LEARNING CASE 7: GENDER AND NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 1

Transcription

1 LEARNING CASE 7: GENDER AND NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 1 1. In Uganda, a natural resource management (NRM) project is aimed at breaking the cycle of natural resource degradation and poverty. This project plans to achieve its goals by providing support for improved natural resource management approaches and practices, coupled with agricultural development. The project has four components: (i) natural resource management, which aims to conserve the water, land and vegetation in the area; (ii) adaptive research and extension which focuses on dry land farming and livestock production systems, range management, sustainable agricultural development and training directed to local communities; (iii) rural finance, which gives special attention to the promotion of on-farm and off-farm income-generating activities targeted to small farmers, the landless and rural women; (iv) a project coordination unit component aims at strengthening community participation and the dialogue with existing local institutions. 2. In Uganda, environmental degradation is a problem that the government is actively trying to resolve. Natural resource management is an important component of environmental sustainability with its degradation deriving from many sources. Land is one of the most important natural resources in Uganda and it supports 90 percent of the population. An estimated 88.7 percent of the population live within the rural space with women conducting 80 percent of the agricultural production in addition to other activities. Women play an important role in resource management of land, water, cashcrop production, and have a more in-depth knowledge of the plants and resources around them. However, the roles women play are often invisible and are not measured. Questions for Discussion: Why must gender be considered in a NRM project? Why does understanding the different roles and responsibilities of men and women in the natural resource management system affect food security, resource management practices? What are the questions that must be asked during project preparation to truly understand the gender dimensions within the project area? What are the gender-specific considerations that the project may include to ensure equal participation and involvement within the project of both men and women? What gender-specific indicators can be used to track gender through the different stages of the project? 1 Anderson-Saito, K., A. Dhar and E. Pehu GENRD Operational Notes for Task Managers to integrate gender into rural projects. ARD Communiqué. World Bank, Washington, D.C. The authors would like to acknowledge inputs provided by Chinwe Olisemeka toward the preparation of the course module. 244

2 Notes for Instructor: Objective: To enable participants to understand gender issues within Natural Resource Management and to discuss how it can be integrated into development projects. Gender is a key dimension of social difference that affects people s experiences, concerns and capabilities in managing natural resources. NRM is community based and requires the support of the entire community. Men and women use natural resources in different ways and at different rates and have different allocation and conservation measures. Understanding the different roles and responsibilities of men and women in the natural resource management system is critical to understanding how changes to that system will affect food security, resource management practices (e.g. land, livestock, fisheries), and hence productivity and sustainability. Environment management, NRM and community-based land management will therefore require information, participation, management and commitment from both sexes. Women s participation in community organizations that manage natural resources is not just an equity issue, but also one that affects efficiency and effectiveness since women have a high degree of dependency on the natural environment to perform their daily household tasks. Additionally, women are the ones involved in subsistence activities to include fodder, wood for fuel and construction. Women are also actively involved in the management, conservation, and maintenance of natural resources for collective and community consumption. Women often have a detailed knowledge of their local environment that men do not share, and that knowledge is critical to strategies for development and change. 1. How to Integrate Gender within NRM Projects: a. Project Preparation and Appraisal Questions to be asked during project preparation: 1. What are the natural resources women depend on and how are they used? 2. How is the access to resources characterized? 3. What is the ownership of natural resources (communal, individual, male, female)? 4. Decision-making of natural resource use: done by male, female, as a couple together, community? 5. What are traditional/indigenous roles or taboos for resource use? 6. Who benefits from natural resource use? 245

3 7. What is the gender-specific knowledge about a resource? 8. What are the main constraints for women to access, use and benefit from natural resources? 9. What issues have been neglected/overlooked so far in any previous work? 10. What could be solutions for better access/use of natural resources proposed by women? 11. How do these findings compare with findings obtained by interviewing males? 12. How can the findings from female and male interviews be best integrated within a household and within the community? These categories should not be perceived/treated as separate items but they are all interlinked (type of resource, access, ownership, decision-making, knowledge, taboos, cultural roles and benefits). In each category male/female contribution can vary, which influences equity issues, and can present barriers to efficient use and influence the sustainability of natural resource use and management. Methods to integrate gender during project preparation and appraisal: 1. Gender-specific questionnaires and conducting separate interviews with both men and women serve as an initial step in drawing each group into the dialogue and getting the men and women more involved. 2. Women should be interviewed separately, preferably by a female interviewer with a good understanding of the cultural background. For women who are intimidated to participate in an interview, the interview form must be adapted: from a structured questionnaire to a questionnaire-guide that allows more open-ended discussions. Individual interviews to group interviews, giving the women more confidence to speak up toward the interviewer and interviewing women in places where they feel comfortable. 3. Along with being disaggregated by sex, information elicited in questionnaires need to be disaggregated by ethnicity, class, household headship, marital status and age. 4. Inclusion of women as interviewers, and interviewing men and women separately results in a more holistic picture. 5. Other methods to integrate gender should be explored e.g. surveys, seasonal calendar, mapping, role playing, and other participatory exercises in order to examine the nuances of men and women s daily lives or to explore any contradiction in the data. 6. Identify the barriers (both real and perceived) to women s participation. For example: i. Women are not as mobile as men and may be unable to attend community meetings, and even if they do, they would not be vocal in the presence of men. 246

4 ii. There is little value placed on women s work or their roles within natural resources management. iii. Women are perceived as just housewives, whereas men have a more definitive and descriptive titles such as fisherman or farmer. Collecting gender-disaggregated data is not enough. An assessment needs to be made as to which gender differences are relevant and would make a difference in the project. Factor in the demographic trends such as female and male seasonal or permanent migration in the project planning. The World Bank Western Altiplano Natural Resources Management Project in Guatemala found in its social assessment that female-headed households are very common in the rural Western Altiplano, making it important that the project provide special support to increase their productive capacities. Rural women s productive and natural resources management (e.g., soils, forest and watershed management) activities will be eligible for grant-financed subprojects, as will efforts and programs to facilitate their participation in (culturally appropriate) decision-making and planning forums. During project preparation, additional funds were acquired to enhance the gender focus of the project. b. Project Implementation Conduct gender-specific training and awareness building among project staff with separate training sessions that target and address women participants. Provide information about the policy and legal framework at the country and local level on women s inclusion. Provide access to information on fair wages, protective legislation by gender. Recommend policies for, and enforcement of, equal rights for men and women as they pertain to NRM. Ensure ongoing consultation with community groups, including women s groups directly or indirectly affected by the project. Support implementation of policies for, and enforcement of, equal rights for men and women to agriculture and NRM. Insist on the representation of women in community meetings, on project boards and on project staff, even if it means a type of quota system from the beginning. 247

5 c. Monitoring and Evaluation Collect sex-disaggregated data for each phase of the production cycle. How dependent are women and men on the resources which have been targeted by the project for conservation and sustainable management? Make visible and integrate, where applicable, women s traditional knowledge into environment management practices initiated by the project. Determine whether there will be adverse effects on women s or men s capacity to continue to provide for basic daily needs or to earn income from natural resources as a result of project activities. Will women and men have equal access to project or program benefits? 2. Good Practices That You May Wish to Discuss: 1. In the World Bank s Matruh Resource Management Project, the unique role played by Bedouin women in rural production and environmental management was recognized and the project worked closely with community groups through traditional channels to ensure men s and women s participation in preparing and implementing local resource management plans. The project determined incomegenerating activities for women like rug weaving and handicraft production. The project staff received gender training and women extension agents were based in each sub- project area to work directly with women. The Bank s Second Matruh Project aims to provide market intelligence related to quality and more effective communication systems to enable rural women to take advantage of existing offfarm income-generating activities. Creation of a market niche (building upon a Matruh label to be promoted) and promotion and training of gender-specific community- based organizations to manage operations when the break-even point is reached (women s organizations for specific women-related activities) factors prominently as part of the project s component on off-farm income-generating activities. 2. The Mali Natural Resources Management Project paid special attention to gender by specifically including the participation of women and women s groups at the village level on community development activities relating to location and operation of water points, livestock movement, and management and land use planning. 3. Women s participation in the Western Altiplano Natural Resources Management Project in Guatemala. Information, simple manuals, and technical materials on business and investment opportunities will be developed in response to demands and needs voiced by women. Institutional strengthening programs and projects will give special emphasis to developing and strengthening women s groups by assisting them in preparing subprojects for grant financing, while encouraging women s participation in other local organizations. The project preparation team has acquired additional funds to enhance the project s ability to 248

6 benefit women. Special studies will assess constraints to participation by women, Mayan groups and other disadvantaged people. The studies will also identify corrective actions to facilitate their inclusion and participation. 249