Facilitator’s Notes

Day 6: Development Modules

Session 28
Gender Issues and Leadership
PURPOSE OF THE MODULE it easier to explain each slide through the
different sessions.
The purpose of the module is to:
• Provide participants with an understanding
of basic concepts on gender, gender roles, TIME SCHEDULE
gender equity and equality
• Challenge participants preconceived The overall time of the course is two hours,
notions of gender and gender roles which can be divided in the following way:
• Give participants an understanding of why • Session One: Differentiating between sex
gender equality is everyone’s business and gender. (5 mins)
• Provide participants with an understanding • Session Two: Defining gender roles (5 mins)
of gender responsiveness as part of • Group Exercise One (20 mins: 10 mins for
transformed leadership and challenge them group discussions and 10 mins to discuss in
to think about what they can do in their plenary)
capacities to promote gender equality • Session Three: Gender in Development (30
mins)
PROCESS • Session Four: Gender in Leadership (30
mins)
• This thematic module is divided into four • Group Exercise Two: (20 mins: 10 mins for
sessions: group discussions and 10 mins for discussion
9 Understanding key concepts on in plenary)
gender and sex • Conclusion and roles: (10 mins)
9 Understanding each of our
gendered roles and their
implications MATERIALS REQUIRED
9 Understanding key concepts related
to gender and development • LCD Projector
9 An overview of why gender equality • Flip charts and marker pens
is important in performing
leadership roles
• There are two group exercises (exercise
one focuses on sessions 1 and 2; exercise
two focuses on sessions 3 and 4) which will
be conducted by dividing the participants
into small groups, discussing the questions
and presenting in plenary.
• References are made to the slides in each
section.
• Many of the slides have diagrammatic
representations, which are referenced to
each part of the text. Reading through the
text and understanding concepts will make

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Day 6: Development Modules
MODULE CONTENT:
I. Differentiating between sex and gender:
Often, we use the words sex and gender
interchangeably, without really understanding
the context, meaning or connotations of these
terms. (Slide 1 is used to demonstrate the
difference between these two key concepts)
o Sex is a biological description used to
categorize individuals based on their
sexual and reproductive functions. The
term male and female describe the sex
of a person.
o Gender is used to describe the
different values, rules and norms
prescribed by societies for men and
women. It also describes the
relationships and structures of society
that result from, create and reinforce
gender norms. The term masculine and
feminine describe the gender of a
person.
Based on this understanding of the two terms,
while ones sex remains the same over time and
across cultures; ones gender (determined by
ones sex) changes. In sociological terms,
gender roles are characteristics and behaviours
attributed by virtue of ones sex by different
cultures. Hence gender is defined differently in
different cultures and at different periods of
time.
II. Defining gender roles:
• Norms are the collectively accepted and
approved ways of being (a woman/man)
and doing (performing a role as a
woman/man), i.e. what is considered
normal by a given group or society. This is
done through a process of socialization.
• Gender socialization is the process by
which we learn and teach others to abide
by social norms and rules about being a
woman or a man.
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• Conscientisation involves awareness and
understanding of the difference between
sex roles and gender roles and that gender
roles are socially created and therefore can
be changed to promote equality.
Slide 2 illustrates how understanding gender
roles are difficult because of the sheer
complexity of relationships and layers which
determine the roles we play:
™ At an individual level: through our
attitudes, behaviours and beliefs
™ At the level of relationships: through
family, friends and colleagues
™ At the community level: through
workplace, school, religion, local customs
and media
™ At the societal level: through policies and
laws, national culture and language and
societal norms
SLIDE 3
GROUP EXERCISE 1. The purpose of the first
group exercise is to get participants to think
about their perceptions and attitudes towards
gender stereotypes and how these can be
challenged.
¾ Gender roles and stereotypes are different
in every society. Discuss some gender
stereotypes; how they are similar for your
group, and how some are different. Think
about some gender roles which have
changed and what are some factors that
help change these roles. (picture/diagram)
¾ If our gender roles are determined at the
four different levels (individual,
relationships, community and societal)
then how do you think changes at these
levels can lead to changes in the make up
of our gender roles? Provide examples of
how changes at any of these levels have
led to changes in the gender roles in your
own society.
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III. Gender and Development:
(Slide 4 captures the following key concepts
around gender and development)
Gender equality is women and men having
equal rights, access, freedoms and
opportunities.
Gender equity recognizes the differences
between women and men and essentially
means fair treatment for both sexes. Equity in
this way can be the means to the end of
achieving equality.
The Women in Development (WID) approach is
used in designing, planning, implementing and
evaluating women-only focused programmes. It
tends to address the symptoms rather than the
causes of gender inequality and does not
question the power dynamics of gender
inequality.
The Gender and Development (GAD) approach
recognizes that women, poor men and other
disadvantaged groups are vulnerable to social
structures that impact them negatively. The
GAD approach seeks to redress gender
inequality by creating an equitable and
sustainable environment for development in
which both women and men can participate.
This approach sees gender as a cross-cutting
issue which has relevance for and influences all
economic, social and political processes.
(Slide 5) Inspite of moving away from the
notion of WID, to GAD, the word gender still
conjures the image of a ‘women’s issue’. What
is important is to realize that gender is not
about one segment of society; it is about the
relational aspect of being a woman and a
man. It is more about power, about relations,
about access and about control. Hence one
challenge has been to involve men in the
process of working on gender issues.
Why is gender a cross-cutting issue?
Gender inequality hurts society as a whole, not
just individuals. Countries with high levels of
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gender inequality tend to have more poverty,
slower economic growth, less inclusive
governance and a lower standard of life than
countries where women and men enjoy similar
levels of access, freedom and opportunity.
Gender inequality restricts the potential of
women to contribute to economic, social and
political processes. If you invest more in
equality, you invest in more sustainable,
equitable and holistic human development.
(Slide 6 indicates the centrality of gender to
all other issues)
Slides 7, 8 and 9 illustrate how gender roles
have larger implications.
(Slide 10) UNDP follows the 1997 definition of
Gender Mainstreaming by the ECOSOC:
“the process of assessing the implications for
women and men of any planned action,
including legislation, policies or programmes,
[…] making women’s concerns and experiences
an integral dimension of the design,
implementation , monitoring and evaluation of
policies and programmes […] so that women
and men benefit equally”
IV. Gender Responsiveness in Leadership
Roles
It is important to consider that our individual
commitments and actions are translated into
reality by an institutional behavioural change,
which will provide a conducive framework of
moving towards an equitable and fair system.
(Slide 11- principles for vision and
commitment gets translated into institutional
change)
There is a need to change the predominant
style of leadership in order to address the
major challenges that face us. Globalization
and other economic advances may have
created new opportunities, but it has also
increased inequalities of all sorts. We need a
kind of leadership, which will work on reducing
these inequities and create a space to
negotiate for the interests of all, in particular
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the disadvantaged, vulnerable and
marginalized. A transformative leader is
someone who can guide, direct and influence
others to bring about a fundamental change, in
both the external as well as internal processes.
Transformed leadership is not just about an
individual but about transformed institutions
with changed structures and systems.
™ A leader can provide a vision, develop a
community for that vision and facilitate the
implementation of the vision
™ A community then agrees on the
objectives, supports leaders in realizing the
objectives and demands accountability
from the leaders
(Slide 12) Some key arguments to address
gender issues in decision-making processes:
™ Numbers do matter: If half the population
of any given society is being affected by a
decision, it is only fair that there is
representation from that share of the
population. Women and men having
undergone different socialization
processes, often have different needs and
perspectives to decisions being made. It is
essential that these are reflected when
problems are being analyzed and when
solutions are being developed.
™ Gender on the agenda: It is often argued
that all women do not and will not work for
the welfare of other women or adequately
address gender issues when in positions to
make decisions. This is absolutely true and
in the same right, it is also important to
remember that not all men are gender
insensitive. Hence the idea is to not just
transform individuals but institutions. Since
decision-making is about the relationships
of those making decisions and those being
affected, it is important to work on an
agreed agenda, which then incorporates
gender issues.
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(Slide 13 ) GROUP EXERCISE 2:
• The purpose of this exercise is to challenge
participants to think about what they can
do to promote gender equality, what
challenges they expect to face, and what
the possibilities are for coalition building
and cross-sector cooperation.
• Participants should think of an example/s
when they may have looked at a gender
issue or gender dimensions of a
problem/situation while making a decision.
Participants will discuss in working groups and
report their findings/conclusions in plenary for
further discussion. During the plenary
discussion, show Slide 14- Gender Analysis as
a simple tool.
(Slide 15) Role that the various sectors/actors
can play in addressing gender inequalities:
• Individual and Organizational level: An
organization’s culture is determined by the
cultures and attitudes of individuals who
are part of it and the policies it has in
place for organizational effectiveness. The
gender equality perspective is important to
achieve organizational goals as well as
necessary for effective working of an
internal organisation.
• Media: The media plays an important role
in shaping people’s attitudes, both men
and women. The media portrayals of
women in most countries do not provide a
balanced picture of their diverse lives and
contributions to society in a changing
world. Visual and print media often limit
and reinforce gender roles.
• CSOs/NGOs- working together on a
common agenda: Civil society and non-
governmental organizations have a space in
most societies to create an activism
regarding an issue. There is a need for
organizations working on gender issues to
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be able to create their own agenda, and to
successfully negotiate with and form
coalitions with other organizations.
• Governments: All governments put in place
certain policies and interventions.
However, very often these do not engage
majority of the population and as a result
do not have positive implications for all
sections of society.
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A common commitment to mainstreaming the
promotion of gender equality is not always self-
evident in everyday work. Leaders and
decision-makers need to play a key role in
making the promotion of gender equality a
priority. What is required is collective action to
work on an agreed transformed agenda.
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