Tracking Trends in Ethiopia s Civil Society (TECS) POLICY BRIEF 3 CSOs supporting women s economic empowerment in Ethiopia: mapping and case studies

Transcription

1 1 Tracking Trends in Ethiopia s Civil Society (TECS) POLICY BRIEF 3 CSOs supporting women s economic empowerment in Ethiopia: mapping and case studies Issue: Civil society organisations (CSOs) have supported women-focused development initiatives over several decades in Ethiopia, but there is limited knowledge and understanding of the type and range of these activities, their successes and challenges. This TECS research project sought to fill that gap. Background Research carried out by TECS constitutes a systematic attempt to set out the ways in which CSOs support women s economic empowerment (WEE) among the most vulnerable and hard to reach women in Ethiopia. The existence of a CSO database at the Charities and Societies Agency since 2011, in addition to membership records of large CSO networks, permitted the researchers to embark on the research with a clear picture of all CSO interventions, which describe themselves as supporting WEE, women s empowerment or related interventions. Definitions and limitations of the research There is no universally accepted definition of empowerment and economic empowerment, but there are commonalities among the different attempts to define it. In this research, the focus in women economic empowerment meant that we were not only interested in whether women were economically active or not, but also in the quality of their economic involvement, including their ability to start and develop businesses and make decisions about wider matters. Across the developing world in the past decade, microfinance has been one of the key means of promoting women s economic empowerment, but this type of support is conspicuous by its absence in our research for two reasons. Firstly, the legal framework governing micro-finance services involves certain complexities (which are in place to 1 The Development Assistance Group (DAG) was established in 2001 to foster information sharing, policy dialogue and harmonise donor support to Ethiopia in order to enable the country to meet the targets set in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). DAG also assists in the preparation, monitoring and evaluation of the country s Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRS). DAG currently comprises 26 donor agencies providing development assistance to Ethiopia within the Paris Declaration principles of aid effectiveness and harmonization. Disclaimer: This policy brief is based on research commissioned by DAG members through the Tracking Trends in Ethiopia s Civil Society (TECS) project. The research study was carried out by Atos Consulting in partnership with the Forum for Social Studies (FSS), an Ethiopian Resident Charity. The authors were Kidist Gebreselassie, Bamlaku Alamirew and Aragaw Yimmer. The views presented in this briefing note are those of the authors, FSS and Atos Consulting, and do not necessarily represent the views of DAG members.

2 ensure accountability of funds), which may deter some CSOs from forming micro-finance institutions. Secondly, insofar as many CSOs focus their efforts on trying to reach the most vulnerable and poorest, many of their target beneficiaries are those considered non bankable women. The requirements for saving and rigorous formal arrangements by microfinance and other lending institutions are not suitable to address the urgent needs of this group of women. Mapping of CSO interventions The research included a mapping of CSOs across thematic interventions and geographic coverage through literature reviews and questionnaire based interviews with CSO representatives at different levels. Out of the 276 CSOs initially identified, 163 (59.1%) were reached in the course of the mapping exercise, while the rest (113 or 40.9%) were impossible to locate 2. Of the 163 CSOs that were reached, 131 were engaged actively in women s economic empowerment, while 15 were newly registered and have not yet become operational at the time of data gathering, and 17 did not have programmes or activities specifically targeting women or girls at that time. The majority of the CSOs that were reached were Ethiopian Resident Charities, which made up 83.4% of the total, followed by Foreign Charities, Ethiopian Societies, and Ethiopian Resident Societies with 5.5%, 4.9% and 3.7%, respectively. The most common WEE interventions identified were: skills training for Income Generating Activity (IGA) and livelihoods (131 interventions), self-help group promotion (71 interventions), direct cash/ in-kind support (70 interventions). Fewer CSOs implemented integrated women empowerment programmes (IWEP) (9 interventions), market, finance, employment, Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE), access facilitation and value chain (11 interventions), or small-scale irrigation (5 interventions). Figure 1: Type and regional distribution of Interventions 2 In most cases, repeated calls either went unanswered; were picked up by a house help or by other households/institutions, or no address could be found despite searches at local administration offices.

3 AA Oro Amh SNNPR Tig Harari Afar Ben G DD Gamb Som Skils Training for IGA and Livelihood SHG, Coops Small-scale Irrigation In-Kind/Cash Transfer Market-access IWEP Source: research fieldwork Just over one third of CSOs engage in three or more types of activities; almost 40% carry out two activities and 23% have only one type of intervention. Most activities are centred in Addis Ababa followed by Oromia, Amhara and SNNPR (see Figure 1). Few interventions are located in Somali, Gambella, Benishangul Gomuz, Harar and Afar. Understanding the interventions: successes and challenges Twenty CSO projects or programmes were selected for in-depth analysis, and further projects were included as they were discovered in the field, including some WEE interventions initiated by local governments. Focus group discussions and key informant interviews were held with beneficiaries, CSO staff, communities and representatives of government offices. The target beneficiaries of the CSO interventions we researched were poor women with precarious socio-economic conditions. They included poor female household heads, women living with HIV/AIDS, guardians and care-givers of orphan and vulnerable children, and women with disabilities, as well as those in the informal sector. These marginalized groups of the population are rarely targeted in practice through mainstream government programmes. Skills training Two main types of skill trainings are provided: basic business skills (BBS) and vocational skills, although the term basic business skills may cover a variety of topics ranging from psychosocial skills to women s rights. Vocational skills training provided by CSOs ranges from embroidery and pottery to traditional food preparation. The main objective is to enhance women s involvement in income generating activities. These interventions contribute to women s economic empowerment through providing the requisite skills for incubating and running IGAs. Our research evidence shows that training, particularly when linked to financial support, leads to increased income, savings, and assets. However, in some cases, we identified a mismatch between the choice of particular activities, and the interests, capacities and socio-economic characteristics of women. This suggests that there may have been a lack of participatory needs assessment when projects are designed. Targeting problems appear to be the major constraint impeding

4 achievements in WEE. Even more importantly, most interventions do not start with baseline studies and do not carry out regular monitoring and support, with a view to adapting activities as and when necessary and being able to assess impact on beneficiaries. Direct cash/in-kind support CSO interventions providing in-kind support have resulted in commendable achievements, particularly in situations where they are integrated with skills training, are offered over a reasonable period of time, and are tailored to the specific situation of particular beneficiaries. Examples of in-kind interventions include improved agricultural inputs - such as vegetable and fruit seeds varieties; heifer, sheep and goat breeds. Best practice identified in the research highlights the need for focusing on the interests of the beneficiaries, and good monitoring on the part of CSOs. Self help group (SHG) promotion There are four main types of organisation that are used to promote savings and provide access to credit. These are self help groups including Siqqee 3, cooperatives, saving and internal lending communities (SILCs) where credit comes only from members savings. All these types of organisations were successful in helping members to save for many purposes, including investing or expanding business. 97% of members of the sample of SHGs and 65.4% of the cooperatives started new businesses and registered increased incomes. Members also reported increased assets. Some challenges were identified, namely group rules regarding lending and repayment, which can deter business expansion. There were also some issues of poor governance and accountability. Integrated Women s Empowerment Programmes (IWEP) IWEP are an important type of intervention as they combine literacy skills - which are vital to business development - with training for vocational and business skills, business advice and access to credit. This type of intervention has the potential to target illiterate poor women successfully. It is difficult to assess the impact of these programmes to any greater extent since there are as yet few examples in operation. The study also found out that CSOs interventions in WEE have resulted in the establishment and proliferation of women s grassroots level institutions (SHGs, CLAs, cooperatives and associations such as SILC and Siqqee). These institutions have created fora for women to discuss and address problems which particularly concern them, such as harmful traditional practices, gender-based violence and child protection. These fora also benefit women by enhancing the savings culture, providing a facility for saving, and making small loans available for income generation, all of which have a direct result on increasing incomes and assets. However, with the exception of cooperatives, these organisations are unrecognised in the current women s national policy framework. Findings also revealed that the new Charities and Societies Proclamation has restricted the engagement of many CSOs (which are predominantly Ethiopian Resident Charities) on gender rights issues. Specifically, the Resident Charities have eliminated the gender awareness aspects of their interventions in women s economic empowerment. According to these CSOs, the restrictions placed on women s social empowerment and gender advocacy have limited the potential achievements of their WEE interventions. CSOs also expressed concerns over the 70/30 guideline, and in particular the fact that per diems for trainers and fees for consultants - who play an important role in delivering most WEE projects - are classified as administration costs rather than being part of project operational costs. 3 Siqqee, as observed in Welmera/Ejere site, is a cereal banking association whereby a CSO buys grains during harvest time, which is stored for members to borrow during the slack season to repay during harvest season.

5 Policy implications Implications for CSOs CSOs WEE interventions should be designed with and guided by participatory needs assessment. Baseline studies should be undertaken in order to gather pertinent data about the capacity, interest and socio-economic characteristics of beneficiaries, and to enable assessment of impact on beneficiaries. The practice of combining skills training with credit or start-up capital appears to be a promising strategy, which should be scaled up. CSOs should explore innovative ways of providing for their beneficiaries sources of finance on a long term basis. One avenue might be to work with micro-finance institutions to determine whether they can provide a special support package, which is tailored to this target group. Interventions aimed at WEE should identify the right combination of activities to ensure desired outcomes. Regular and continuous monitoring and evaluation, including business development support to women, is a critical project activity that should be strengthened. Through better networking and partnerships with CSOs and other partners on WEE, CSOs can advance shared goals, values and professional standards, and thereby strengthen desired outcomes in women economic empowerment. Implications for government In the interests of achieving the goals for women s economic empowerment set out in the GTP, further consideration should be given to how best CSOs may include discussion of gender equality and rights to bring about increased economic gains for women. The Government should take steps to ensure that CSOs work in collaboration with the woreda in which they operate, regardless of where they have signed the project agreement. To strengthen the performance of grassroots women s cooperatives, the Government should consider dropping the restriction on the number of cooperatives per rural kebele. In line with the GTP goals of supporting women s associations, the Government should consider how best it can support and sustain women s grass roots organisations that are devoted to women s economic empowerment and enhance best practice. This may be achieved through the creation of a network. Implications for donor partners Donors should give consideration as to whether better results may be achieved, if projects were to focus solely on women s economic empowerment (rather than being components of larger programmes, as is usually the case) and were to be programmed to take place over a longer period, for instance, 5 years rather than the typical 2-3 year interventions. Prepared by: The TECS team. For information, contact gemechu_desta@hotmail.com or Anncondy@yahoo.com For further information, please read TECS research report: CSOs and Income Generation: Prospects and Challenges, Final Report february 2012