Integrity Action Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) REVIEW OF 2017 ACTION PLAN

Transcription

1

2 Introduction Integrity Action Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) In October 2016 Integrity Action launched their Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Strategy. In order to implement this effectively they simultaneously released a twelve month Action Plan to help ensure that GESI was mainstreamed throughout the organisation This document sets out a review of the GESI Action Plan systematically analysing the individual activities, budget and timeline, with each being marked as either EXCEEDED, MET, PARTIALLY MET or NOT MET depending on how Integrity Action performed in relation to the targets set. Additionally, this document also examines how Integrity Action performed against the objectives laid out in the GESI Strategy. This is the first year Integrity Action have had a GESI action plan, having launched their strategy in late Many of the objectives laid out in the Action Plan were focused on engraining GESI in all of the work that Integrity Action does, and in the work their partners do. The aim was to lay the foundations to ensuring that GESI is mainstreamed in all of their activities through creating tools, and ensuring that everyone has the same base levels of knowledge on the subject. Integrity Action s first year in implementing a GESI Action Plan was extremely successful. They exceeded 53% of the targets that were set, met a further 33%, and partially meet the remaining 14%. This meant that they did not miss any of the activities planned for the first year. The activities which were partially meet, were activities which were worked on, but not completed by Integrity Action by the end of the year. All of these activities will be carried forward into 2017/18. A particular highlight this year was the training that Integrity Action ran and organised throughout the year. Three trainings were held for Integrity Actions staff and members of their partner organisations. This started with an introduction to mainstreaming GESI within projects, followed by a session which explored the notions of equality and equity. Finally, a session was held on how to conduct a GESI analysis. This training structure meant that all the partners first got an introduction into GESI before developing into some practical lessons such as conducting a GESI analysis, these skills can be directly used in all of the projects that the partners will be conducting. As stated above this year has been an inception year for implementing GESI at Integrity Action. Indeed the organisation more broadly has been undergoing a transitional year, conducting an internal restructuring and dedicating time to rethinking through some of the methodology and tools that are used in projects. This has meant that there has been limited community monitoring on the ground during the financial year that is under review in this document. While this is of benefit for organising many of the activities laid out in the Action Plan, such as training for example, it made it hard to measure many of the indicators that were created to monitor Integrity Actions progress against the objectives, outputs and outcomes laid out in the GESI Strategy. Therefore, while laid out in full, many of these indicators do not have a result given against them.

3 1. ACTIVITIES The following activities were planned to enable Integrity Action and their partners to increase social inclusion and gender equality within their organisations and projects, meet their annual objectives and contribute to the overall strategic goal as set in the GESI strategy. Activities were planned to be delivered directly by Integrity Action during the course of AIM RESULT EXPLANATION 1.1 ORGANISATIONAL a) Exploratory research An external support will be acquired to assist Integrity Action to assess the current state of affairs in regards to GESI practices, review strategic indicators which will be used to create a baseline and advise on the development of tools and processes needed to effectively implement the strategy. Integrity Action s current Equal Opportunity Policy will be assessed and updated to reflect the GESI strategy. The updated Equal Opportunity Policy will be available to staff and partners (for reference) from June c) GESI Focal Point A GESI Focal Point will be nominated in each partner organisation (including Integrity Action). Focal points will be selected/nominated by the end of November MET b) Updating the current IA Equal Opportunity Policy PARTIALLY MET MET Integrity Action held an open call for proposals, and reached an agreement to work with GESI consultant Gemma Pinyol Puig. The consultancy resulted in all of the expected targets being met, helping Integrity Action to plan on the development of an M&E system and adjust their indicators. These factors ultimately assisted Integrity Action in creating their GESI strategy, which can be found here: on/integrity-action-gender-equality-and-socialinclusion-strategy-gesi An external consultant was hired by Integrity Action in February of 2017 to review the Human Resources Manual and to update the current Integrity Equal Opportunity Policy. The manual will be published by the end of All of Integrity Action s partner organisations actively engaged in the selection of a GESI Focal Points (GFPs) in November In total, 16 GFPs were selected. GFPs attended trainings and contributed to the Action Learning Working Group.

4 a) Training sessions for IA and partners Two staff members of Integrity Action will take part in a 3-day training on Gender Analysis and Planning. Up to 5 training sessions will be organised by Integrity Action on GESI topics. b) Action Learning Working group A GESI Action Learning Working group will be established, with quarterly meetings via Skype, to discuss and share activities, introduce challenges faced, ask for support and suggestions, share news, learn new approaches. Feedback will be asked from partners and IA staff, which will allow us to evaluate impact. c) Communication Integrity Action and partners will actively engage to share success and lessons learned 1.2 CAPACITY MET EXCEEDED PARTIALLY MET In February 2017, Integrity Action s GESI Manager and GESI Focal Point attended a 3-day training session run by INTRAC titled Gender Analysis and Planning. Integrity Action have held the three following training sessions with CSO partners: Mainstreaming Gender and Social Inclusion, Exploring the concepts of Equity and Equality and How to Conduct a GESI Analysis. Trainings were conducted via a one hour call on Gotomeeting. Feedback from these sessions has been gathered and revealed an increasing understanding of key concepts. In all three of the trainings over 70% of the participants found the training clear and easy to understand. 100% of the participants found the training relevant to their work. Integrity Action have held four Action Learning Working Group calls to date. In these calls partners discussed GESI related issues they have encountered, and together worked towards solutions. The calls also serve as a reflective exercise on the different training sessions delivered, allowing participants to ask any additional follow up questions, share good practices, challenges, as well as ways they have overcome them. Integrity Action have systematically shared GESI sensitive photos, videos and updates on social media throughout the past year. Additionally a GESI section has been added to the monthly Newsletter IA shares with CSO partners. A case study has been published about some fantastic achievements young female monitors accomplished in Palestine, which can be found here. More than 10 news items focusing on people at risk of exclusion have been shared on social medias.

5 a) Data Collection and M&E Tool Partners will be requested to collect GESI disaggregated data for each of Integrity Action s supported project. An M&E tool will be developed to ensure that Integrity Action record all disaggregated data as received by partners. 1.3 OPERATIONAL MET b) Modification of proposal and report template Integrity Action s existing projects will EXCEEDED be modified to take into account the objectives and indicators of this strategy. c) Adopting GESI Sensitive Budgeting Integrity Action will work on adopting Gender Sensitive Budgeting to mainstream GESI into our own organisation and programmes. MET Integrity Action created a series of indicators which are specific to GESI. Questionnaires and reports are to be conducted at the start and end of projects in order to track the changes which have been brought about. In addition, prior to starting any projects Integrity Action conducts a full country analysis, which is GESI sensitive. Integrity Action created an M&E tool in two stages. Firstly a tool was created and used to collect data on previous grants in order to gather baseline information. This was then used and expanded to create a second tool which is used to collect data on their current grants. Due to where Integrity Action are in the project life cycle this tool has not been used yet but will be fully utilised in the coming financial year. Integrity Action have modified their project report and proposal template as planned. Their due diligence process, which partners must fulfil in order to work with Integrity Action, has also been completely redone, with a large emphasis on the partner organisations GESI capabilities. Additionally Integrity Action have created a series of questionnaires to collect pre and post data on GESI indicators as well as systematically conducting GESI Analysis to collect disaggregated data Integrity Action have ensured that in all existing projects, and proposals for new projects, budgetary lines have been put in place for GESI related activities. This includes processes such as making all materials GESI sensitive, ensuring that monitoring activities happen in pairs so that females do not have to travel by themselves, and in some more restrictive environments ensuring that a chaperon is present for young female monitors.

6 1.4 RESOURCES a) Selection of new gender-focused partners We will actively work to build partnerships with organisations representing women, girls and marginalised groups. MET As part of NORAD funded SHINE project, Integrity Action selected the Palestinian Centre for Peace and Democracy (PCPD) to work with in Palestine. PCPD is an independent group working in the West Bank of Palestine ensuring gender equality in democratic processes. They have a strong GESI capacity and many of their programmes exclusively focus on empowering women and other at risk of exclusion from the democratic process. b) Participation to external working groups and events We will take part in external working groups and other events in the sector which can help increase our knowledge. EXCEEDED Integrity Action have regularly attended external events and training sessions. This includes being speakers at a GADN event on Technology Initiatives to Support Women and Girls Rights. c) Inviting experts to deliver training/support to implement GESI strategy We will invite experts/consultant to provide training and support for the implementation of this strategy. d) Mobilising external resources All new fund proposals will have a GESI component factored in. EXCEEDED Integrity Action have engaged several consultants to assist in the development of mainstreaming GESI within the organisation. This includes the original consultant to help start the process, who additionally ran the first training session for Integrity Action s partnership network, a consultant who assisted in ensuring all of their training materials are GESI sensitive and accessible. Finally, Integrity Action are in the process of engaging with a consultant to run a training session on mainstreaming disability in their projects. EXCEEDED Integrity Action have successfully secured external resources for GESI purposes. In the past year all proposals which have been submitted have had a paragraph for GESI. This includes successful bids to NORAD, SIDA, Hewlett and DFID, with four additional bids pending with DFID.

7 2. MEAL and 2018 PLAN Activities implemented under this strategic plan will be monitored by the GESI Manager and GESI Focal Point throughout the year and evaluated in November EXCEEDED The review of last year s action plan took place in October The new action plan will be ready by the end of November 2017 and will be introduced to the team at the beginning of December The new action plan will incorporate lessons learnt and challenges from this year, which will be drawn from a report Integrity Action will write before the end of November.

8 2 TIMELINE Planned timeline: Actual timeline: Item Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Exploratory Research Equal Opportunity Policy GESI Focal Point Selection Training sessions and Action learning Group sessions Communications M&E Tool New proposal and report template GESI sensitive budgeting New partners with GESI focus Events participation Inviting experts Mobilising funds

9 3 BUDGET Item Amount Funds Spent Difference Exploratory Research delivered by external consultant 8,000 NORAD ,000 0 GADN Membership Feb 16 March NORAD GADN Membership April 2017 March SIDA Training of 2 IA staff 1,420 NORAD , Training session developed and delivered by external consultant 700 NORAD Development of Equal Opportunity Policy 240 NORAD Other (comms, events, etc) Mainstreaming GESI in IA Office with motivational photos 1000 NORAD TOTAL 11,956 11,

10 4 RESPONSIBILITIES Integrity Action stated they would nominate a GESI Focal Point to serve as the contact person, help raise awareness and understanding of inclusivity, equality and gender related issues. A GESI Manager would also be appointed to lead on the strategy and action plan implementation. Valentine Lecluse was appointed as GESI Focal Point and Annalisa Renna as a GESI Manager. In addition, other members of staff have been involved in GESI related planning and activities. In addition Valentine Lecluse was made a chairperson at Gender And Development Network for the Programmes Working Group. This is a two year role which will allow Integrity Action to gather a wide range of learning from this group, as well as increase their prominence within the sector as being a leader on GESI related activities.

11 5 REVIEW OF GESI STRATEGY Impact level Indicators Result Explanation Women, girls and people at risk of exclusion are enabled to demand access to information and claim their rights # and % of engaged people at risk of exclusion who report greater understanding of issues of integrity and accountability # and % of engaged people at risk of exclusion who report knowing who the duty bearer of a specific right is and the role the duty bearer should play Power holders at community level have enhanced relationships with and are more responsive to the demands of people at risk of exclusion Outcomes IA and partners have mainstreamed GESI in their organisations and programmes # and % of engaged people at risk of exclusion who report knowing how to raise an issue of concern with the authorities # and % of engaged people at risk of exclusion reporting improved access to services and infrastructure as a result of community monitoring # and % of engaged people at risk of exclusion stating they benefited from constructive engagement with power holders # and % of engaged power holders with greater understanding of the issues affecting people at risk of exclusion # and % of engaged power holders stating they benefited from constructive engagement with marginalised people Indicators # and % of CSO partners with a GESI strategy in place # and % of IA supported projects which are GESI sensitive 6/7 partners 86% 3 projects 100% All of IA s current partners have a GESI or Gender strategy in place, with the exception of CERC from the DRC that have adopted IA s own GESI strategy IA has supported 3 projects this year, all of which are GESI sensitive; NORAD funded SHINE project, Swiss Solidarity funded Citizen Monitoring of Swiss Solidarity Funded Projects in Sindhupalchock project and the Asian Development Bank funded project Strengthening Government and Civil Society Cooperation in Open Government Partnership

12 to Improve Public Services. For all of these projects the proposals were written to be GESI sensitive, with budget and indicators specifically allocated and developed to ensure each project contributed to Integrity Action s GESI goals. Outcomes (cont.) Women, girls and people at risk of exclusion are engaged in monitoring activities within their communities Indicators (cont.) # and % of people at risk of exclusion actively targeted to be trained as monitors # and % of monitors from categories at risk of exclusions selected and trained as compared to the whole monitoring group # and % of people at risk of exclusion volunteering to become a monitor However, Integrity Action have set specific targets per project in regards to number of people targeted to be monitors. For example, in the NORAD project the target set is that 50% of monitors will be girls and 15% will be from groups at risk of exclusion. 1 In Nepal, 1 person living in a marginalised community volunteered to become a community monitor. # and % of trained people at risk of exclusion who are still monitors 6 months in the project # and % of monitors from categories at risk of exclusion who report meaningful participation in decision-making bodies at community level IA have engaged with an external consultant to develop questionnaires to collect this information. This will be utilised in 2018 Women, girls and people at risk of exclusion are empowered to be monitors and confidently voice their communities concerns and needs, and influence decisions # of people at risk of exclusion reporting change in attitude at community level towards them # and % of monitors from categories at risk of exclusion reporting a change in their level of self-awareness, self-worth and confidence # and % of monitors from categories at risk of exclusion stating that

13 during the project they took a particular action to claim a right above and beyond the standard approach # and % of monitors from categories at risk of exclusion stating that they are likely to take action in the future on integrity issues that affect them or their community Outputs Organisational Capacity Indicators # and % of CSOs partners who have GFP in place and evidence that they have a meaningful role in the organisation as GESI advisors # and % of CSO partners who have included GESI aspects in their KPIs, ToC, values, staff performance appraisal, trustee manual, induction manual, job descriptions, partners selection and/or due diligence # of CSO partners where people at risk of exclusion are in Board # and % of CSO partners who have Equal Opportunity and Diversity policies in place and where there is evidence that they are implementing them # of CSO partners where people at risk of exclusion are in active leadership roles Improved IA and CSO staff knowledge and attitudes towards GESI 7/7 partners 100% 7/7 partners 100% 71.4% increase in GFPs who are confident to talk to team members about GESI issues 100% of IA s 7 partner organisations have a GFP in place who attend trainings and share this learning with their organisation As part of IA s Due Diligence process in their selection of partners this question is asked. 100% of IA s 7 partner organisations include GESI related aspects in their organisational documentation IA conducted pre and post self-evaluation questionnaires for each of their partner organisations GFPs. This assessed the level of confidence that the GFP felt about issues surrounding GESI and in being responsible for this within their organisation. This showed that there was a 71.4% increase in the number of GFPs who felt confident enough to share with their team members how to conduct a GESI analysis. An additional 71.4% of people said they would be confident to talk to members of their team about GESI issues more broadly, whereas this was 0% before

14 Resources Outputs (cont.) Operational # IA and CSO partner staff that can describe specific changes they have made to their practice to make it GESI sensitive # and description of cases where IA and CSO partners staff have applied learning back in the workplace # and % of supported CSOs reporting improvements in their confidence and capacity to deliver GESI sensitive projects # of successful bids which include budget for GESI activities # and description of external human resources employed to advance GESI # of partnerships with other NGO/CSOs to advance GESI Inputs # and description of community activities addressing stigma and discrimination Increase in the capacity of CSO partners to engage with and influence power holders on issues affecting people at risk of exclusion # and description of community activities targeting people at risk of exclusion # and % of proposals and projects demonstrating GESI analysis and strategies to increase inclusion and equality # and % of CSOs who incorporate a GESI focus into each stage of the project cycle 8 8 organisations are now systematically conducting GESI Analysis at the beginning of each project, developing GESI sensitive budgets and collecting GESI sensitive data. On top of this, 8 organisations are regularly attending GESI trainings and conducting GESI sensitive beneficiary surveys. 8 8 organisations have applied what they learnt during trainings in the workplace such as: - developing GESI strategy - conducting GESI analysis - involving people living with disabilities in projects - delivering trainings to monitors accessible and inclusive 7/7 partners 100% IA held an annual workshop with all of their partner organisations. At this workshop during an engaging session on GESI all partners reported on their improved confidence in delivering GESI sensitive projects 3 3 NORAD + SIDA + ADB. 1 1 consultant was engaged with to help create IA s GESI strategy, to help make IA s materials GESI sensitive and to deliver training on disability awareness. 1 IA partnered with the Palestinian Centre for Peace and Democracy (PCPD) who specialise in promoting women s rights in Palestine s democratic process. 7/7 partners 100% 3/3 projects and proposals 100% IA included interpersonal skills sessions and strategies to influence power holders in their training. This training was provided to all of IA s CSO partners and pre and post evaluation surveys showed an increasing understanding and knowledge of CSO partners in strategies to influence power holders. 100% of proposals received by IA demonstrated strategies to increase inclusion and equality.

15 # people at risk of exclusion included as respondents in the beneficiary questionnaire used by monitors # and description of techniques used by CSO partners to increase the leadership potential of people at risk of exclusion # and description of projects monitored that reflect the priorities of people at risk of exclusion # and description of techniques used by CSO partners to target people at risk of exclusion to become and remain monitors A tool to gather this information is being created and will be ready to use in January Conclusion This has been a very successful year for Integrity Action in the implementation of their GESI Plan of Action. Within one year, Integrity Action have mainstreamed Gender Equality and Social Inclusion at the organisational and at the operational level, and supported CSO partners in being better equipped with tool and knowledge to implement GESI sensitive projects. We would like to thank all of our donors, and in particular NORAD, for supporting us in ensuring that women, girls and people at risk of social exclusion are empowered to act with, and demand, Integrity.

16