Saarc gender database and the way ahead
THE history of collection and accessibility of population data by gender dates back to 1881, when the first regular decennial population census was conducted in the South Asian sub-continent. The wishes and tasks of a man and a woman may not be the same or may be the same, so it is very important to identify sex-disaggregated data where every data is cross-classified by sex, presenting information separately for women and men, boys and girls.
Without sex-disaggregated data it will be difficult for a country to identify the real and potential contributions of both sexes separately and, thus, it could obstruct the formulation of effective policies.
After a great deal of discussion and planning, a widespread gender database with sex-disaggregated data and gender-sensitive data analysis is about to become a reality in South Asia.
The Islamabad Declaration of the Fifth South Asia Ministerial Conference, held in Islamabad in May 2005, called for the establishment of a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) Gender Database at the Saarc Secretariat -- a database that would address the complete range of challenges based on sex-disaggregated data.
The Saarc gender database is meant to be a tool to share best practices from across the region on gender equality. Now the question is, can the South Asian governments identify appropriate indicators to prepare the gender database, and can the implementation of policy advocacy on gender equity be performed on a regular basis?
The general approach of the indicators should be as simple as possible so that users unfamiliar with statistics could easily judge the level of equality between women and men.
United Nations Fund for Women (UNIFEM) has been involved in consultation with all seven Saarc member countries, and supported an expert group meeting in Kathmandu in December 2005 to discuss the modalities of setting up the database.
A core committee to administer the project was established, and a prototype is currently under development. At present, all Saarc countries except Afghanistan have identified a national agency, a focal point, and set up a national committee to take forward the initiative in their respective countries.
The joint secretary of the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, is the national focal point in Bangladesh. The senior assistant secretary of the ministry said that the UNIFEM program office in Bangladesh was sponsoring the preparatory work on Bangladesh's part. A group of technical consultants from UNIFEM regional office is also overseeing the preparation process.
The national committee of Bangladesh is headed by the advisor for the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs, and is comprised of 10 members. In Bangladesh, a national research organisation dealing with the formulation of gender database is yet to be formed. The present aim of the project in Bangladesh is to accomplish national adaptation of the draft regional indicators for the gender database.
The Saarc gender database was launched on January 17 as a collective initiative of the seven member countries. It will not only consider statistical database based on traditional indicators but also include both tangible and intangible primary indicators identified after careful study.
Based on regional practices, new indicators also need to be identified according to the mandate of the Bhutan Forward Moving Strategy, 2003. This database will not only disseminate gender data but also will play a much greater role in policy advocacy on vital gender issues.
Data has to be tabulated, analysed, addressed for policy advocacy, and be monitored on a continuous basis. Analysis of the datasets of the proposed gender database should also be able to produce a comprehensive report on the Progress of South Asian Women, tabulation of existing empowerment strategies along with their impact for determination of future strategies more effectively, and analysis of good practices to empower women and end gender discrimination.
In the website of the Saarc secretariat, after the launching of the Saarc gender database, an application form has been uploaded for the selection process of Saarc chair, Fellowship and scholarship programs. In that application form there is space to write father's name but not for mother's name.
As the database has been launched, it is assumed that Saarc has an ambition to work for gender equity in the region, but it has become farcical because of the deliberate omission of the option for mother's name.
People are hopeful that a fair Saarc gender database will be based on appropriate gender indicators, and research and advocacy on gender sensitive issues will be conducted.
So, planning should pursue implementation. Keeping the option of father's name only does not reflect gender equity at the regional organisational level.
It is known that the Bangladesh government has made it compulsory to mention mother's name in any application form at the national level. That is why, at the secretariat meeting of Saarc regarding formatting the application form, Bangladesh should have raised its voice for mentioning mother's name in the application form before giving consent. People should not be given any chance to raise questions about gender equity -- at least at the organisational level.
Some people may think that it is not an important issue to be concerned about, but women also want recognition. Persons involved with the process of formatting the application form were all male.
So, there is a possibility that they followed the stereotypical structure by incorporating father's name only, or maybe they did not even realise the necessity of recognising the applicants with their mothers' names.
Everyone knows the active role of mothers in bringing up their children, so if social identifications need to be provided then in all types of forms mother's name must be incorporated along with that of the father.
Recognition is an important phenomenon. A mother of a scholar, even if she is a housewife, definitely wants recognition with her child, but it seems that some men think that mothers do not have any expectations of their own.
In the old days, women were not much educated, but day-by-day they are becoming educated, which helps them to express their own feelings and needs as dignified human beings. Moreover, education helps women to gain confidence and awareness.
The developed countries do not bother mentioning the names of fathers/mothers in National ID or in most application forms because people are considered as adults after eighteen years of age, and they usually give priority to their own biological identity rather than the social one.
On the contrary, in South Asian culture a person's identity is inextricably linked with that of his/her parents'.
Some significant layouts of gender databases of developed countries can be followed in South Asia. Gender focal points should be appointed soon in all central government ministries and committees of Saarc members. Following the Beijing Platform for Action (PFA), a "Women in Development" (WID) focal points network, headed by a national focal point, has to be established.
Even though their mandate is largely understood, focal points may lack formal terms of reference (TORs) for their task, which links their activities with the National Policy for the Advancement of Women, the National Action Programme (NAP) as well as the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) in this region.
As it is an initiative of developing countries the members may not be provided with sufficient resources for implementation. Furthermore, regular and proper training of focal points is the key to ensuring that the network will be able to contribute efficiently to improve gender mainstreaming at the national and regional levels, and help statisticians identify the most important data gaps in the gender statistics field.
Afghanistan has become a member of Saarc, so the structural process to initiate its national gender database needs to start as early as possible, otherwise Saarc as a whole will not be able to succeed in constructing a suitable gender database.
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