Accelerating gender-responsive implementation

The systematic monitoring of gender equality outcomes, policies and processes at the national, regional and global levels can contribute to catalysing action, translating global commitments into results and strengthening accountability for actions or omissions by different stakeholders. The report highlights three key strategies for keeping gender equality front and centre during implementation, follow-up and review and provides concrete recommendations. 

Improving gender data, statistics and analysis  

Despite increasing attention to gender statistics in recent decades, the report identifies pressing challenges that stand in the way of systematic, gender-responsive monitoring. These include the 

uneven coverage of gender indicators across goals and targets; the absence of internationally agreed standards for data collection; and the uneven availability of gender statistics across countries and over time. To ensure the effective monitoring of progress for women and girls across all goals and targets, the report recommends to:

 ● Support the inclusion of gender-specific indicators across all 17 SDGs by 2020. 

 ● Work towards the regular collection of data for gender-specific indicators, ensuring quality and comparability. 

 ● Develop global, regional and national strategies for identifying groups that are being left behind. 

 ● Promote and adhere to quality benchmarks, human rights standards and the fundamental principles of official statistics.

 ● Accelerate the development of global standards for gender-specific Tier III indicators. 

 ● Strengthen commitment at the highest political level to an open, inclusive, transparent and gender-sensitive SDG monitoring process. 

Prioritizing gender-responsive investments, policies and programmes

Delivering on the gender equality commitments of the 2030 Agenda requires mobilizing and allocating sufficient resources for policies and programmes that contribute to their achievement. As countries roll out their national implementation strategies, it is paramount that investments in these and other strategic areas are prioritized. It is also important that policies and programmes are aligned with the principles of the 2030 Agenda, including human rights principles such as equality, nondiscrimination and universality. This report provides concrete examples of how this can be done, focusing on eliminating all forms of violence against women and girls (Chapter 5) and addressing unpaid care and domestic work (Chapter 6). 

Overall, turning gender equality promises into progress will require action to:

 ● Develop equitable and progressive domestic resource mobilization strategies.

 ● Monitor budget allocations for gender equality policies and programmes. 

 ● Create an enabling global environment for domestic resource mobilization by promoting solidarity and cooperation between countries of all income levels. 

 ● Align policies and programmes with the principles of the 2030 Agenda. 

 ● Scale up financial support for women’s organizations to engage in policy advocacy.

 ● Define clear terms of engagement and criteria for public–private partnerships. 

 ● Address multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination through policies and programmes.

 ● Promote meaningful participation and accountability in the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of all policies and programmes.

Strengthening accountability through genderresponsive processes and institutions 

Gender-responsive processes and institutions are critical to turn the gender equality promises of the 2030 Agenda into action and to ensure that progress is monitored in a transparent and accountable way. States have committed to follow-up and review processes that are open, inclusive, participatory and transparent, as well as people-centred, gendersensitive, respectful of human rights and focused on those who are furthest behind.10 To strengthen accountability for gender equality commitments at the global, regional and local levels, the report recommends to:

 ● Localize global gender equality commitments by integrating them into national development plans and related policies, legislation and frameworks. 

 ● Ensure systematic monitoring of and reporting on gender equality commitments.

 ● Support women’s organizations and other civil society actors to monitor progress and hold governments to account for gender equality commitments.

 ● Use voluntary national reviews (VNRs) for the High-level Political Forum (HLPF) to create a shared vision of progress in gender equality and challenges that stand in the way.

 ● Strengthen the HLPF as a platform for peer review and meaningful dialogue.

SDG-report-Gender-equality-in-the-2030-Agenda-for-Sustainable-Development-2018-en.pdf