Gender budgeting

Introduction

The idea that all individuals are entitled to enjoy their rights under the law with no discrimination based on sex is now universally acknowledged in international treaties such as the European Convention on Human Rights.

However, despite significant progress towards equality between women and men the reality in Europe is very different, since in both the legal and political domains inequalities remain. In recent years a number of steps have been taken to try to end this discrimination - sometimes unintentional – and have been closely debated. Gender budgeting is one practical example.

The current economic crisis makes the search for appropriate policies more urgent than ever. Budgets reflect the choices made by governments. They are not neutral. They have an impact on equality between the sexes. Gender budgeting does not mean that there have to be separate budgets according to sex, or that more must be spent on women. It does though allow for better use of available resources, which is a major advantage at a time of declining economic growth.

In May 2009, the Council of Europe published its Handbook on the Implementation of Gender Budgeting, which is designed to clarify this notion and offer guidelines to decision makers, experts and others involved in this field. Sheila Quinn, a researcher in the field of integrating gender into the budget-making process, was commissioned by the Council of Europe to produce this handbook.

Questions and answers

What is gender budgeting?

It involves an analysis of budgetary policies that assesses the real impact of income and expenditure on women and men and makes sure that programmes that are implemented do not accentuate social and economic inequalities between the sexes.

It implies a gender-based assessment of budgets, incorporating a gender perspective at all levels of the budgetary process and restructuring revenues and expenditures in order to promote gender equality.

What are the handbook's objectives?

The handbook shows how this process can work in practice. It identifies all those concerned, possible approaches – for example whether it should cover the entire budget or specific items – and the different levels of government involved: national, regional and local.

It also looks at the various responsibilities of decision makers at different stages of the expenditure cycle and the roles of civil society and employers and trade unions.

The handbook also considers what steps need to be taken before gender budgeting can be introduced, particularly certain major changes in attitude and everyday practice.

What are the pre-conditions for gender budgeting?

Public authorities first have to:

- carry out a preventive and transversal analysis when drawing up the government's general policy guidelines;

- adapt everyday practice to ensure that it always includes a gender perspective;

- monitor progress at all levels of the process;

- make gender analysis training an integral part of general public service training programmes;

- develop appropriate methods and tools such as tables and graphs in which individuals are broken down by sex to illustrate the specific situations of men and women, thus providing a better basis for decision making;

- familiarise all those concerned and the general public with the concept.

Why is this important?

Before a situation can be changed it has to be thoroughly understood. Corrective strategies are usually not sufficient. It is therefore preferable to adopt a preventive approach and identify indirect discrimination at the earliest possible stage.

Gender budgeting has the advantage of combining two objectives that are mutually compatible: more equality between the sexes and greater economic development.

By highlighting how and to what extent women and men have access to available resources, gender budgeting can help to reduce economic inequalities. It can encourage women and men to enter and remain in the labour market and provide a high standard of service to all citizens.

Numerous studies have shown that the more egalitarian a country, the more effective is its economy. Gender budgeting is therefore an investment for future generations.

Are there any positive examples of the impact of gender budgeting?

The following two examples illustrate gender budgeting in two different situations:

- A study carried out in Sweden in 2004 on the distribution of public funding in the health sector showed that women suffering from skin disorders received fewer resources in terms of treatment than men with the same conditions. Women were also apparently more likely than men to call an ambulance but more men were transported to hospital. These findings have persuaded the government to take corrective measures.

- The City of Berlin's public library budget was analysed from a gender perspective. This showed that girls were the most frequent users. A number of more attractive leisure activities for boys were then introduced.

Council of Europe website on equality between women and men

Contact

Jaime Rodríguez, Press officer

Tel. +33 (0) 689 99 50 42

email: [email protected]

Updated: May 2009