gender budgeting

Gender Budget Initiative



Gender Budgeting



11.1.1 Gender Budgeting is not a separate budget for women; rather it is a dissection of the government budget to establish its gender-differential impacts and to translate gender commitments into budgetary commitments. The main objective of a gender-sensitive budget is to improve the analysis of incidence of budgets, attain more effective targeting of public expenditure and offset any undesirable gender-specific consequences of previous budgetary measures.



11.1.2 Gender budgeting is gaining increasing acceptance as a tool for engendering macro economic policy-making. The Fourth World Conference of Women held in Beijing in September 1995 and the Platform for Action that it adopted called for a gender perspective in all macroeconomic policies and their budgetary dimensions. The Outcome Document of the UN General Assembly Special Session on Women held in June 2000, also called upon all the Nations to mainstream a gender perspective into key macroeconomic and social development policies and national development programmes. Emphasis on gender budgeting was also placed by the Sixth Conference of Commonwealth Ministers of Women’s Affairs held in New Delhi in April 2000.



11.1.3 Australia was the first country to develop a gender-sensitive budget, with the Federal government publishing in 1984 the first comprehensive audit of a government budget for its impact on women and girls. Women’s budget exercises were also undertaken by each of the Australian State and Territory governments at various times during the 1980s and 1990s. South Africa followed and initiated formation of gender sensitive budget in 1995, through a participatory process of involving parliamentarians and NGOs. The Commonwealth initiative to integrate gender into national budgetary processes was started in 1997 in four countries other than South Africa such as Fiji, St Kitts and Nevis, Barbados and Sri Lanka. Several other nations have also taken steps to engender their national budget (Canada, UK, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania and Uganda). Gender budget initiatives are currently being attempted in 35 countries following diverse trajectories in terms of the process and partners involved in undertaking the activity.



Gender Budgeting in India



11.2.1 In India, gender perspective on public expenditure had been gaining ground since the publication of the report of the Committee on the Status of Women in 1974. The Eighth Five Year Plan (1992-97) highlighted for the first time the need to ensure a definite flow of funds from the general developmental sectors to women. The Plan document made an express statement that “…the benefits of development from different sectors should not by pass women and special programmes on women should complement the general development programmes. The latter, in turn, should reflect greater gender sensitivity”. This approach, however, could not make much dent in ensuring adequate flow of funds and benefits to women.



11.2.2 The Ninth Five Year Plan (19972-2002), while reaffirming the earlier commitment adopted Women Component Plan as one of the major strategies and directed both the Central and the State Governments to ensure “not less than 30 per cent of the funds/benefits are earmarked in all the women’s related sectors”. It also directed that a special vigil be kept on the flow of the earmarked funds/benefits through an effective mechanism to ensure that the proposed strategy brings forth a holistic approach towards empowering women.



11.2.3 One of the major constraints in the gender analysis of public expenditure had been the non availability of gender disaggregated data at the State and district level and therefore the Department took the initiative of generating such data across the country on 18 different indicators. The National Policy for Empowerment of Women made a commitment that Gender Development Indices shall be developed by networking with specialised agencies.



Gender Development Indices

“In order to support better planning and programme formulation and adequate allocation of resources, Gender Development Indices (GDI) will be developed by networking with specialized agencies. Gender auditing and development of evaluation mechanisms will also be undertaken along side. Collection of gender disaggregated data by all primary data collecting agencies of the Central and State Governments as well as research and academic institutions in the Public and Private Sectors will be undertaken. Data and information gaps in vital areas reflecting the status of women will be sought to be filled in. All Ministries/Corporations/Banks and financial institutions etc. will be advised to collect, collate, disseminate data related to programmes and benefits on a gender-disaggregated basis. This will help in meaningful planning and evaluation of policies.”

National Policy for Empowerment of Women 2001




11.2.4 The gender budgeting initiative in India started in July 2000 when a Workshop on ‘Engendering National Budgets in the South Asia Region’ was held in New Delhi in collaboration with the UNIFEM, in which Government representatives, UN agencies, media, NGOs, research institutions, civil society and members of the Planning Commission in the South Asia region participated. Noted gender auditing professional Professor Diane Elson made a presentation and shared her experiences on gender budgeting through an interactive session. National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPF&P) was commissioned to study Gender Related Economic Policy Issues, which included gender segregation of relevant macro data, quantification of contribution of women in economy, assessment of impact of Government Budget on women, the role women can play in improving institutional framework for delivery of public services and the policy alternatives for building a gender sensitive national budgeting process.