The Foundation’s

gender-responsive

budgeting initiatives

have resulted in the

reallocation of more

than $3 million of

potentially wasteful

budget allocations in

25 districts and cities

over two years.

Gender in Indonesia

Some 800 religious

district court judges,

and 50 religious high

court judges, nearly a

third of the religious

judges in the country,

have participated in

the Foundation’s

gender sensitivity

training.

TOWARD GENDER-RESPONSIVE AND

PRO-POOR PUBLIC POLICY AND BUDGETING

The transfer of decision-making authority to district and city-level governments that hasoccurred under decentralization in Indonesia has presented new opportunities for women toinfluence policy and budget decisions that directlyaffect their lives. The Asia Foundation collabo-rates with civil society organizations and localgovernment agencies in 25 districts and cities ineight provinces to advance gender responsive and pro-poor policies and budgets that will improvepublic services and respond to the needs ofwomen and the poor. Building on its pioneeringgender budget advocacy work and extensiveresearch on decentralization, the Foundation hasdeveloped a range of gender-budgeting tools inpartnership with national experts, such as Pattiroand the Indonesian Forum for BudgetTransparency (Fitra). These tools cover perfor-mance-based budgeting, gender analysis of bud-gets, advocacy strategies for gender-sensitive andpro-poor policies, guidelines for participatorycommunity consultations, and integrating genderconcerns into development planning meetings.The Foundation and its partners have used thesetools to train more than 2,000 local governmentand civil society representatives. The Foundationalso provides direct technical assistance to local

government units, such as the health and educa-tion offices, during the development of theirannual plans and budgets. These efforts haveincreased gender budgeting skills at the local level, contributing to increased allocations forlocal health and education programs. At the same time, the Foundation supports its partnersto carry out critical analysis of local budgets, formadvocacy networks, and use the results of analysisto conduct advocacy activities including commu-nity meetings, public policy dialogues, and directlobbying. To further heighten public awareness of gender issues in budgeting, these activities arecomplemented by targeted campaigns acrossbroadcast and print media.

ADVANCING WOMEN IN POLITICS

The Asia Foundation supports a range of activi-ties to increase the number and build the capacityof women candidates in Indonesian elections.Women now comprise 18 percent of the 560elected members of the Indonesian House ofRepresentatives, and in some regions, women’srepresentation has reached as high as 34 percent.These women are making a difference in the waynational and local legislatures work, especially inefforts to promote gender-equity in laws andregulations. To support these women legislators,many of whom are new to the field, the

The Asia Foundation is committed to advancing women's rights and enhancing the role of women inIndonesia's democratic and economic development. Drawing on more than 55 years of experience inIndonesia and across Asia, the Foundation partners with civil society and government to support innovative initiatives that expand women's participation in the policymaking process, increase the representation of women in legislatures, push for greater budget transparency and equitable budget allocations, raise awareness of gender issues and secure women’s rights.

INDONESIA

HEADQUARTERS465 California Street, 9th FloorSan Francisco, CA 94104 USATel: (415) 982-4640Fax: (415) 392-8863info@asiafound.org

WASHINGTON, DC1779 Massachusetts Ave., NWSuite 815Washington, D.C. 20036 USATel: (202) 588-9420Fax: (202) 588-9409info@asiafound-dc.org

INDONESIA PO BOX 6793 JKSRBJakarta 12067Tel: +62 21 7278 8424

www.asiafoundation.org

Foundation, together with the Center for PoliticalStudies at the University of Indonesia (PuskapolUI), the Center for Human Rights at AirlanggaUniversity (Pusham UNAIR), the Institute ofPublic Policy Studies (LSKP), and other localpartners, developed reference materials and areproviding training to help women lawmakers bet-ter fulfill their legislative roles. The Foundationhas also supported the establishment of networksand caucuses, connecting women representativeswith women activists and civil society organiza-tions, which can provide technical and politicalsupport for women representatives in their effortsto advance gender responsive and pro-poor poli-cies. Technical assistance and programs to supportwomen in politics have reached women parlia-mentarians and caucus members in 67 districts.

SUPPORTING WOMEN’S FULL AND EQUALPARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC LIFE Gender stereotyping and traditional views ofwomen’s roles continue to disadvantage girls andwomen in Indonesia, making it difficult forwomen to be full and equal participants in social,economic, and political life. While Indonesianwomen are active in many aspects of public lifeand face no legal barriers, most professional areascontinue to be dominated by men. The AsiaFoundation is working with Paramadina Universityto conduct a series of regional seminars to furtherexplore how women, and men, are engaging inpolitical and public life and the challenges they arefacing. In addition to looking at the role of Islamin supporting gender equality and the involvementof women in the public sphere, the seminars alsoprovide an opportunity for prominent localwomen to share their experiences relating to theircareers and public life. Given the need to addresssocietal attitudes to women’s participation in public life, the Foundation and Paramadina aresupporting these activities with discussions andtalk shows on local radio and television stations,helping to increase public awareness and ensureseminars have far reaching impact.

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT

Women own 35 percent of Indonesia’s small andmedium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and it is thesebusinesses that drive the country’s economicgrowth. Many woman entrepreneurs, however,have limited knowledge about access to financialinstitutions and still register their businesses intheir husbands’ names. To encourage women toregister their businesses in their own names, TheAsia Foundation is working with women’s busi-ness groups to increase awareness of the benefits

of such licenses, namely legal protection to con-trol their own businesses and access to formalinstitutions. The Foundation has supported masslicensing events in 18 districts across eightprovinces, with 2,200 women registering theirbusinesses. The Foundation also supports effortsto improve the entrepreneurial skills of womenSME owners and increase access to capitalthrough microcredit. With the Foundation’s assis-tance, thousands of women in Aceh have gainednew economic opportunities through a microcre-dit revolving fund program. The Foundation andits partner, the Center for the Development ofWomen’s Resources (PPSW), have provided valu-able skills to members of local women’s groups inareas such as business development, bookkeeping,revolving fund mechanisms, and establishing localmicrofinance institutions.

PROMOTING GENDER AWARENESS IN

RELIGIOUS COURTS

Religious court judges play a significant role inIndonesian communities as the legal interpretersof Islamic family law and have great influence indetermining issues related to women’s rights andgender equality. The Asia Foundation partners withthe Center for Women’s Studies at Sunan KalijagaState Islamic University Yogyakarta (PSW UINSunan Kalijaga), Putroe Kandee, the state religiouscourts body, and the Department of ReligiousAffairs to train religious court judges and staff onissues of children’s rights and gender equality inIslamic law. More than 50 religious high courtjudges and 800 religious court judges, out of over3,000 in the country from across Java, Aceh,Sulawesi and West Nusa Tenggara, have participat-ed in training, which has included materials onpartnership in the family, reproductive health andsexuality, domestic violence, and the rights of thechild. Judges and court staff learned how to inte-grate a stronger gender perspective to fulfill therights of women and children, at the same time asadhering to religious principles in their work.Judges have reported that they have learned how toincorporate relevant international instruments suchas the Convention on the Elimination of All Formsof Discrimination against Women and theConvention on the Rights of the Child alongsidethe Marriage Law of 1974 and the Compilation ofIslamic Law.

For more information on The Asia Foundation’s Gender and Women’s Participationprograms, please contact Hana A. Satriyo (hsatriyo@tafindo.org).

The Asia Foundation's Gender programs are generously supported by the RoyalNorwegian Embassy, the Canadian International Development Agency, theEmbassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the Danish Royal Danish Embassy,United Way International, and other private donors. 10/2012

The Asia Foundation

is a nonprofit international

development organization

committed to improving

lives across a dynamic

and developing Asia.

Headquartered in San

Francisco, The Asia

Foundation works through

a network of offices in

17 Asian countries and in

Washington, DC. Working

with public and private

partners, the Foundation

receives funding from

a diverse group of

bilateral and multilateral

development agencies,

foundations, corporations,

and individuals.