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GGKP Webinar moderated by GGGI: Making Gender-Responsive Green Growth Happen

On December 11, 2019, the Green Growth Knowledge Platform (GGKP) and the Donor Committee for Enterprise Development (DCED) held a webinar on gender-responsive green growth.

Access a recording of the webinar here: https://www.greengrowthknowledge.org/learning/ggkp-webinar-making-gender-responsive-green-growth-happen

Ingvild Solvang from the Investment Services and Policy Solutions Division of GGGI moderated the session. Speakers included Katherine Miles, Advisor to the DCED, Justyna Grosjean, Project Manager for GIZ Vietnam, Elena Ruiz Abril, Policy Advisor for women’s economic empowerment of UNWOMEN in West and Central Africa.

The discussion focused on practical guidance and case studies on how to effectively incorporate gender-responsive objectives into green growth planning and implementation. Solvang introduced the session by outlining how men and women are both important to the green growth transformation as entrepreneurs, consumers, community leaders, investors, stewards of natural capital and agents of change. At the same time, gender roles rooted in cultural, social and political structures, make women and men experience the impacts of climate change and environmental degradation differently. They are also differently impacted by our efforts to bring about green transformation.

“Globally, women are underrepresented politically and have fewer economic opportunities. Yet, mounting evidence shows that gender equality is an accelerator of economic growth, environmental management and achievement of sustainable development overall,” Solvang said. “Organizations aiming to tackle economic and environmental challenges, like GGGI, also need to invest to ensure that social inclusion is embedded in its institutional results management framework.” Solvang showed how GGGI has incorporated the social dimensions of gender and social inclusion into its metric for sustainable development, for example in GGGI’s Green Growth Potential Assessment and Green Growth Index, supporting policy makers through multi-criteria analysis and recommendations.

Katherine Smiles has worked with DCED on mapping gender-responsive green growth initiatives across different institutions in order to develop practical guidance sheets on gender-responsive. “The aim of the guidance sheets is to support development practitioners integrate gender into green growth programming through policy, green finance and program approaches,” Miles said. “There is no such thing as ‘gender-neutral’ green growth process and approach”. Miles underlined the importance of research and technical support to policy makers to understand the gendered impacts of green strategies, to ensure participation of women in the process, and to use sex disaggregated data in green growth M&E systems.

In Vietnam, GIZ has supported the government Green Growth Strategy ensuring its alignment with gender related SDGs. Gender impact review of policies like the Law on Biodiversity revealed the different ways men and women were impacted by the policy. “We found that although women play an important role in the household and in management of natural capital, women participated in public processes mainly as the deputies of their husbands,” Justyne Grosjean said. “Women also has lesser land tenure security, as land is more commonly in the names of men, which results in lesser autonomy and income security. This shows the importance of sex-disaggregated data and analysis”, Grosjean concluded.

Elena Ruiz Abryl presented a UNWomen case study on women and climate resilient agriculture in West and Central Africa, and work to improve women’s position in value chains through the establishment of a Buy from Women Platform and Portal. “Addressing women’s access to land, information and skills, finance and markets are essential and need to be approaches holistically in order to empower women, particularly the poorest.” Ruiz Abryl said. The work of UNWomen has resulted in a better policy environment for women’s livelihood through improved land policies. Focus has also been on women’s skills development in climate smart agriculture and access to technology. “The challenges ahead are how we can tackle the intersectionality of policies of climate change, conflict and security issues, and ensure that we leave no one behind.”

The Webinar was attended by more than 100 participants from around the world, and a recording is available online: https://www.greengrowthknowledge.org/learning/ggkp-webinar-making-gender-responsive-green-growth-happen.