Page 18 - GESI Framework

Gender Equality and social inclusion framework

A woman who makes honey from her beehives, for
example, can sell the product in the local market and
generate income. “This person can then keep her clinic
appointment to obtain life-saving medicine because
now she can afford transportation to the clinic,”
Namusoke says.
“We work under the principle that the Sustainable
Development Goals are integrated—they recognize that
action in one area will affect outcomes in others, and
that development must balance social, economic, and
environmental sustainability.”

For example, she says, “if you have food in the
compound that was grown using sustainable principles,
you can achieve the climate aspect of it and the food
security aspect of it, too.”

“The innovation is designed to
strike a balance between
therapeutic and profitable goals,
which are the two key pillars of
our income-generating project,”
she says. “Community members
are engaged as waste collectors,
project staff, [and] in marketing
and sales, and are assisted to
start project-related businesses
in their homes and communities.

“This allows them to occupy their time, earn a living, learn
skills, and also help with climate and environmental
protection efforts,” she says.

Her community, like many throughout Africa, is ill-
equipped to cope with climate shocks.

“When it rains, sometimes it floods, and then drought
may occur,” she says. “We don’t have the capacity or
resources to irrigate the fields,” which leaves residents
vulnerable to variable and unpredictable rainfall.

At the CIWA-supported training, Namusoke learned
that each community is required to have a water Asia Namusoke on her farm in Kampala, Uganda. ©PINA
management committee.

She met with village leaders and convinced them to
form such a committee, and it is now educating
residents to stop throwing garbage into drainage
systems and to remove dirty bottles and other waste
from water points to prevent contamination. The “There is so much to learn,”
committee has also placed garbage collection bins Namusoke says. “Then you can
throughout the community and is encouraging people to
recycle. really transform your community.”
She adds, “Climate change
Namusoke hopes one day to establish regional climate
change training centers. resilience begins at home.”

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