Page 6 - GESI Framework

Gender Equality and social inclusion framework

CIWA’s Gender Equality and

Social Inclusion Framework

1. Introduction: CIWA and Gender The strategy seeks to:

Established in 2010, the Cooperation in International
Waters in Africa (CIWA) supports riparian governments Build upon the lessons learned to enhance recognition
to strengthen cooperative management and of gender and social inclusion issues within the context
development of water resources in sub-Saharan Africa of transboundary water management;
to achieve sustainable climate-resilient growth and
poverty reduction. As a Multi-Donor Partnership of the
World Bank, CIWA has made Gender Equality and Provide the strategic focus required to scale up gender
Social Inclusion (GESI) is a priority. equality and social inclusion across the different levels
At the programmatic or institutional level, efforts are of CIWA’s work;
focused on gender and governance to create an enabling
environment for female decision makers to thrive,
identifying opportunities for women to participate in Articulate key action points for the CIWA program to
leadership positions at the institutional level and advance gender equality and social inclusion within
providing direct support to CIWA’s partners to enable the transboundary water context; and
them to mainstream gender and social inclusion into their
work. At the project level, CIWA follows the project
preparation procedures and guidelines set out by the
World Bank to consider gender equality and social Reinforce the World Bank Group’s own commitment
inclusion throughout the project cycle. to gender and social inclusion as articulated in its
Gender Strategy (FY2016-2023).
This Gender and Social Inclusion Framework has been
prepared as a living document to guide CIWA’s operations
into the future to be adapted as new approaches and 3. Concepts of Gender and Social
lessons learned related to gender and social inclusion
emerge within the transboundary landscape. Inclusion
As part of CIWA’s commitment to ensure that gender and Gender is:
social inclusion are represented in all of its work, the GESI
Framework puts forward an overarching strategic
approach aligned to the concept of transformation that About women, girls, men and boys including the
facilitates harmonized and integrated approaches to different things that women and men think and
gender and social inclusion in all of CIWA’s work. do, and the relationships between them.
By promoting a holistic and integrated focus on women, Social Inclusion assumes that men and women
men, and other vulnerable populations, the Framework also are not homogeneous. Instead, they are stratified
seeks to ensure that CIWA’s investments in transboundary
water management result in project outcomes that benefit by age, ethnic origin, beliefs and practices, socio-
all women and men as well as girls and boys associated cultural situations, and other vulnerabilities.
with the project. Targeted to CIWA staff, country partners, Social inclusion, therefore, involves the process
and development partners, the strategic Framework of improving the ability, opportunity, and dignity
highlights key action points related to genderand social of people who are disadvantaged on the basis of
inclusionand transboundary water management that build their identity to take part in society.
upon analysis of lessons learned.
By making this distinction, it is necessary to
The GESI Framework is aligned to the World Bank target the specific disadvantage of either women
Group’s commitment to addressing GESI as part of its or men and to establish separate spaces for men
overall efforts to achieve the World Bank’s goal to and women while ensuring that strategies for
create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. It also gender equality engage all key stakeholders so
takes into account other efforts within the Bank and
through other organizations to promote gender and that the broader dimensions of social inclusion
social inclusion. and vulnerability are adequately captured.
2. Objective of the Framework Gender equality is about changing the norms and
expectations about female and male roles and
The objective of the CIWA GESI Framework is to ultimately changing power relations by fostering
mainstream gender and social inclusion considerations into a more balanced distribution of power within
CIWA’s work with the aim of catalyzing transformative governments, companies, formal and informal
change to achieve sustainable gender equality and inclusion institutions and households.¹
in water resource management and development.

¹ World Bank Group Gender Strategy (2016-2023).
03