U.S. Agency for International Development Women in Development

1. U.S. Agency for International DevelopmentWomen in Development Kristin Meyer Mayra D. Aviles

2. Presentation Overview • Team Introduction • USAID Background • Introduction to WID • Gender Initiatives • Case Studies: Europe, Central America, South America • Open Discussion

3. Team Introduction • Kristin Meyer • Gender & Health Intervention Specialist • Europe & Eurasia • Senior USAID WID Consultant • Mayra Daniela • Gender Analysis Expert • South American Focus • Senior USAID WID Consultant

4. USAID Background • 1950 Act for International Development • Created in 1961 • U.S. Foreign Assistance Act

5. USAID Program Focus • Early Programs: • Fight Communism & Poverty • Capital-Intensive • Centralized Programming • 1980s-90s: • New Democracies & Market Economies • Sustainable Development • Capacity for Quality of Life

6. USAID Program Focus • 2000s: • Joint Strategy with Department of State • Millennium Challenge Account • Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief

7. USAID Organization • Administrator Randall Tobias • Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief • Deputy Administrator James Kunder • Save the Children Federation

8. USAID Organization • HQ in Washington, DC • Four Global Regions • Country-level Activities • Three Functional Bureaus • Worldwide Programs • Three HQ Bureaus • Management, Legislative, Coordination

9. USAID Organization • Missions in ~100 Countries • Collaborates • +3500 U.S. Companies • +300 Private Voluntary Organizations

10. USAID Organization • 2,227 Direct Hire • 1132 in DC • 1095 Foreign Service Officers • 4,966 Foreign Nationals • 624 Service Contractors (80% Overseas) • 300 Other Agency, Univ, Nonprofit

11. Employee Geographic Scope

12. Development Mission • Revised in 2004 • Five Goals • Transformational Development • Fragile States • Geostrategic Interests • Transnational Problems • Humanitarian Relief • Development Assistance: $19.7b in 2004

13. Development Commitment

14. Women in Development • Establishment of USAID’s WID Office :1974 for ensuring women participation and benefit equally from development assistance programs. • WID Office initiative→ Percy Amendment • WID approach: integrating gender by designing programs that take into account the participation of both women and men to guarantee effectiveness.

15. WID Organization and Budget • WID Office Position within USAID Organization: USAID→ three headquarter bureaus. Bureau for Program and Policy Coordination →WID Administrator: Douglas Menarchick • WID Office budget: FY2007 = $7.8million out of a total program assistance of $139m

16. WID Office Technical Assistance • WID Office → base of technical leadership and expertise on gender issues and development providing: -Technical leadership on gender-related issues within the agency and beyond -Support to field missions -Identification of new and emerging gender issues and development of multi-disciplinary approaches -Proactive actions creating a greater responsibility for and the institutionalization of gender considerations throughout the Agency.

17. WID Office Activities • WID Office supports activities in: 1- Gender integration 2- Women and economic growth 3- Gender equality in education 4- Women’s legal rights 5- Trafficking persons

18. 1- Gender Integration: • Women in Development Indefinite Quantity Contract • WID IQC support services • 5 year IQC mechanism→ Task Order (TO) mechanism • All USAID units eligible • Current WID IQC activities: Short-Term Technical Assistance and Training (STTA) and Investing in Women in Development (IWID) Fellows Program

19. 2- Women and Economic Growth • The WID Office key economic growth activities: -promoting full participation of women and men in economic development -greater understanding gender-based constraints to women’s participation in economic activities -trade, IT (information technology), agriculture, and labor. • Current Activities: Promoting Gender Issues in USAID Trade-related Economic Growth Activities

20. 3- Gender Equality in Education • Objective: - To strengthen capacity of Agency to set up gender-equitable practices and policies in USAID-funded basic education activities improving children's (*girls) basic education - To address impact that gender has on educational quality • Current Activities: Safe Schools Program and EQUATE: Achieving Equality in Education

21. 4- Women’s Legal Rights • WID Office approach to women’s legal rights includes: - educating on women’s legal, economic, and political rights - strengthening organizations and capacitating institutions→ gender-equitable legislation and practice • Current Activities: Women’s Legal Rights Initiative. - Guatemala, Albania and Southern Africa, Benin, and Madagascar

22. USAID’s Successes in WID • Over 40 requests for gender assessments, strategies review and trainings. 14 country gender assessments completed. • 15 country strategies reviewed and gender training provided to all missions in Africa.

23. Ukraine Anti-Trafficking Project • Economic & Age Discrimination • Empowerment Strategy • Entrepreneurial & Computer Training • Trafficking Awareness & Support Services • Hotlines, Crisis Intervention

24. Project Analysis Over 26,000 Women Trained • Participants: • 13-20% employed • 10% pursuing education • 29% created businesses • 151 business loans • Improvement: • Prioritize High-risk Regions • Target Resources

25. Central America Economic Opportunities • Small Grants Program • Support Activities • Work Opportunities, Conditions & Rights • Strengthen Organizations & Visibility • Legal Action • Training & Empowerment

26. Project Analysis 11 Projects Funded • Documentation • Leadership Training • Awareness Workshops: • Guatemala: 700 Union Women • Legal Assistance • Guatemala: 122 cases, 38 amendments

27. WIDTECH and Commodity Chain Analysis of Forest Products in Nicaragua • WIDTECH • Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve (LANR) • Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) • Gender and NTFP in LANR • Focus: gender roles household and NTFP market -roles influence on conservation -NTFP significance household income and forest conservation -NTFP potential of environmental sustainability

28. Findings • Both men and women active in chain of production • Men and women separate but equal stakeholders • Considering women’s concerns → approach to conservation and development + equitable and efficient.

29. Economic Opportunities and Labor Conditions for Women: Perspectives From Latin America • 2000- 16 month small grants programs • NGO Small Grants Program: Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador and Peru • Purpose: support income generating activities that expand on products or markets to existing effective project.

30. Results • Access resources and knowledge→ women’s economic opportunities expanded • women and men participation changes in different productive activities of project • Facilitating access to technical knowledge→ Participating women’s self-esteem ↑

31. Women in Development • USAID: Progressive Strategies • Commitment to Equality • Growing Investment in Development • Advocate for Global Change