PRB | Gender
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Interagency Gender Working Group (IGWG)

The IGWG is no longer accepting proposals for support of gender-related activities in the areas of GBV, young people, male involvement, and HIV/AIDS. Applicants will be notified by February.

IGWG Reports and Products

The Interagency Gender Working Group (IGWG), established in 1997, is a network of NGOs, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Cooperating Agencies (CAs), and the Center for Population, Health and Nutrition (PHN) of the USAID. The IGWG promotes gender equity within PHN programs, in order to improve Reproductive Health/HIV/AIDS outcomes and foster sustainable development.

Objectives

IGWG objectives are to:

  • Raise awareness and commitment to synergies between gender equity and RH outcomes.

  • Collect empirical data on gender and RH, advance knowledge and disseminate best practices.

  • Advance best practices through technical assistance to the field.

  • Develop operational tools for the integration of gender approaches into PHN programming.

Organizational Structure

The IGWG has 60 – 80 active members and maintains a listserv with over 200 subscribers. A major focus of the IGWG has been on gender education, advocacy, and the development of operational tools. Products and services available from the IGWG include:

  • A "Guide to Incorporating Gender Considerations in USAID's Family Planning and Reproductive Health RFAs and RFPs",

  • A summary document outlining "Research Gaps Related to Gender Issues and Population, Health, and Nutrition Programs",

  • "Helping Involve Men, HIM", a CD-ROM on research and programmatic literature on men's participation in reproductive health, and

  • A Multi-module Orientation Guide on "Involving Men in Sexual and Reproductive Health.

In an effort to increase its emphasis on dissemination, field outreach, and support of activities related to gender, the IGWG has recently undergone a series of structural changes. The newly created Technical Advisory Group (TAG) will serve as the strategic planning and advisory body of the IGWG. The TAG members will ensure that the work of the IGWG addresses issues and needs as they arise in the RH field. Specifically, the TAG will identify priority technical themes for each year, consider proposals for Task Forces on the themes, make recommendations to the USAID Office of Population for funding, and review Task Force products and progress.

Discrete Task Forces will carry out IGWG activities in the technical areas recommended by the TAG. Dissemination and training will be integrated as ongoing activities of the IGWG. Technical assistance (TA) to the field will be based on specific country requests.

A subcommittee of IGWG members continues to meet and support technical work in the area of men and reproductive health. This subcommittee is co-chaired by Sam Clark ([email protected]) and Victoria Jennings ([email protected]). For more information about the subcommittee's work, please go to www.rho.org/html/menrh_igwg.html.

The cooperative and participatory nature that has characterized the IGWG since its inception will continue to be a priority. The participation of a wide range of USAID CAs as well as non-USAID funded agencies on the Task Forces is strongly encouraged. In addition, technical updates will be offered to the USAID and non-USAID community on a variety of pertinent issues.

Current Task Forces:

  • Gender, Access, and Quality Task Force
    Contact: Karen Hardee [email protected]
    Purpose is to examine the linkage between gender and quality of care through: 1) understanding current thinking and practices in the field regarding the integration of a gender perspective into RH programs at different program levels, and 2) proposing a programmatic framework for integrating gender perspectives.

  • Gender Manual Task Force
    Contact: Jane Schueller [email protected]
    Purpose is to develop a guide for use in responding to RFAs and RFPs and for use in the design and implementation of gender-sensitive reproductive health programs.

  • Gender-Sensitive Indicators Task Force
    Contact: Nancy Yinger [email protected]
    Purpose is to provide a practical approach to identifying gender-related obstacles to the achievement of PHN program objectives and to designing and monitoring interventions to lower those obstacles.

  • Research/Evidence-based Examples Task Force
    Contact: Sid Schuler [email protected]
    Purpose is to assess how gender-sensitive programming contributes to achieving reproductive health outcomes and population, health, and nutrition (PHN) results.

  • Gender and HIV/AIDS Task Force
    Contact: Mary Kincaid [email protected]
    Purpose is to assess if and how a gender perspective has been integrated into HIV-AIDS programs, around three themes adolescents, dual protection, FP/HIV-AIDS

Listserv

The IGWG also maintains a listserv for its members. Members receive e-mails relating to the IGWG's progress — information and updates on our products and services — as well as minutes and meeting schedules for the IGWG Technical Advisory Group and the various Task Forces. The listserv also includes interesting news items, along with information about relevant conferences, workshops and presentations. If you are interested in learning more about the IGWG listserv, please contact:
Britt Herstad, IGWG Listserv Moderator, Population Reference Bureau
Phone: 202.483.1100; e-mail: [email protected]

Information

For more information on the IGWG, please contact:
Diana Prieto, IGWG Coordinator, Office of Population, USAID
Phone: 202.712.0662; e-mail: [email protected]
Copyright 2002, Population Reference Bureau. All rights reserved.