A Pratical Guide
to Ex ante Gender Impact Assessment of Public Policies and National Legislative Measures

Introduction

Combating prejudice and breaking gender stereotypes, for an active citizenship for all, is not possible without changing the attitudes, rethinking the experiences and questioning the practices in policy development, in public management and in social life.

Based on this assumption, eliminating the inequalities that still persist today at different levels in our society can only come about through the unambiguous (re)definition of how public policy and legislative measures are developed, taking into account the different impacts that they have on women and men.

With this main goal in mind, Question of Equality - Association for Social Innovation] has prepared this guide, which aims to be a strategic reference instrument, capable of being adjusted and adapted to the various sectors and policy areas concerned, for future implementation on a regular and systematic basis, thereby contributing to the planning, implementation and evaluation of policies, programmes, plans and projects, and enabling a reliable analysis of the state-of-the-art of equality between women and men within a given space and time, as well as the continuous monitoring of the progresses or setbacks in these areas.

The Project “A More Equal Portugal - Gender Impact Assessment of Public Policies and National Legislative Measures”

The Project “A More Equal Portugal – Gender Impact Assessment of Public Policies and National Legislative Measures”, has been developed in the framework of the PT07 Programme – “Mainstreaming Gender Equality and Promoting Work-Life Balance”, funded by the European Economic Area Financial Mechanism (EEAFM 2009-2014) and managed by the Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality - CIG.

The project, based on the premises that any political and legislative action, regarding any matters whatsoever, carries in itself a potential gender impact which should be assessed, and that the integration of a gender perspective in all public policies and legislative actions, and not only in the specific laws on Equality, generates a multiplier effect towards a truly egalitarian culture among women and men thus building a more cohesive and democratic society, had as main goals:

1- To create a working tool that allows the integration and the assessment of the gender dimension's impact on all national public policies and legislative measures;

2- To guide and support policy-makers and technical staff, in the different State sectors and other public entities at the local level, in how to implement a gender impact assessment of national public policies and legislative measures;

3- To support and consolidate, at the highest political level, the knowledge of key concepts associated with gender issues and the understanding of the importance of Gender Mainstreaming as a fundamental tool for the effective implementation of Gender Equality policies and also as a condition for good governance.

A “Practical Guide to Ex ante Gender Impact Assessment of Public Policies and National Legislative Measures”

This practical guide presents a conceptual basis for Gender Impact Assessment, which appears to be a fundamental tool for the implementation, at all levels, of the integration of the gender perspective (“gender mainstreaming”), since it helps to estimate and measure the different effects (positive, negative or neutral) of any policy or activity implemented in terms of Gender Equality.

According to the definition proposed in 1998 by the Council of Europe, gender mainstreaming involves the “(re)organisation, improvement, development and evaluation of policy processes, so that a gender equality perspective is incorporated into all policies at all levels and at all stages by the actors normally involved in policy-making”.

Then, having as starting point this conceptual construction, it becomes clearly important to emphasise the fact that any public policy or legislative measure which, at the beginning, appears to be neutral or with no impact whatsoever on gender issues, can, if further examined, turn out to have different impacts and implications among its recipients and, ultimately, strengthen the existing inequalities. This fact can be fully justified by the substantial differences in the ways of life of men and women in most of the dimensions that constitute their everyday living.

Assim sendo, deverá pois ser realizada, numa fase inicial do processo de tomada de decisão, uma avaliação desse mesmo impacto de modo a permitir, caso necessário, a introdução de alterações ou mesmo uma reorientação da própria medida a implementar.

Com vista a dar resposta a esse objetivo, este guia foi concebido de forma a assumir-se como um instrumento prático e dinâmico de fácil apropriação, tendo por base o preenchimento de uma “checklist” interativa, a qual orientará a cada ponto a análise e o processo de avaliação ex-ante de impacto de género de determinada política pública ou medida legislativa, possibilitando a reflexão sobre os seus possíveis efeitos (neutros, positivos ou negativos) na vida de mulheres e homens e garantindo a cada momento da sua utilização a introdução de correções, de forma a efetivar a integração da perspetiva de género.

Taking into account the scope, goals and recipients, as well as the expected results of the policy/measure proposal to be implemented, please answer the following questions:

1 - Does the policy/measure directly or indirectly impacts on men and women?

2 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented have as recipients?

3 - Was there a diagnosis made of the situation of men and women in the area of implementation of the policy/measure, which can justify that it is targeted at both genders or at one or the other gender specifically?

4 - Does the policy/measure cause changes in the living conditions of men and women?

5 - Does the design of the policy/measure to be implemented give consideration to the perspectives of both women and men?

6 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented guarantee equal participation of men and women at the level of the benefits obtained in the area of its implementation?

7 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented guarantee equal rights, taking into consideration the different needs of men and women, in the area of its implementation?

8 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented guarantee equal access to and/or control over the various types of resources (physical, financial, information, etc.) inherent to the area of its implementation?

9 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented guarantee the promotion of norms and values contributing to an effective change of mentality through the elimination of gender stereotypes?

10 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented meet the regulations and the national and international commitments on Gender Equality issues?

11 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented use gender-neutral language in its wording?

12 - Does the policy/measure to be implemented foresees the introduction of amendments intended to correct gender inequalities previously identified?

Checklist successfully completed!

After the full completion of this checklist, and in order to ensure that the policy/measure complies with the crucial dimensions of an effective Gender Equality, namely at the level of participation, rights, resources, and norms and values, it is suggested that the improvement recommendations, mentioned throughout this document, be adopted:

- Elaboration of the diagnosis of the situation of men and women in the area of implementation of the policy/measure.
- Adoption of gender-neutral language in the wording of the policy/measure.
- Development of the policy/measure taking into account the National and Community legislation on Gender Equality issues.

For a better understanding of this subject, please also refer to the Glossary of terms on Gender Equality, which provides explanations of the main concepts addressed here.

Assessment

RESET