Uganda - Gender Equality Brief

Joint Programme oN
Gender Equality
2010 - 2014
Whereas the introduction of universal primary education resulted in increased enrolment for girls and boys,
which reached 90.4 percent for girls and 93 percent for
boys in 2006, the completion rates to primary seven
were only 42 percent for girls and 53 percent for boys
in the same year. Key causes of drop-out for girls are
early pregnancy, sexual harassment, and lack of sanitation facilities (Uganda Demographic and Household
Survey, 2006).
Women are responsible for 80% of agricultural
production in Uganda
What is the purpose of the Joint Programme?
T
he goal of the United Nations Joint Programming
on Gender Equality (JPGE) is, “Enhanced gender
equality in access to services and opportunities.” The
purpose of the joint programme is to address the national priorities for gender equality as outlined in the
Uganda Gender Policy and the National Development
Plan and aligned to the targets of the Millennium
Development Goals.
What are the issues the joint programme
addresses?
1
Uganda has registered considerable progress in the last
decade towards the attainment of gender equality and
women’s empowerment through normative frameworks on equality in education, political and economic
empowerment, the implementation of relevant policies and laws. There have been some improvements
in other structural and systemic bottlenecks.However,
national commitments to some provisions in international and regional rights frameworks, including CEDAW and the Maputo Protocol, have yet to be complied with, while some MDG targets, such as maternal
and child mortality rates are unlikely to be achieved by
2015. An increase in investments in human and social
capital is therefore imperative.
The maternal mortality rate at 435 per 100,000 live
births is among the highest in Sub-Saharan Africa and
is well short of the 2015 MDG target of 131. This state
of affairs is compounded by the increase in new HIV infections amongst married couples indicating unequal
gender relations that are exemplified by women’s inability to access protection. Further, the increasing incidence of gender-based violence and sexual violence
and the inability of duty bearers to effectively respond
to the needs of survivors warrant improved remedial
response and justice system. This can be achieved
through collaborative stakeholder partnerships and
the UN agencies ‘delivery-as-one.’
How does the programme address these issues?
Premised on the socio-economic situation interventions being undertaken in the programme and planned
up to the end of 2014 the programme aims to accelerate progress towards positive change by advancing
gender equality and empowerment of women and
the girl child. This is being done and will continue to
be done through actions that strengthen frameworks
at different levels, responsible for effecting change in
gender equality planning and results. Strengthening
the capacities of the national gender machinery, key
line ministries, priority sectors, government agencies,
local governments and civil society organisations for
gender responsive planning and budgeting and programme delivery through training and institutionalized
use of gender disaggregated data is intended to improve gender mainstreaming and as a result the wellbeing of women, men, boys and girls.
Actions intended to address gender-based violence
and its consequences include improving access to serJoint Programme I 2012
vices, including maternal health and
psychosocial services, by appropriately equipping district Health Centres 3 and 4; setting up integrated
SGBV prevention and response services in selected district, and training medical officers and other actors
in the justice, law and order sector
in SGBV case management. Work on
developing a policy and legal framework for victim and witness protection is also planned.
Interventions being undertaken in
education address constraints to
access, retention and completion
of primary-school going girls and
Improving service delivery in the
education and health in areas of
operation. Actions taken try to address practical issues that impinge
retention and completion in primary schools and include capacity
building; securing the formalization
of policies that promotes gender
fair education, and the rolling out of
Girls Education Movement clubs in
primary schools.
What are the results of the
programme?
Support to stakeholder initiatives
saw government approval of a landmark policy, National Employment
Policy (2010) that acknowledges
gender disparity in wage employment with only 12% women engaging in wage employment, compared
to 25% men. The policy will be a tool
to advance the rights and promote
the working conditions of workers,
especially women.
The National SGBV Survey, a collaborative effort between MGLSD and
the Uganda Bureau of Statistics resulted in the feeding of the findings
and recommendations into a draft
National Action Plan and Policy on
SGBV which when adopted will improve services and strengthen prevention and protection of survivors.
Support to gender responsive budgeting training for all government
functionaries and other stakeholders resulted in the development of
a Gender Equity Budgeting curriculum intended to harmonise all such
training in Uganda.
Geographic Coverage:
The JPGE is being implemented in
ten (10) districts in Uganda: Gulu,
Kaabong, Kitgum, Kween, Lira, Masaka, Mbarara, Moroto, Nebbi, and
Pallisa (the 11th district is Kyenjojo
for the girls Education Movement
Project only)
Duration:
12th April 2010 - 31st December
2014
Funding:
Pass -through funding from the
Department for International
Development (DFID): US$
17,151,015
JP Gender Equality
Legend
Participating Government of
Uganda Ministries and Agencies:
Geographic Coverage - by JP (2011)
MOYO
KOBOKOYUMBE
MARACHA
ARUA
ZOMBO
KITGUM
AMURU
PADER
GULU
OYAM
KIRYANDONGO
KOTIDO
AGAGO
ABIM
NWOYA
NEBBI
KAABONG
LAMWO
ADJUMANI
OTUKE
KOLE LIRA ALEBTONG
AMURIA
MOROTO
NAPAK
DOKOLO
KATAKWI NAKAPIRIPIRIT
AMUDAT
KABERAMAIDOSOROTI
AMOLATAR
NGORA
SERERE
KUMI
KWEEN
NAKASONGOLA
BUKEDEA
BUYENDE
PALLISA BULAMBULI BUKWA
KYANKWANZI NAKASEKE
SIRONKO
KALIRO KIBUKU
NTOROKO
MBALE
KAYUNGAKAMULI
KIBAALE
BUTALEJA MANAFWA
KIBOGA
LUWERO
LUUKA
TORORO
IGANGA
BUNDIBUGYO KYENJOJO
KABAROLE
JINJA
BUGIRI
KYEGEGWA MUBENDE MITYANA WAKISO
BUSIA
KAMPALA BUIKWE
KAMWENGE
GOMBABUTAMBALA
KASESE
MUKONO
MPIGI
SSEMBABULE
IBANDA
MAYUGE
KALUNGU
KIRUHURALYANTONDE
RUBIRIZI
BUKOMANSIMBI
NAMAYINGO
BUHWEJU
BUVUMA
LWENGO
BUSHENYI
MASAKA
MBARARA
KALANGALA
MITOOMA
RUKUNGIRI SHEEMA
RAKAI
KANUNGU
ISINGIRO
NTUNGAMO
BULIISA
APAC
MASINDI
HOIMA
KISOROKABALE
0
45
90
180 Kilometers
Management Mechanism:
The coordination and management
structure includes a Joint Steering
Committee at the management level for policy direction; a Gender Reference Group, as the technical advisory body, and composed of heads
of UN participating agencies, senior
representatives from government
sectors (Ministry of Gender, Labour
and Social Development, Ministry of
Finance Planning and Economic Development and the National Planning Authority), DFID the donor, and
UWONET a civil society representative, and five thematic coordination
groups by programme outcome;
namely Government Capacity Coordination Group, Gender-Based
Violence Coordination Group, Girl’s
Education Coordination Group, CSO
Advocacy and Demand for Accountability, and UN Delivering as One
Coordination Group.
The main function of the Gender
Reference Group is to provide technical guidance and ensure that partners are making progress on the
results and milestones outlined in
the programme. UN Women is the
coordination agency.
Ministry of Finance, Planning and
Economic Development (MFPED);
Ministry of Gender, Labour and
Social Development (MGLSD);
National Planning Authority (NPA);
Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS)
Participating UN agencies in
Uganda:
International Labour Organisation
(ILO)
United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF)
United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP)
United Nations Children’s Fund
(UNICEF)
United nations Population (UNFPA)
United Nations Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights
(UNOHCHR)
United Nations Entity for
Gender Equality and Women’s
Empowerment (UNWOMEN)
World Health Organisation (WHO)
Participating Civil Society
Organisations in Uganda:
Uganda Women’s Network
(UWONET)
Contact Information:
United Nations Joint
Programme on Gender Equality
UN Women (Coordinating and Participating Agency)
United Nations Office, Kampala.
Plot 11 Yusufu Lule Road, Nakasero
Kampala Uganda
Telephone: +256 414 233440
Agnes Kisembo
Programme Specialist
Email: agnes.kisembo@unwomen.
org
Joint Programme I 2012
2