Swedish foundation launches report on gender equality, role of organisations

AMMAN — The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation launched its report on “Maintaining a Role for Women’s Organisations in International Development Finance” at an event held in Amman on Tuesday.

According to a statement issued by the Swedish foundation, the report used a qualitative and investigative approach and conducted interviews with key informants from women’s organisations, researchers, journalists in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia and country offices of international financial institutions (IFIs), as well as international experts.

The report was funded by the Swedish Government and provides an overview of selected IFI policies that target gender equality, with a particular focus on Jordan, Tunisia and Egypt, the statement said.

The report investigates how IFIs interact with civil society and specifically women´s rights organisations, summarises how they contribute to gender equality and gives concrete recommendations for involved stakeholders, said the statement, adding that the report focused on the EBRD, the EIB IFC, the IMF and the World Bank.

The launch event for the report brought together representatives of both national and international stakeholders, including Jordanian Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), IFIs and international partners, the statement said.

The report shows that although IFIs have contributed to creating momentum regarding certain gender issues in the region, such as violence against women, by investing in projects and implementing efficient advocacy work, their engagement with CSOs in consultation is limited, selective and ineffective, according to the statement.

The report links the limited engagement from CSOs to the limited understanding by local (women’s) organisations about IFIs role and their policies as well as the lack of engagement experience with IFIs, the statement said, adding that the report also reveals a lack of research and disaggregated data on gender issues produced by IFIs and a lack of transparency on this data, especially regarding national IFI-led gender strategies.

The launch event included a panel discussion between representatives from CSOs and representatives from World Bank as well as European Investment Bank to discuss the main findings and recommendations of the report as well as how to ensure stronger engagement between CSOs and IFIs to promote gender equality and women’s rights in Jordan, according to the statement.

Rebecca Sonntag, deputy regional manager MENA for Kvinna till Kvinna, was quoted in the statement as saying that international macro-financial institutions have a great impact on economic priorities and other policies in the MENA region, adding: “However, with power and money comes responsibility.”

“We hope that this report will act as a starting point for strengthened dialogue and engagement between CSOs and IFIs,” she said.

The Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation is part of the global women’s movement and advocates for women’s full and effective participation in peace processes and in the development of their societies, currently supporting more than 110 local partner organisations, of which more than 50 are in the region, the statement concluded.