Gender Mainstreaming in the Africa Biogas Partnership Programme Presentation for ENERGIA meet

1. Gender Mainstreaming in the Africa Biogas Partnership Programme Presentation for ENERGIA meet 12 December 2011 Els Rijke, socio-economic & gender expert ABPP, erijke@hivos.or.ke http://africabiogas.org

2. The Africa Biogas Partnership Programme • Public private partnership • 70,000 domestic biogas plants • 6 countries • Development of a market oriented biogas sector • Main beneficiaries women (health, convenience, fuelwood savings, workload)

3. Goal and objective Goal: To improve the livelihoods and quality of life of rural farmers through utilizing the market and non-market benefits of domestic biogas Overall objective: To disseminate domestic biogas in rural areas with the ultimate goal of establishing a sustainable and commercially viable biogas sector

4. Production Total in 2008 - 2009: 279 plants 2010: 3300 plants 2011: 5914. November 10,000!

5. Benefits • Convenient, clean and climate friendly cooking fuel • Decreased workload • Improved sanitation & hygiene • Improved health • Improved agricultural production • Reduced use of non- renewable fuels • Improved lightning

6. Why Gender Mainstreaming in ABPP? • Women are main beneficiaries • Biogas programmes do not consciously discriminate against women

7. Assumptions Women main beneficiaries of biogas since they are the ones spending most time in the kitchen and collecting firewood Structural gender inequalities: Women: reproductive, productive and community tasks Time allocation Access and control (decision making power) over resources (land, crops, animals, finance)

8. Why Gender Mainstreaming in ABPP? • Structural gender inequalities • Different needs • Different participation and • benefits • GM for more effective programme • as well as for equality

9. Gender Mainstreaming in ABPP -Integrate gender equality concerns into the planning, implementation, and monitoring of the programme as well as in the institutional set ups. - Develop specific interventions that strengthen women’s social and economic position Maximize overall impact and equal benefits

10. Gender Mainstreaming trajectory with ENERGIA • Workshop 2010 Nairobi • Guide on Gender Mainstreaming in biogas Programmes • National Gender Action Plans (GAP) and targets • Gender Focal Points • Follow up, exchange, e-discussion • Country specific support (workshops etc) • Gender mainstreaming of systems and tools • ENERGIA • International Network on • Gender and Sustainable Energy

11. Results

12. Results

13. Challenges • National Implementing Agency: gender mainstreaming policy and awareness • Complexity of Multi Stakeholder approach • Sector male based (implementers • and supply chain) • No GM objectives / budget from • start of programme • Targets, women,… and then? • Results of GM towards meeting goals and more gender equality: unknown

14. Enabling factors • Local networks (ENERGIA) • International expertise (Nepal, India) • Gender responsibility in the central team • Gender Focal Point in national teams (also challenge) • Engendering tools (assessment) and involving others • Affirmative actions and quota • Women are main beneficiaries: • clear need to involve them, • but active participation and • decision making…

15. Good practices • Users training and extension • Masons training and female promoters / masons: • Access to women and spaces • Better promoters (know product) • Certain female ‘qualities’ (reliability, trustworthy) • Bound to a place • Specific interventions (BF • dolo, UG FHH, TZ masons) • Country specific

16. Next steps… GM to be seen as contributing not as a burden or competition as well as value in itself Case studies: how does the programme improve gender relations and position of women; how does GM support programme effectiveness Workshop 2012 Institutionalization and incentives