Employment: Center for Women’s Policy Studies

The Center is seeking a TEMPORARY Senior Program Associate to join its staff beginning late February/early March 2012, with the potential to become a permanent position. To learn more about the Center, visit our website at www.centerwomenpolicy.org.

The Senior Program Associate position requires demonstrated experience/expertise on women’s human rights issues from multiethnic feminist perspectives, especially human trafficking as a women’s human rights violation.  Successful candidates will have demonstrated experience in:

• working with policy makers and their staff at the international, federal and/or state level;
• conducting policy research and analysis, including analyses of federal and state legislative and policy proposals;
• preparing reports for widespread dissemination to policy makers (Members of Parliament, Members of Congress and US state legislators);
• coordinating convenings for policy makers;
• maintaining and updating websites; databases; and online communications (Enews, listservs, etc).

Candidates should have at least 3- 5 years relevant experience. A Graduate degree is required.

Qualified candidates interested in applying for this position should submit a cover letter, resume and salary requirement by email to abain@centerwomenpolicy.org, or by fax to 202-296-8962, NO LATER THAN JANUARY 31, 2012. Please be sure to include the subject line: Senior Program Associate.

NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE.

Event: “How joint property rights to land empowers women in Peruvian peasant communities”

Henrik Wiig, Ph.D.

Department of International Studies

Norwegian Institute of Urban and Regional Research

 Wednesday, November 16, 2011
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

International Food Policy Research Institute Conference Room 8A

Abstract:

 The Peruvian government enforced joint ownership between spouses to agricultural land in the formalization process even though the civil code of the country states guarantees individual ownership of inherited property. The share is now 57 percent, considerably higher than the 12 percent found in the LSMS 2000 survey calculated by Deere et al (2001). We investigate whether this redistribution of assets from men to women leads to empowerment through improving her threat point of divorce (Manser and Brown, 1980). Both spouses where interviewed separately in 1280 Peruvian highland household on intra-household decision making. Methodologically, we explore a specific exogenous feature of the titling process dating back to the comprehensive land reform of the 1960ies, which implies titled and untitled communities coexist within the same district and hence local gender culture. Simple comparisons indicate joint titling has given women a larger say in about 30 percent of types of decisions being made. Taking potential endogeneity into account, a Propensity Score Matching model as well as Tobit regressions using community and household controls also indicate a significant empowerment effect. In addition, we ran experiments in a subset of 225 households to create an empowerment indicator reflecting whether joint choices where closer to his or her previous individual choices. Both quantitative and qualitative data disclose a discrepancy between women’s secluded public life and her stronger position within the household where she tends to control the economy.

Publication: Gender issue in climate change discourse: theory versus reality

Authors: Baten,Mohammad; Khan,Niaz
Produced by: Bangladesh Online Research Network; BDResearch.org.bd (2010)

Even though gender has become one of the themes of analysis in development policy discourse, it has received little emphasis in climate change policies. By reviewing literature related to climate change and gender, this paper finds that women are more vulnerable to climate disasters than men through their socially constructed roles and responsibilities, and their relatively poorer and more economically vulnerable position, especially in the developing world. In Bangladesh, gender inequalities with respect to enjoyment of human rights, political and economic status, land ownership, housing conditions, exposure to violence, education and health (in particular reproductive and sexual health) make women more vulnerable before, during and after climate change-induced disasters. The paper argues that enhancement of institutional capacity to mainstream gender in global and national climate change and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) policies and operations through the development of gender policies, gender awareness, internal and external gender capacity and expertise, and the development and application of relevant mechanisms and tools should be prioritized for a pro-poor development in the realm of climate contingencies.

Available online at: http://www.eldis.org/cf/rdr/?doc=58988

Event: Genderinag.org website launch

Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Panel discussion and site tour
3:30–5:00 p.m.
Room MC 7-100
(1818 H Street, NW – Main Complex)

Genderinag.org is an online forum designed to provide access to resources, tools and information which can help practitioners and other stakeholders mainstream gender into agricultural development.   Genderinag.org is dedicated to raising gender awareness and improving gender mainstreaming in an effort to help improved gender equality and gender equity initiatives in agricultural development.

Chair: Mark Cackler, Sector Manager, ARD

Presentation on the Website:

John Mackedon, Consultant,World Bank

Panel:

 Pirkko Poutiainen, Sr. Gender Specialist, ARD, World Bank                      

Florence Rolle, Senior Liaison Officer, FAO                                            

Cheryl Morden, Director of the North American Liaison Office,  IFAD    

Carmen Niethammer, Operations Officer, IFC                                                                                       

**A light reception will follow the event**

(Click only once to RSVP!)

**External guests, please send an email to Sarian Akibo-Betts at sakibobetts@worldbank.org so a security pass can be requested**

www.genderinag.org

Publication: Understanding the Complexities Surrounding Gender Differences in Agricultural Productivity in Nigeria and Uganda

We investigate gender differences in agricultural productivity in Nigeria and Uganda. Results indicate persistent lower productivity on female-owned plots and among female-headed households, accounting for a range of socio-economic variables, agricultural inputs and crop choices using multivariate tobit models. Results are robust to inclusion of household-level unobservables and alternative specifications that account for decisions to plant crops. However, productivity differences depend on aggregation of gender indicator, crop-specific samples, agro-ecological zone and biophysical characteristics. More nuanced gender data collection and analysis are encouraged to identify interventions that will increase productivity and program effectiveness for male and female farmers.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00220388.2010.536222

Publication: “A woman and Her Land”

The Uganda Land Alliance recently conducted a field study in 8 districts to establish the progress women have made vis avis their rights to land. The districts covered were:  Amuru, Apac, Gulu, Pader, Hoima, Kyenjojo, Mubende and Jinja.

Between May and July 2011, a Documentation Team embarked on field trips to the study districts and visited the individuals that were identified to have made gains in ‘fighting’ for their land rights. These persons were met in their respective homes and they shared their stories with the documentation team.

The detailed experiences captured from the cases have been published into a book titled, “A woman and Her Land-A ray of hope beacons”. This book contains the real life stories as told to the documentation team.

CLICK:http://ulaug.org/departments-and-programs/knowledge-management/the-land-observatory/ula-publications/

Also to accompany the book, a video documentary was captured and will soon be posted on U-tube for public access. Copies of the Documentary DVDs can be accessed on request.

You can also get a hard copy of the book by visiting our offices or send us your physical or and postal address and we’ll get it to you.

As usual, we appreciate your comments on this work because it’s the fuel that drives our efforts forward. Kindly write to us and let us know what you think about anything in the book, including but not limited to content and the design. The first 100 respondents will receive a printed copy of the book at their doorsteps if you provide us with your physical and postal addresses.

 

 

Publication: Gender & agroforestry in Africa: Are women participating?

This report synthesises the results of a review of 104 studies on gender and the adoption of agroforestry in Africa, and aims to identify strategies that challenge gender imbalances in development initiatives. It explores women’s participation in agroforestry, including their ability to manage agroforestry practices, access to agroforestry information, and how they benefit from agroforestry.

The results highlight the substantial benefits that agroforestry can offer to rural women in Africa, mainly because it requires fewer resources than alternative enterprises. But women’s participation is low, with limited access to information and markets, and a mixed record of successful management of agroforestry technologies.

The report provides several technological, policy and institutional recommendations for improving the efficiency of women’s participation in agroforestry. They include domesticating important tree species, and ensuring that women have access to market information and microfinance. The report concludes by suggesting further research in areas such as measuring the income that women generate from agroforestry, and identifying the key ingredients of success stories across Africa.

http://www.worldagroforestry.org/downloads/publications/PDFs/OP16988.PDF?utm_source=General+Subscribers&utm_campaign=78e0f607afTransformations_Online_Issue_137_19_2011&utm_medium=email

Policy Brief: Women and Food Insecurity

The UCLA Center for the Study of Women (CSW) is dedicated to supporting research that promotes social justice and equality and disseminating it widely. I am writing today to share with you CSW’s recently initiated publications series rethinking public policy on gender, sexuality, and women’s issues. Each CSW Policy Brief presents research in support of a policy change that would substantially improve the health and well being ofwomen and their families.

As recent reports have documented, food insecurity is rising around the world. Because this issue is pressing globally, nationally, and locally, we selected “Women and Food Insecurity” as the focus of the first set of CSW Policy Briefs. While the global recession is a contributing factor–, our research shows that certain policy initiatives can have an unintended negative consequence on the food security of women and families. Because International Food Policy Research Institute has a long history of interest and advocacy in this area, we hope that the research presented in these briefs will be useful to your group in advancing its mission.

Links to the individual policy briefs on our website are included below:

Reducing Food Insecurity among Female Farm Workers and their Children

U.S. Farm Bill Makes Women and Children Food Insecure

Reductions in SNAP Increase Health Risks for Food Insecure Women

Helping Local Stores with WIC Certification Will Yield Better Food Options for All

Improving Health Outcomes for Populations Affected by Intimate Partner Violence and Food Insecurity

Reinstate Project Grow! Targeting Food Insecurity Among Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence

All the CSW Policy Briefs are also available from the California Digital Library (http://escholarship.org/uc/search?entity=csw_policybriefs). If you would like to receive a printed copy of the set of briefs, please let me know.

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Fund for Gender Equality (Arab States)

The Fund for Gender Equality is pleased to announce its second Call for Proposals for innovative programmes to help women achieve political and economic empowerment. The Fund will award multi-year grants ranging from USD 200,000 to USD 1 million for impact-oriented programmes around the world.

The first phase of the grantmaking cycle will open 16 October 2011 and will consider proposals intended for the Arab States region only, with applications accepted in English and Arabic.

The online application process will be open 24 October – 4 November (please check back for the URL) and grants will be announced 28 December 2011. In 2012, the Fund will invite proposals from Africa, Asia and the Pacific, Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

More information.

Publication: World Bank Report Women, Business and the Law 2012: Removing Barriers to Economic Inclusion

About the Women, Business and the Law Project:

The project measures how regulations and institutions differentiate between women and men in ways that may affect women’s incentives or capacity to work or to set up and run a business. Women, Business and the Law objectively measures such legal differentiations on the basis of gender in 141 economies around the world, covering six areas: accessing institutions, using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, building credit, and going to court. While the project provides a clear picture of gender gaps based on legal differences in each economy, it is a simple snapshot measuring only legal differentiation. It does not capture the full extent of the gender gap, nor does it indicate the relative importance of each aspect covered. For a collection of national legal provisions impacting women’s economic status in 183 economies, please visit the Gender Law Library.

http://wbl.worldbank.org/