the annual consultation of Commonwealth national women’s machineries (NWMs) will deliberate on strengthening women’s access to justice and elaborate on strategies for judicial leadership. It will serve to inform delegates of major issues at stake in the global debate, provide a platform to discuss leadership strategies to address the legal dimensions of addressing VAW and the role of the Commonwealth in shaping global policy and action.


Annex V: continued

The session will focus on strengthening women’s access to justice through identifying the following:

• Priorities for law reform

• Steps to make the administration of justice respond to women’s needs

• Ways to reconcile customary norms and religious perspectives with more formal judicial processes, national laws and CEDAW

• The role of judges in developing and strengthening jurisprudence of equality on violence against women.

Representatives from national women’s machineries will have the opportunity to sharetheireffortsandcontributetowardsshaping future strategic actions for addressingidentifiedissuesandbridgingperceived gaps.

The session will enable the Commonwealth Secretariat to facilitate a dialogue between key stakeholders determining women’s rights in situations of violence. It will foster information sharing on strategic policy advocacy including case law research, reports from relevant expert group meeting and judicial fora and discuss future action.

Outputs from the session will help shape positions of Commonwealth members on deliberations on the ‘Elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls’ at the 57th Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, 4-15 March 2013.

To this end, the session will:

• Consider strategies for strengthening women’s access to justice to gain insights into strengthening jurisprudence of equality on violence against women

• Share information on judicial and quasi-judicial experiences of Commonwealth countries

• Highlight strategies for judicial leadership in addressing VAW from a Commonwealth perspective

It is envisaged that the session will help to identify judicial advocacy and legal reform strategies that can be implemented nationally.


Annex VI

Participants List

ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA

Ms Sheila B ROSEAU Executive Director, Directorate of Gender Affairs Ministry of Education, Sports, Youth and GenderAffairs

Ms Anne JONAS Coordinator, Planning, and Project Management,OfficeoftheMinisterofState Ministry of Education, Sports, Youth and GenderAffairs

AUSTRALIA

Ms Mairi STEELE Branch Manager, Women’s Branch AustralianGovernmentOfficeforWomen

Ms Jing-ting CHAN Section Manager, International Engagement and Human Rights AustralianGovernmentOfficeforWomen

BAHAMAS

Ms Christine CAMPBELL First Assistant Secretary BureauofWomen’sAffairs

BANGLADESH

Mr Md Ashraf HOSSAIN Director General, Department of Women Affairs MinistryofWomenandChildrenAffairs

BOTSWANA

Hon Edwin BATSHU MinisterofLabourandHomeAffairs

Ms Valencia MOGEGEH DirectorofWomen’sAffairs MinistryofLabourandHomeAffairs

CANADA

Mr Sebastien GOUPIL Director General, Policy and External Relations Status of Women Canada

Ms Suzanne COOPER Senior Advisor, External Relations Status of Women Canada

DOMINICA

HE Vince HENDERSON Ambassador to the United Nations

GHANA

Hon Nana Oye LITHUR Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection

GRENADA

HE Dessima WILLIAMS Ambassador

NAMBIA

Hon Rosalia NGHIDINWA Minister for Gender Equality and Child Welfare

Mr Erastius NEGONGA Permanent Secretary Ministry of Gender Equality and Child Welfare

NEW ZEALAND

Dr Denise LIEVORE Principal Policy Analyst MinistryofWomenAffairs

NIGERIA

Hon Zainab MAINA MinisterofWomenAffairsandSocialDevelopment


Annex VI: continued

Ms Bolatito LADITAN Deputy Director FederalMinistryofWomenAffairsandSocial Development

Ms Olufunke OLADIPO ChiefWomenDevelopmentOfficer FederalMinistryofWomenAffairsandSocial Development

PAKISTAN

Mr Shaigan Shareef MALIK Secretary Ministry of Human Rights

Ms Khawar MUMTAZ Chairperson National Commission on the Status of Women

RWANDA

Mrs Aimee MUZIRANENGE Gender Advisor RwandaGenderMonitoringOffice

SAMOA

Hon Falemoe Leiataua TOLOFUAIVALELEI Minister for Women, Community and Social Development

Ms Kuiniselani TAGO ChiefExecutiveOfficer Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development

SEYCHELLES

Mrs Marie-Josee BONNE Special Advisor MinistryofSocialAffairs,CommunityDevelopment and Sport

Ms Tessa SIU SeniorResearchOfficer MinistryofSocialAffairs,CommunityDevelopment and Sport

SINGAPORE

Ms Adele LI First Secretary Permanent Mission of Singapore to the UN

SOUTH AFRICA

Hon Lulama XINGWANA Minister for Women, Children and People with Disabilities

Ms Ranji REDDY Chief Director Monitoring and Evaluation Department for Women, Children and People with Disabilities

Ms Pheladi BOPAPE Department Director Department of Women

Ms Ntibidi RAMPETE Director Department of Justice

TANZANIA

Hon Sophia SIMBA Minister for Community Development, Gender and Children

Ms Kijakazi MTENGWA Permanent Secretary

Ms Teodesia A F MBUNDA Private Secretary to the Minister Ministry of Community Development, Gender and Children

Ms Christine KALAMWINA Director Ministry of Gender & Child Development


TONGA

Hon Lord VAEA MinisterofInternalAffairs

Ms Polotu FAKAFANUA PAUNGA Deputy CEO MinistryofInternalAffairs

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO

Senator the Honourable Marlene COUDRAY Minister for Gender, Youth and Child Development

Mrs Celise PATRICK-ALFRED ProjectExecutionOfficer,GenderAffairsDivision Ministry of Gender, Youth and Child Development

UGANDA

Hon Rukia Isanga NAKADAMA Minister of State for Gender and Cultural Affairs Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development

Ms Jane SANYU MPAGI Director for Gender and Community Development Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development

Ms Ida KIGONYA Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development

UNITED KINGDOM

Ms Helene REARDON-BOND Deputy Director – Head of Policy GovernmentEqualitiesOffice

VANUATU

Ms Dorosday Kenneth LUI Director DepartmentofWomen’sAffairs

ZAMBIA

Minister Inonge M WINA Cabinet Minister Ministry of Gender and Child Development

Ms In’utu SUBA Permanent Secretary CabinetOfficeSpecialDuties

PARTNERS

Africa Union Ms Litha MUSYIMI-OGANA Director of Women and Gender

AusAID Ms Melissa STUTSEL Director, Gender Equality Policy Section

Department for International Development (DFID) Arvind MUNGAR Humanitarian and Security Department

International Federation of Business and Professional Women (BPW International) Ms Freda MIRIKLIS President

Ms Jill WOROBEC, CFP Second Vice President

Ms Adenike ADEYANJU-OSADOLOR Africa Regional Coordinator

Ms Huguette AKPLOGAN DOSSA First Vice President United Nations – Statut of Women


Annex VI: continued

International Trade Centre Ms Meg JONES Women and Trade Advisor

OECD GENDERNET Ms Patti O’NEILL Principal Co-ordinator

Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) Mr Feleti P TEO Deputy Secretary General

Mr Filipo MASAUMA Human Rights Adviser

Ms Seema NAIDU GenderIssuesOfficer

Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) Ms Brigitte LEDUC Gender Equality Advisor

Ms Joanne Lee KUNATUBA GenderEqualityOfficer

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) Ms Thokozile RUDVIDZO Director, African Centre for Gender and Social Development

UN Women Ms Patience STEPHENS Director, Intergovernmental Division

COMMONWEALTH INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORPGANISATIONS

Commonwealth Foundation Ms Diana ATUNGIRE-OCAYA Programme Manager

Ms Alex O’DONOGHUE ProgrammeOfficer

COMMONWEALTH ASSOCIATIONS

Commonwealth Business Council Mr Arif ZAMAN Advisor, Corporate Governance, South Asia and Chair, Commonwealth Business Women Network

CIVIL SOCIETY REPRESENTATIVES

Ms Marren AKATSA-BUKACHI Executive Director East African Subregional Support Initiative for the Advancement of Women (EASSI), Uganda

Ms Sheepa HAZIFA Director Gender, Justice and Diversity Division, BRAC, Bangladesh

Ms Hazel BROWN Coordinator Network of NGOs of Trinidad and Tobago for the Advancement of Women, Trinidad and Tobago

Ms ‘Ofa-Ki-Levuka GUTTENBEIL-LIKILIKI Director Women and Children Crisis Centre (WCCC), Tonga

Ms Doris BINGLEY President European Centre of the International Council of Women (ECICW), Malta

RESOURCE PERSON(S)

Ms Nana ASANTEWA AFADZINU Executive Director West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI), Ghana

Hon Alix BOYD-KNIGHTS Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dominica and Chair of Commonwealth Women’s Parliamentarians (CWP)


Judge Memooda EBRAHIM-CARSTENS United Nations Dispute Tribunal, New York

Ms Colleen LOWE MORNA Executive Director Gender Links, South Africa

Judge Fiona MWALE Malawi

Ms Bola OLABISI CEO and Founder Global Women Inventors and Innovators Network (GWIN)

Judge Sarah ONDEYO Kenya

Ms Lakshmi PURI Deputy Executive Director of UN Women and UN Assistant Secretary General

RAPPORTEUR

Ms Marianne PATIRAM

JOINT OFFICE FOR THE COMMONWEALTH PERMANENT MISSIONS TO THE UNITED NATIONS

Mr Michael MITCHELL Acting Senior Adviser

Ms Grace JOHN ActingSeniorExecutiveOfficer

Ms Adewunmi ALUGBIN Administrative Assistant


Ms Esther EGHOBAMIEN Interim Director and Head of Gender, Social Transformation Programmes Division (STPD)

Ms Kemi OGUNSANYA Advisor, Gender & Political Development STPD

Ms Kathy DANIEL ProgrammeOfficer STPD

Ms Evelyn OGWAL Results Based Management Planning Advisor, Strategic Planning & Evaluation Division (SPED)

Ms Homaira SIKANDARY Programme Assistant Social Transformation Programmes Division

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