Overview of TAU’s Support & engagement with the Department for Women, Children and People with Disabilities

1. Mainstreaming in Programmes and Projects – Setting the policy landscape April 12, 2012 Overview of TAU’s Support & engagement with the Department for Women, Children and People with Disabilities

2. Policy Landscape • Mainstreaming finds its roots in the human rights perspective- central to ‘movements’ - Human rights are those rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible. • A series of international human rights treaties and other instruments adopted since 1945 have conferred legal form on inherent human rights and developed the body of international human rights

3. ENABLING ENVIRONMENT

4. Bringing HR & Mainstreaming home Legal Process Adoption Incorporation Enforcement Dissemination Legal Mandate exists for mainstreaming - found in our legislation; regulations and policies • Use enabling international frameworks; legislation and instruments & national equality legislation and policy frameworks to mainstream equality & equity in Public Service programmes and projects • .

5. Mainstreaming Gender Mainstreaming Gender…recognises that initiatives specifically addressed to women, who often operate at the margins of society, although needed, are insufficient on their own to bring major change. While many are innovative and benefit the women who participate directly, they do not affect in a sufficient way the services or resource distribution of mainstream policies and projects and so do little to reduce or end inequalities between women and men. Gender mainstreaming challenges these mainstream policies and resource allocations. It recognises the strong interlink between women’s relative disadvantage and men’s relative advantage. It focuses on the social differences between women and men: differences that are learned, changeable over time and vary within and between cultures. (European Commission, 2005. Equal Guide on Gender Mainstreaming)

6. Disability • According to South African’s Constitution and government policy, the rights of people with disabilities should be or is mainstreamed into the programmes and projects of government. Naturally, beyond policy, there is/should be a will and an imperative to be responsive to the diverse situations of people with disabilities. Mainstreaming for people with disabilities is integral to human rights and is part of achieving both equity and equality for people with disabilities. • South Africa’s commitment towards equality for people with disabilities is expressed in the national disability policy and anticipated legislation, the Disability Act.

7. Mainstreaming • Process or product? • Mainstreaming as a transversal theme • Shift from project specific intervention to integration, implementation and M&E at all levels • Assumes Sector specific knowledge & project management • ‘empowerment’ vs. ‘mainstreaming’ …along a continuum (Women and Development; Women in Development; Gender and Development, Capabilities Approach etc.)

8. Challenges for Departments? • DWCPWD – Mandate • Accountability – Line functions Vs. mainstreaming as a cross-cutting issue • Coordination • Monitoring and evaluation • Policy and legislative guidelines • DWCPWD – Women, Children & people living with disabilities. 3 Sectors Silo’s? An attempt at integration women, children & People with disabilities;

9. DWCPD: Entry Point – Mainstreaming? The Ministry will be a central co-ordinating point for the advancement and protection of the rights of women, children and persons with disabilities. The Ministry is mandated to co-ordinate compliance with country obligations under international instruments, and to address challenges and concerns regarding social justice and marginalisation of women, children and persons with disabilities.

10. Key Institutional Challenges It is evident that when embarking on a process of Mainstreaming ( be it gender, disability, environment etc.) be cognisant of: • the Department’s own perception and understanding of mandates, roles, functions and priorities, which is a complicating factor in building a unified team and operational framework. • Stakeholders which evolves through a stakeholder needs analysis process on priority issues in the sectors/department; • Provide research and technical-based support to unpack & interpret legislation & policy in the sector/department

11. Key Institutional Challenges • Key issues when considering partnerships & mainstreaming: • Strategic: Clear presence of of a results-based methodology and robust theory of change. • Organisational Structure: Shift away from the silo mentality, identify resources, clarify mandates and draw on support services. • Corporate Management: Need to bring the corporate management systems that can benefit departments and not have them repeat or duplicate systems • Organisational Culture: Staff tend relate to each other on the basis of where they come from. • Legal and Legislative: There is a host of legal and legislative guidelines for the government as a whole to comply with and which impact on vulnerable groups. There are also some gaps in this legalisation. Whilst there is good understanding of which legislation applies and where the gaps are, there is a need to extract from this which aspects the Department will take ownership of and which aspects it will seek to monitor.

12. Collaboration & Partnerships • How to take the Mainstreaming agenda forward and foster partnerships? Program & project implementation; Policy development; capacity development; tools & methodologies – Sphere-scope Education & information dissemination Monitoring and evaluating gender, disability and children’s rights by ensuring that the national compendium of macro-indicators integrate targets vulnerable groups and/or issues.

13. Collaboration • Ensuring that mainstreaming of gender, disability and children’s rights happens at Cabinet, FOSAD, clusters, departments, provincial and local government levels, public funded institutions, private sector and the community at large • Ensure that gender, disability and children’s rights indicators form part of performance agreements and appraisals for directors-generals

14. Thank you