Feminization of Poverty research Why it matters to Civil Society including Oxfam GB

THE GREATEST OF EVILS AND THE WORST OF CRIME ITS POVERTY GEORGE BERNARD SHAW
Alice Banze Regional Gender Justice Coordinator Southern Africa Region

Oxfam is committed to gender equality and putting womens rights at the heart of everything it does in humanitarian and development work.

Working with others to overcome poverty and suffering, from a rights based approach and focusing on five aims: Right to a sustainable livelihood Right to basic social services Right to life and security Right to be heard Right to equity: gender and diversity(All our work reflects our commitment

1.

Our approach to overcoming poverty, :

to womens empowerment and gender equality , end violence against women, Strengthen womens political and economic leadership and participation)

Responding to emergencies caused by disasters. Long-term development programmes; with livelihoods a significant area. Currently working in six countries within SAF Region, (Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Angola and Zambia).

Reflection on how Gender has been addressed

Oxfam GB and Southern Africa

Gender inequality in access to and control of a wide range of human, economic, and social assets persists and constitutes a key dimension of poverty. Women experience a general subordinate legal status, limited access to productive resources such as land, technology, credit, health, education and training, formal employment, as well as susceptibility to HIV and AIDS and GBV. In SAF men and women play substantial roles but they are not equally distributed across the productive sectors, nor are they equally remunerated for their labour. These genderbased inequalities directly and indirectly limits economic growth in southern Africa, and diminish the effectiveness of poverty reduction efforts.

Oxfam GB and Southern Africa - cont

Here are some examples:
women work longer hours than men, and this clearly demonstrates the time pressures faced by women.

While land and land-based resources is part of communities livelihoods, womens rights to arable land are weaker than those of men. Women mostly work on land that its owned by their husbands or sons. Men and women have different access to paid labour, while husbands often control family labour, including that of women. The majority of women spend a lot of their time performing reproductive roles, and work in the informal sector, with low levels of productivity and small returns. While education of women and girls is an essential ingredient for ensuring child health and welfare, reducing maternal mortality, empower women to control her SRHR and breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty, those essential still remaining challenge.

At 6am I fetch the water. By 7am I am sweeping and cleaning the dishes. I then proceed to the farm. I then look for food to be cooked at lunchtime. I go back to the shamba (farm) until 6pm. Then I cook supper. I spend from 7-12 and 2-6 on the farm everyday (a rural Kenyan woman)
Amplified by factors like the impact of environmental degradation and financial crisis

OGB Interest in the research project

To ensure that Oxfam GBs work continues to be relevant in changing national contexts that are accountable and responsive to its citizens. Will enable Oxfam GB to build its analysis and programmes on accurate and sophisticated measurements of gendered poverty. This will also help to decide were to allocate available resources to address forms of engendered poverty, and to monitor positive changes to the lives of women and men. Will strengthen staff and partners capacity in research methodologies and practices that are most relevant to the monitoring and evaluation of gender poverty indicators. Deepen the knowledge of gender related poverty.

Efforts to eradicate inequality and poverty it must incorporate a gender perspective from conception to implementation and evaluation. Development actors must be committed to: Create an enabling environment that will lead governments to be more accountable and responsive and Empower citizens to claim and demand their rights. There is a need to devise ways of accounting for, and making provisions for womens contribution to the national economies. There is need to enhance visibility of gender issues in data and analysis. Statistics and indicators on the situation of women and men in all spheres of society are an important tool in promoting gender equality. Gender statistics have an essential role in the elimination of stereotypes, in the formulation of policies, and in monitoring progress toward full equality. To be able to effectively produce and implement gender sensitive national budgets, governments need to have statistics disaggregated by sex, and to be sensitive to gender segregation, cultural practices and gender norms.

Recommendations

Conclusion

OVERCOMING POVERTY AND GENDER INEQUALITY IS AN UPHILL TASK, THEREFORE WE NEED TO FIND WAYS TO WORK TOGETHER, BY BEING COMMITED, VIGILANT.WE NEED TO WALK THE TALK MOVING FROM RETORIC DISCOURSE TO PRATICAL ACTIONS.. PROGRESS IS POSSIBLE
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION E-mail: Abanze@oxfam.org.uk www.oxfam.org.uk