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GENDER MAINSTREAMING IN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS ITS
PROGRESS AND REMAINING CHALLENGES
1. Historical context of gender mainstreaming
I. Origins of the concept
Gender mainstreaming was identified as the key approach for achieving equality for women as
well as gender management inside international organizations and policymaking processes. It
may be said more broadly that its roots lie in the recognition of gender differences in
development outcomes and the problems with earlier emphases on women. The third world
conference on women held in Nairobi in the year 1985 played a significant role in ensuring that
women’s issues were not only going to be addressed from a linear perspective but also from a
holistic perspective in all aspects of society and different layers of government(Ahmed, 2020).
This crucial change was accelerated during the Beijing 1995 Fourth World Conference on
Women by which gender mainstreaming was adopted as a global framework towards the
achievement of gender equity and women’s rights. This shift marked a shift from perceiving the
affairs of women as specific issues to conceptualizing gender as an issue that cuts across the
entire policy and programming, according to Rodriguez (2021). It is therefore useful to see the
trajectory of the concept to; understand its entrenchment into the topics of sustainable
development and also good governance. However, the achievement of implementing gender
mainstreaming has not fully been without any hitch. Some scholars have argued that in some
cases, it has contributed to weakening other gender-specific aimed programs (Baker, 2019). Still,
it is possible to witness certain criticism of the way gender mainstreaming has been initiated; In
any case, it marks a significant step towards achieving gender equality; it shifts from a singular
and isolated approach to implementing a coordinated and integrated initiative. This is thus a
good example of the developmental process on gender mainstreaming that depicts a progressive
approach to addressing the concerns of gender parity in the mainstream policy regulating the
world. Gender mainstreaming that started out as an identification of imbalances in societies and
their interventions have come to change the world’s views on gender equality by becoming a
formal development strategy of the United Nations. Despite problems emerging at the
implementation phase; it thereby signifies a substantial step forward in the enhancement of
gender spectrums’ incorporation into progressive development processes and also decision-
making frameworks globally.
II. Key international agreements
The further evolution of gender mainstreaming as an international concept has encountered
major support and coordination through major intergovernmental covenant-setting that has not
only set the fundamental corner stones but also governs the structure of the concepts’
implementation. The first one is the convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination
against women signed in 1979. CEDAW was useful in the formulation of international policies
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against Gender injustice calling for reform of laws to foster equality of women (Lee, 2020). It
was in the 1995 Beijing Declaration and the Platform for Action that gender mainstreaming was
effectively had its revolutionary moment. This historic accord specifically prescribed the
incorporation of gender lens across all the policies and project, and marked the international’s
definitive strive to the improvement of the gender parity (Abdullah, 2021). Therefore the
declaration placed focus on questions of structural nature and thus enhancement of woman’s
position in different spheres. Subsequent to the MDGs, the eighth goal for women emphasizes
the global commitment on gender equality that was made in the year 2000. Like many global
development frameworks, MDGs generally ignored the structural causes of gender inequality as
several critics noted, the goals they set targeted aspects such as education and maternal health
among others. This limitation of the study thereby pointed to a need for a more extensive study
which would hence incorporate a detailed investigation of the impact of sociology. Further, in
the year 2015, the International community came up with the Sustainable development goals
(SDGs), which is a more elaborate and integrated development framework as compared to the
MDGs. Building on the previous Point SDG 5 is focused mostly on gender equality for women’s
rights to be free from any sort of violence and discriminated. Furthermore, gender mainstreaming
is incorporated into all the 17 Goals on SDs based on the understanding that gender equality is an
MRI that is significant to the achievement of sustainable development (Ahmed, 2020). These
international agreements have offered a solid reference of normative standards which include
gender mainstreaming benchmarks and goals for international organizations as well as national
governments. The actual realization of these promises therefore poses a major problem.
Challenges to implementation include; inadequate funding, institutional resistance, poor
monitoring and evaluation Mechanisms.
III. Evolution of implementation strategies
It is thus important to reflect on the emergence of various implementation strategies of gender
mainstreaming that have helped in the change to hence tackle the challenges of equipping the
individuals of different global setting with equal rights. At first, many organizations were guilty
of the ‘add women and stir’ model where the targets were primarily about the appointment of
more women without much thought given to the systematic barriers to equality (Campbell,
2020). This approach though formed the basic approach of addressing the issue of gender
disparity was however unable to handle the fundamental issues. Acknowledging such limitations,
implementation strategies have moved over time to hitherto wider strategies that sought to alter
organizational subcultures and choices. One of the significant milestones was when United
Nations came out with System-wide Action Plan on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of
Women (UN-SWAP) in the year 2012. It served as a coherent system of accountability within
the UN system, but differentiated that not only the quantitative results need to be demonstrated
as an outcome of activities, but it is also significant to demonstrate the quality of gender
mainstreaming in policies and programs (Abdullah, 2021). Likewise, the European Union has
also been quite effective with operating the dual strategy, as it focuses on both the specific
initiatives regarding women’s rights, on the one hand, and the integration of gender perspective
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to all the policies, on the other hand. This approach of multi-sectorial integration has also
influenced other international districts and organizations to combine different sectors as a way of
encouraging gender main streaming (Foster, 2020). In the last couple of years, the flow of
emphasis towards confinement of gender mainstreaming strategies has shifted towards
interconnectivity. Interconnectivity conveys that gender is situated within the frameworks of
other types of differences or discriminations like race, class, Ethnicity or disability (Ahmed,
2020). Such recognition has led to more complex and context-sensitive arising and taking into
consideration the contexts, experiences, and difficulties faced by the person in question because
of their multiple intersecting status. Altogether the changes of the implementation strategies for
the policy thereof demonstrate the progress of ideas regarding gender mainstreaming as a
complex issue. It points out, again, on the need to shift from the strategies of merely ‘checking
the box,’ that is, providing promises and perfunctory representation, to eradicating the structural
barriers of oppression. Despite these advancements, there is still a long way to go in extending
the aforementioned approaches to enhancing gender equality outcomes in the global sphere
comprehensively and in the long term.
IV. Milestones in policy development
It is thus worth noting that the case of the formulation of the gender mainstreaming policies has
been featured by several key landmarks that have immensely influenced the global efforts
towards the fulfillment of rights of the women and girls. Some of the key milestones include the
1995 Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action where gender mainstreaming was not only
defined as being central to the Women’s empowerment process but it also outlined how the
policy could be operationalized. It was thereof a significant deal that insisted on availing,
mainstreaming and also implementing gender considerations in all areas of society as well as
governments, providing a framework for global action on women’s rights and also for gender
equality. Another great achievement was obtained with the endorsement of United Nations
Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security in the year 2000. This
resolution was revolutionary because it established the women role in the issue of peace and
peace building and called for a s diplomatic concerns, gender problems in the conflict and post
conflict situations (Davies, 2022). This was a complete shift of culture on how women where
viewed on the mere receptors of conflict but active players who should be given a central role in
the process of conflict transformation as well as being viewed as key stakeholders in the
realization of sustainable security. The setting up of UN Women in year 2010 was another
important institutional development witnessed in the field. It was set up with the intention to
elevate, connect and centralize all the work of United Nations on women’s issues and gender
equality; it supervises and coordinates the proper implementation of the gender mainstreaming
policies in each arm of United Nations (Khan, 2022). It has been therefore this institutional
infrastructure that has contributed greatly towards the mainstreaming of gender in the
progressive realization of changes in their policies and hence assisting countries to mainstream
gender in their development initiatives. Within development finance, perhaps the most policy-
changing event is the World Bank’s Gender Strategy for operations in FY 2016-2023. This
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approach went a notch higher in mainstreaming gender as not just another vector of analysis but
as a cross-cutting theme within the Bank’s structures and operations embracing all activities
from planning to project identification, implementation, monitoring, and assessment (Jacobs,
2021). Thus when mainstreaming gender across its portfolios; the World Bank sought to hence
increase the impact of its development interventions and also improve development results.
2. Institutional frameworks for gender mainstreaming
I. UN System-wide Action Plan
In 2012 the launched UN System-wide Action Plan (UN-SWAP) on Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women is a major step in the further establishment of gender mainstreaming in
the United Nations. Currently, the implementation of this framework is used for accountability
and performance monitoring of all the UN entities with a goal of increasing coherence and
efficiency of work in achieving the objectives of gender equality (Abdullah, 2021). At its core,
UN-SWAP establishes a comprehensive set of performance indicators spanning six key areas:
performance, responsibility, efficiency, responsibility and control for achieving development
goals, human and financial resources, institution building, and knowledge building and sharing
(Bennett 2021). These are intended to provide directions on how progress in the integration of
the gender perspective could be assessed and reported in the entire UN system policy, program
and operational activities. In this context, one of the main successes of the UN-SWAP system is
to increase the work of making gender equality initiatives within the UN more transparent and, in
fact, accountable. However, through the use of UN-SWAP where UN entities are forced to report
on the progress and implementation of gender mainstreaming activities, there has been
improvement in the means of monitoring and evaluation. This in turns enables monitoring of the
progress and also realization of gaps that require enhancement (Campbell, 2020). Nevertheless
there are still some difficulties and also questions thus concerning the application of UN-SWAP.
However, the actors’ progress within the framework differs, indicating the strategies’
effectiveness and commitment to meaningful gender mainstreaming across the UN entities
(Khan, 2022). However, civil society will have to continue calling for changes, for whilst
reporting can be heightened, power relations on the ground need to be shifted for the betterment
of women. However, it is noteworthy that UN- SWAP has undoubtedly raised the bar on the
gender mainstreaming concern as a priority for the entire UN system. For this reason, it
represents a guide for other IOs that wish to enhance the organizational frameworks on GE by
thus creating a rather top-down process of mainstreaming gender aspects in organizational
practices and regulations (Khan, 2022). Thus, despite the advances made through UN-SWAP in
adopting the strategies of gender mainstreaming within the framework of the UN, further actions
should be taken to respond to the challenges arising in the process of implementing these actions
systematically. To sum up; it became therefore clear that there is still potential to make gender
parity in the UN stronger through; the reinforcement of strategies, growth of organizational
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capacity and also development of a performance culture to support the UN’s explicit and hence
long-standing leadership of the worldwide work for gender equity.
II. Gender focal points
Gender focal points that have been put in place in the international organizations has been
identified as a strategic measure towards the achievement of gender mainstreaming at the
institutional level. These identified persons, or organizational sections, are critical in
championing gender equality because they possess technical knowledge in gender issues, and
they are involved in policy change on issues affecting women or men (Ahmed, 2020). There has
been an emergence of a number of changes concerning the gender focal points regarding the
following. It was assumed that such positions are low level, the employees involved are part-time
workers and yet these positions have become highly skilled professional level specialized
positions in most organizations. Such evolution proves the increasing awareness of the
multifaceted and significance of gender mainstreaming in organizational frameworks (Campbell,
2020). It is crucial to note that performance of gender focal points depends with the party in
question and the environment in which the organization operates. These representatives have
hence claimed that in organizations where gender focal points receive adequate support, they are
key players in implementing reforms and also proposing different gender-related policy
measures. These enable the formulation of gender sensitive policies, offer technical assistance on
how best to mainstream gender within programs and projects, and promote the budgeting for
gender business (Campbell, 2020). On the other hand, it established that in some situations,
gender focal points experience a lot of obstacles that hamper their functioning. This is because
factors like lack of autonomy, lack of adequate tools, and exclusion from critical decision-
making procedures compromise their capacity to alter organizational practices retrospectively
(Baker, 2019). When gender focal points lack the backing and acknowledgment within the chain
of command, the mainstreaming of gender and impact on the ground may be impeded. Therefore
the case of ILO hence offers lessons on both opportunities as well as drawbacks of gender focal
points. Through the work of gender focal points, a degree of gender mainstreaming has been
achieved at the ILO in terms of policy and program development; however, there appears to be a
lack of efficient processes for translating gender expertise into practice and meaningful change.
The experience signifies that while adopting gender specific positions, sufficient organizational
engagement, capacity, and optimal frameworks must be applied to optimize the positions
(Campbell, 2020).
III. Gender equality policies
Thus, increasing gender sensibility and mainstreaming in the policies and practices within the
International organizations are significant to promote gender equality worldwide. These policies
are the basic guidelines, which state organizational parties’ approaches towards women and men,
proverbial goals and aims, and practical methods of implementing gender-sensitive approaches
in organizational systems. For example, the organization Gender Policy of the World Health
Organization puts into focus the notion of female-male cross-cutting perspective in all its work.
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It also guarantees gender perspectives to influence the research, policy, program design and
evaluation leading up to the positive transformation of the organization in order to reduce gender
gaps in health (Taylor, 2020). Like any other international organization, the UNDP has also
formulated a Gender Equality Strategy that outlines the ways in which gender equality shall be
enhanced in the organization as well as the programs and projects which are supported by the
UNDP as a development partner. In this strategy, mainstreaming gender in all sectors and all
initiatives is central and the goal is to get measurable changes to gender equality (Khan, 2022).
However, several factors affect the implementation of these gender equality policies even though
the policies have been developed. Proactive endorsement from the leadership is imperative to
guard the roll out of change as well as how the issue of gender parity will be pursued in the
company’s different tiers. Sufficient and appropriate funding support, as well as human resources
for implementing gender mainstreaming strategies as policies’ intentions at the operational level.
Furthermore there needs to be a means of review and also reporting to therefore give an account
for the effectiveness or efficiency of the measures taken towards the enhancement of gender
equality. Nevertheless, Evans (2021) notes that most gender equality policies continue to be
terminology announcements a long way from real change. Eliminating institutional masculinity
or eradicating deeply ingrained gendered cultures and also policies thereby present a study of
enduring endeavors. Moreover the process of turning international gender equality policies into
concrete actions within the particular environments thus presents another challenge. Due to
diverse settings, policies, practices, or contexts, various strategies should be employed in
mainstreaming gender and meeting specific gender inequalities within an organization’s context
(Foster, 2020).
IV. Accountability mechanisms
It is indeed accurate to assert that accountability is a core component of gender mainstreaming as
it fosters the actual implementation of declared organizational policies along with the
achievement of concrete goals and objectives in intergovernmental organizations. These
mechanisms are hence useful in; tracking the progress, reviewing the implementation and also
promoting accountability in gender equality mainstreaming. An example of a framework for
accountability is the UN System-wide Action Plan on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of
Women (UN-SWAP). UN-SWAP was established in 2012 and has prescribed that all the UN
organizations must submit their yearly performance in relation to certain indicators that lie
within a universal framework. Some of these indicators include; accountability, results based
management, oversight, management of human and financial resources, capacity development
and knowledge management (Abdullah 2021). The reporting obligation within UN-SWAP
enables more focused and unified analysis of the changes within the UN System Case by way of
systematic monitoring of gender mainstreaming Plans. Apart from the UN-SWAP other
accountability tools that the organizations may use include gender audits, organizational
performance review, as well as gender equality league tables. Self-assessment tools like gender
audits, for instance, determine how well gender factors have been mainstreamed in the entities’
structures, processes, and activities. The assessments thereby offered within the frameworks of
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performance reviews help in considering the efficiency of gender mainstreaming approaches and
also determine the prospects for their development. Gender equality benchmarking tools using
scorecards involve monitoring of the utilization of funds and achievements on gender equality
plans and goals (Campbell, 2020). However, the above accountability mechanisms have been
regarded to have their efficacy affected by a number of factors. First of all, the quality and the
reliability of information collected in the course of the study must be highlighted. Gender
statistics thus refer to collection and analysis of data in a way that makes it easier to carry out
gender analysis and hence review the level of progress towards gender mainstreaming. The
accountability efforts should be evidence-informed thus necessitating organizations to invest in,
well-developed collection systems and build capacity for gender analysis (Baker, 2019). The
final key component is the readiness of organizational leadership to respond to the consensus on
the conclusions and recommendations made by means of accountability systems. Accountability
entails not only reporting of performance but also the management actions on areas where the
organization lacks in performance or has made errors in its execution of tasks and projects; and
mainstreaming of gender at organizational and project levels (Ahmed, 2020). Furthermore,
enshrinement of quantitative measures including; the proportion of women in the decision-
making structures are tenable but Qualitative assessment of the institutions’ cultural and
operational paradigms is also pertinent.
3. Progress in gender-responsive programming
I. Gender analysis in project design
Gender mainstreaming has come out as an important tool of enhancing a gender perspective in
the programming of development projects within the international organizations. This approach
thus entails the analysis of gender: An understanding of how gender hence constructs the
environment, goals and also possibilities of development programs. Through the incorporation of
gender in a comprehensive approach within the different phases of a project, the organizations’
goal is to not only provide gender sensitive and appropriately targeted programs that can
consider the needs of females and males as equally important but also as a means of fostering
change in the gender relations. It is notable that many contemporary organizations are currently
using gender analysis in their operations: The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) as
well as the World Bank included. Organizations such as the UNDP integrate gender analysis as a
standard procedure in the conception as well as the execution of projects. It is crucial for
disaggregating the gender differences, analyzing reasons for such differences, and mainstreaming
gender components into the development frameworks and programs (Khan, 2022). In the same
way, the World Bank has experienced progress throughout the last decade to conduct gender
analysis in its project lending. The Bank targets the promotion of gender equality for
development, with the goal for the projects implemented to have the equilibrium distribution of
the affects between both sections of the societies, male and female (Jacobs, 2021). Thus, current
issues are remaining in relation to the quality and depth of gender analysis as a task performed.
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Scholars like Evans (2021) have pointed out that gender analysis still is a shallow practice where
the core issues of gender disparities are not only properly solved, but the power relations are not
adequately questioned. The need for gender mainstreaming also remains an issue as well as poor
reporting on gender analysis without any virtual correlation with the actual design and
implementation of project. Campbell (2020) notes that, although there has been progress in terms
of how the gender analysis is done; how this insight is then changed and implemented to bring
about change that effectively addresses inequalities concerning gender is still difficult. In
addition, this study thus reveals that gender analysis in projects depends on; organizational
commitment, capacity building, and hence leadership support with reference to project design. It
calls thereby for building capacity in gender, gender-mainstreaming competencies of staff and
also measures to systematically incorporate gender factors into the organization’s decision-
making hierarchy.
II. Sex-disaggregated data collection
Sex-disaggregated data have thereof become valuable tools on; gender mainstreaming and also
knowledge management in development policy decision-making. Using this analysis, data is
thereof subset by sex to expose gender disparities, trends and thus necessities in different sectors
as well as factors and thereby serving as a priceless tool in the design of gender sensitive
strategies. UN-Stats as an agency of the United Nations have played a key role in moving the
conversation forward on the collection of sexed data. They have established principle and
procedures on gender statistic, and have been urging countries and organizations to gender-
mainstream their statistics and data collection and analysis procedures (UN Women [Abdullah],
2021). This framework is thereby helpful in initiatives; to reduce gender gaps and also measure
the level of achievement towards equality dimensions. Global institutions, especially the WHO,
have made a lot of advancement in compiling the sex disaggregated data on health. It has thus
proved vital in the understanding of aspects of health that hence affect either the male or female
sex as well as coming up with solutions to the gender troubles. For example, the statistical
analysis of the distribution of sex has increased the understanding of the differences in men and
women’s health and implementing gendered-sensitive health policies and programs (Bennet,
2021). However, there are still a number of issues related to the compilation of detailed and
coherent SDDs. Currently, many countries can still be said to be operating under capacity and
this, coupled with political will, would mean that data on sex-disaggregated levels may not be
collected especially in areas of employment or education which are considered gender neutral
(Baker, 2019). Enhancing mechanisms of collecting data and also strengthening the capacity of
key institutions are therefore core tasks toward addressing these factors and hence promoting the
incorporation of gender factors in policy formulation. However, data based on the differences
between males and females, yields useful information on; gender that has its demerits. According
to O’Connor, 2020; this approach might not be exhaustive because it does not fully include the
gender non-binary people or the people of color discriminated based on their gender, race, and
sexual orientation. Consequently improvements in methods of data gathering and also
broadening of the gender studies’ focus to thus accommodate more than just male as well as
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female gender identity are critical to facilitating better gender-sensitive policy-making and hence
programming. Although, implementing sex disaggregated data is aggressive steps towards
improving gender wise programs and policies it is crucial to continue the effort to modify
existing problems and build further for gender analytical solutions.
III. Gender-sensitive monitoring and evaluation
One of the areas that have received significant improvement in the area of gender mainstreaming
is in the aspect of the M&E systems that have been designed to reflect this aspect. These
systems’ primary purposes are to thereby evaluate how programs and also policies affect women
and men differently, as well as to monitor progress toward gender equality goals. For example,
the International Labor Organization uses a gender-responsive M&E framework containing a set
of specific indicators that can be used to assess the improvement of the gender situation within
the framework of the organization’s various programs (Campbell, 2020). Likewise, within the
framework of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization has established guidelines for gender-sensitive indicators
regarding the organization’s education initiatives: The application of such indicators facilitates a
more comprehensive analysis of gender inequalities, in terms of education and its achievements
(Vega, 2022). However, drawbacks might still be pointed out in relation to the rather poor
application of GEM E. Although the author of the text under analysis – Evans – points to the fact
that the process of transition from the mere numerical increase in female attendees to
modification of the relations of power and gender is very difficult for many organizations, these
insights do not refer to the potential uselessness or futility of the approaches applied in this
context. For instance, although it is easy to quantify the amount of women attending the training
sessions and ascertain their economic energizing or social promotion, it is almost impossible for
the trainer or facilitator to determine the level of difference made through the training sessions.
Also, the indicators tend to lack a starting point against which the amount of progress achieved
can be assessed especially for the higher or more qualitative aspects regarding women and the
entire gender issue. Also, one realizes that the quality and manner of data collection will differ
from one setting to another, thus creating gaps in data, which in turn leads to gaps in information
for the analyst. This can complicate the possibility of making comparisons or identifying trends
or even point out the existence of trends when the quantitative measurements are too large.
According to Ahmed (2020), even though advancements have been made in the design and
implementation of gender sensitive M&E frameworks, there is a concern that more efforts are
needed for capacity enhancement in conducting gender analytical and M&E work while keen
concern was also observed in the consideration of getting better from M&E findings to decision
making and program alternations. This thus involves things like; enhancing gender analysis skills
among personnel, enhancing collection methods, and hence promoting learning organizations. In
sum, despite the enhancement of gender-sensitive M&E systems which will contribute much to
the advancement of gender equality, further actions are required to eliminate or mitigate the
existing issues and realize the outlined potential.
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IV. Capacity building initiatives
Mainstreaming gender initiatives in particular have depended on capacity building in
International Organizations. Their goals thus focus on improving the level of gender
mainstreaming through; understanding, competencies and also resources on how to apply the
gender approach regarding each field of activity. UN Women, the United Nations Entity for
Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women has been most active in the design and
delivery of the gender mainstreaming training for the UN system staff (Abdullah, 2021). In the
same manner, the World Bank has incurred a lot of resources engaging in capacity development
to increase the understanding of gender analysis and gender responsive projects among its staff
and other collaborators (Jacobs, 2021). Such activities may comprise of simple gender sensitivity
training; gender sensitive analysis training; gender sensitive budgeting training; and training
comprehending certain specific sectors of gender. The aim is to make sure that all the employees
starting from the junior level up to the senior level are trained and informed on how they can
integrate gender into practice. For instance, gender-responsive training in financial planning
helps budget strategists in financial planning to enhance the gender-mainstreamed budget in a
manner that will enhance justice to the gender-struck society, while the sector training aids
professionals such as those in the education sector, health sector, or agriculture sector from
where the gender-prejudiced disparity can be exceptionally observed to dismantle the prejudices
ailing their sectors. At the same time, it is possible to note that these efforts to provide capacity
building are rather inconsistent. Campbell (2020) has pointed out that despite the fact that most
organizations have achieved some increased rate in gender training, they fail to offer a method of
reinforcing the gender knowledge that is learned by the employees. Lack of support after the
training and even reinforcement may lead to poor uptake of new training by the staff.
Furthermore, Baker (2019) suggested that the problems of capacity building include increased
attention to the technical aspects of the training rather than the organizational culture and the
barriers to change. It again emphasizes that the main issue of adapting new knowledge is not
only technical but cultural as well, which means efforts to change organizational culture should
also be made. Nonetheless, the advancement of capacity building continues to be therefore a
central investment priority on the gender mainstreaming initiatives both now and also in the
future with the capability of contributing to a gender sensitive workforce within the various
international organizations. It is therefore crucial that organizations continue to fund and
implement outlined long-term and also broad training programs to improve staff’s proficiency
towards the promotion of gender equity across each deliverable.
4. Challenges in organizational culture
I. Resistance to change
Thus, the most important challenge that affects the gender mainstreaming process within the
international organizations is related to the resistance of change. This resistance can be expressed
in disbelief about gender issues’ applicability, reluctance to reform current organizational
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practices, or even hostility to gender equality endeavors. According to Baker (2019), there are
four types of barriers involved; these are; Patriarchal culture and beliefs, perceived threat of
power and privilege loss and misconceptions about gender mainstreaming goals. More often,
resistance manifests in what Campbell refers to as ‘gender fatigue; whereby the staff seems not
to see gender mainstreaming as a core aspect of their mandate but rather a burden that has been
imposed on them (Campbell, 2020). For instance, the World Health Organization is always
grappling with resistance in changing perception that gender mainstreaming should not befit the
organizations’ disease control and emergency response, which are typically dominated by male
personnel (Bennett, 2021). This resistance is often based on the fact that gender issues are
perceived to be minor when compared to technical and pragmatic aspects of crisis response. On
the same note, Ahmed (2020) observes that there is a continuation of reproducing gender issues
as an addendum to so-called core business/ economics in many IFls’, which has helped create
resistance to gender mainstreaming in macroeconomic policies. The claim that can be heard quite
frequently is that gender equality measures are perceived as interfering with the core business of
maintaining financial solidity and developing economy. For this resistance to be overcome there
is need for commitment by leaders across the project and programs, increased awareness of the
value of applying gender perspectives and showing people the advantages of these approaches.
For instance; leaders can hence strongly advocate for gender equality, engage in expressing the
idea, vision of gender equality, and also embedding them in organizations’ objectives as well as
outcomes. It may be possible to address these myths through awareness creation, for example,
through conducting training workshops that convey information aimed at countering the myths
as well as the positive effects of the gender mainstreaming on the organizational performance
and results. However, as Evans (2021) noted, when cultural change initiatives target the core of
an organization’s identity, changing organizational cultures might call for tackling fundamental
structural malpractices and systemic inequality – and this might not be done easily and quickly.
It hence involves; setting procedures for speaking and sharing opinions safely, engaging
everyone in decisions that affect them, and thus making it a practice to advance women’s equity
in organizations. Also, more awareness on cases where Gender Mainstreaming has been
successful and various positive changes it had brought may go a long way in convincing people.
II. Lack of leadership commitment
Inadequate, unstable and unenforceable leadership support to the work of gender mainstreaming
has been cited as one of the major issues that hinder the implementation of gender
mainstreaming in many IOs. However the current commitments at the policy level regarding
gender equality differ whereby, despite the policy makers availing their policy support is not
seriously provided to back gender mainstreaming initiatives. Another denotative emphasis
highlighted by Khan (2022) establishes that in the UNDP, the impact of gender mainstreaming
and its implementation has been determined by the level of reception by the executive level.
Likewise, Jacobs (2021) demonstrates that in the WB working on gender equality remains a
work in progress that varies across mission departments as well as geographically depending on
leaders’ commitment. The lack of leadership commitment can be observed with regard to the
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following issues: failure to provide adequate funding to the initiatives related to gender, no
enforcement of penalties and responsibilities regarding gender mainstreaming among the staff,
and invisibility of gender equality goals among the top priorities. For instance, due to lack of
funds, gender-related initiatives cannot be properly executed, thus making these supports and
structures ineffective and non-enduring. Also, when leaders fail to support gender equality and
demonstrate respect to staff or other aspects in an organization, they give an indication that such
issues should not be of concern hence a negative impact on Gender mainstreaming within
organizations. Foster (2020) says that leadership in most organizations tends to treat gender
inequality as a social phenomenon that is not related to organizational business. Such a view can
cause gender mainstreaming to be deprioritized, especially during adversity or cuts in spending.
For example fundamental activities such as gender initiatives are easily eradicated during
financial difficulties or emergencies because they are never fully incorporated in the
organization’s central tasks. Solving this problem means obtaining not just formal top
management commitment but also active management of that commitment so as to be an
enduring and regular feature of organizational strategy, resource investment and, decision-
making. Gender mainstay needs to be enforced by leaders in terms of formulation and
implementation, adequate resources have to be provided, and responsibilities for affirmation
must be clearly spelt out. This can involve such aspects as gender-sensitive performance
standards and expectations that may be instituted as well as ensuring staff compliance with these
expectations. Leadership development conducive to gender mainstreaming entails raising
awareness of leaders as to how gender mainstreaming complements organizational focal
objectives.
III. Gender stereotypes and biases
On this note, constant assortment of gender stereotyping and bias is one of the major barriers in
the implementation of gender mainstreaming in IOs. Such stereotyping and biasing can dominate
the processes of personnel selection, training and promotion; the development and application of
programs and policies. Incorporating examples based on gender prejudices in learning
institutions, O’Connor (2020) notes how gender prejudices can cause stereotype expectations as
well as stereotype assessments making gender prejudice perpetuate gender inequalities in
admission to learning opportunities. With regards to gender roles in international peacekeeping
operations, Davies (2022) argues that through the decades, ideas of gender roles and women
specifically restricted them from several aspects in the line of peacekeeping. At the intra-
organizational level, the implicit prejudice can influence the assessment of employees’
productivity and efficiency, decisions on staff promotions, and even distribution of work
(Schmidt & Batia, 2020). For example, leadership roles or challenging assignments may not be
offered to women, or they may not be considered suitable for the roles or may be thought to be
too busy to undertake the roles. The self-organized bias frequently intertwines with the other
types of discrimination based on race, age or disability, which makes them compound and
challenging to overcome. This interconnectivity implies that even if one is a member of several
such categories, the social inequality is further experienced to a climax thus making the pursuit
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of real gender equity a precursor. According to Ahmed (2020), the problem with most
organizations is that they have complied with diversity and inclusion training but fail to address
the core issues. Hearing specific training programs could help raise awareness, whereas they
often fail to deliver the subsequent actions required to create fresh change processes. To
overcome these challenges one has to go beyond teaching individuals to recognize stereotypes
and biases, but to also offer solutions that could eliminate and reverse the impacts of these
prejudices. For example, candidates’ details such as age, gender, and race can be removed during
the hiring process to lower the chances of bias. Compliance with the multiple-biased-interviewer
technique helps avoid immediate hiring of candidates with some traits in a particular
interviewer’s disposition. Another equity audit can be made on a regular basis to find out that
disparity exists in the payment of employees or promotional opportunities and other privileges
given to them to ensure that the company has a policy or procedure that will prevent
discrimination. These audits hence entail; assessment of the organizations’ data to identify
patterns of inequality and also proffer substantial interventions. Further, creating a culture of
diversity in the organization can be thereby helpful in getting people to change their ways as well
as become more diverse in their approach.
IV. Inadequate resources allocation
One of the main issues that continue to be observed in many IOs is the insufficient financing of
gender mainstreaming activities. This falls not only in the category of financial capital but also
human capital, time, and even organizational attention. Hence Baker (2019) notes that many
organizations have entered into committing to providing gender equality in the workplace in
terms of policy though these are implemented and often underfunded or staffed by junior
personnel of little decision-making power. For example, the World Health Organization has
experienced difficulty in guaranteeing steady funding for gendered health agendas in programs
of work and regions (Bennett, 2021). Along the same vein, Campbell (2020) observes that in
many UN agencies, key personnel with the responsibility of implementing gender mainstreaming
are supposed to do it in their spare time without promotion or even allowance. Such a situation
thereby hampers gender mainstreaming efforts and also contributes to the lack of sustainability
of the measures being implemented in organizations. Lack of funding means that Gender
mainstreaming goals and agenda may not be fully implemented or may even remain on the
drawing board. Where those who are responsible for gender mainstreaming are celebrating many
heirs or have low rank in the company, they might not be in a position to fight for the changes
that need to be made or for the inclusion of gender perspective in other strategies within the
organization. In addition, these positions may be limited by time and remuneration; this means
that, those holding these positions may get burned out and thus leading to high turnover rates, all
these contributing to the instability of gender mainstreaming. Besides, according to Evans
(2021), the problem is that usually, there are in gender equality strategies set high goals but low
provisions that can be used to achieve them. This can create a culture in which gender
mainstreaming is merely the ‘doing of the right thing’, or just another chore that has to be gone
through without first critically considering how one’s endeavors may be perpetuating gender
Page 14 of 25
inequality. If the organizations do not supplement their commitments to gender equality with
sufficiently robust supports, then these initiatives may be perceived as mere meaningless
gestures instead of ; fundamental parts of the organization’s purpose. Meeting this challenge
entails not just raising the overall level of resources that are devoted to gender mainstreaming but
also the directing of resources. This thus entails; incorporating the issue of gender into the
general process of budget implementation in organizational activities. For example, there should
be sound and well-protected sources for gender equality, which means that funding for such
programs and projects, for instance, budget lines, should not be easily shifted or alienated.
5. Interconnectivity in gender mainstreaming
I. Addressing multiple forms of discrimination
The centrality of linking has emerged as a critical aspect of gender mainstreaming since
international organizations seek to achieve the complexity of discrimination and inequality.
Interconnectivity accepts the possibility of multiple oppressions by which people experience
prejudice depending on their gender, race, class, sexual orientation, ability, and age. Ahmed
(2020) claims that in the existing gender mainstreaming practices, multiple identities are not
considered to be integrated, and thus, the policies and programs are implemented in a way that
can ignore or even deepen the positions of women’s marginalization. The UNHCR has also
incorporated interconnectivity in the protection of refugee women especially in cases of
disability or ethnicity, where they suffer multiple forms of discrimination (Adams, 2022). For
example, interventions aimed at combating the plight of refugee women with disabilities have to
be designed with consideration of multidimensional aspect of their suffering which includes their
gender, refugee status as well as their disability whether physical or mental. Likewise, the
International Labor Organization (ILO) has started to consider these interwoven issues that affect
working women in the informal economy and how they suffer the multiple kinds of
discriminations based on the color of their skin, their race, or ethnicity, as well as their gender
and poverty status (Campbell, I, 2020). Women involved in informal economy activities
involving; cleaning services, or hawking merchandise on the streets are often without legal rights
and social privileges hence exposed to various injustices. Nevertheless, the process of defining
interconnectivity at the practical level is not easy. According to Evans (2021), it is not easy to
establish indicators and the means of collecting data for discriminations experienced by different
groups in organizations. This is a problem because the currently used apparatuses for data
collection are based on the single-axis logic and do not account for the intersectional nature of
discrimination. Furthermore, it is quite a common issue to face certain conflicts concerning the
identification of the particular, intersecting needs on the one hand, and the general gender-based
programming on the other hand. Mitigating these needs calls for equitable consideration or shifty
programs as needed to address both needs among the clients. Nonetheless, increased coupling
promises a better way of gender mainstreaming than what has hitherto obtained in our
institutions of learning. With understanding all these aspects of discrimination, the international
Page 15 of 25
organizations will be in a position to come up with policies that will address various aspects of
discriminations with appropriate solutions that would deal with all forms of discriminations
affecting all women.
II. Inclusive policy-making processes
The enhancement of systematic policy participation practices has commensurately been
established as a; practical solution for interconnectivity of the policies in gender mainstreaming.
This saves time and energy and guarantees the inclusion of the needs and opinions of everyone
involved in offering the policies right from the conceptual stage to the operational stage and
evaluation stage. Currently, the United Nations Development Program has taken measures
towards accomplishing this by involving a large number of stakeholders groups such as grass
root women organizations concerning representatives of vulnerable groups (Khan, 2022).
Likewise, the World Bank has adopted consultation processes in order to make sure that its
gender polices favor the needs for women across all the socio-economic settings (Jacobs, 2021).
Nevertheless, several difficulties are observed in the possibility of making these processes really
inclusive and effective. Baker (2019) points out that there is a tendency of reinforcement of
power relations in consultative practices with a substantiated voice on the side of bigger and / or
better-funded organizations. This can depend vise other smaller groups and curtail their influence
on policy making decisions. Furthermore, one can identify a definite discrepancy between the
rather triumphant announcements of policy-making for diverse communities and the real input
those communities get in the policy-making process. Such a situation can thus lead to a
development of policies that may not fully capture the peculiarities of needs of any of the
involved groups. Adams (2022) stresses that the opportunity to be heard also means that the
concerned people shall have influence within relevant decision-making processes. This hence
entails; partnership in decision-making and also the creation of ways that ensure that
disadvantaged people have substantial control over the outcomes of decisions. Thus, decision
makers in such systems should comprise of members from the various groups and clear
mechanisms have to be developed to demonstrate how the opinions of these groups have been
taken into consideration. Nevertheless, inclusion policy is still one of the key instruments for
interconnection and also gender mainstreaming if it takes into account the necessity therefore to
respond to the multifaceted context of gender injustice. As a result, international organizations
will be able to come up with policies that contain more equity and efficiency too not to mention
the fact that this is in conjunction with sustainable advancement in the escalation of gender
inequality.
III. Diverse representation in decision-making
There needs to be women and men as decision-makers adequately to handle the issues of
interconnectivity in gender mainstreaming. This goes beyond just getting more roles filled by
women, but by making sure that such women for those roles possess the right background. The
United Nations has made good progress of increasing the diversity in terms of gender as well as
regional distribution of its top posts (Abdullah, 2021). The advancement in the use of qualitative
Page 16 of 25
data has however been observed to have different rates of implementation in different agencies,
and organizational structures. Moreover, in the international financial institutions Green (2020)
opines that whereas there has been effort in enhancing female directors on the executive board,
the issues of diversity are still apparent most especially in the female directors hailing from the
developing nations or the abbreviated female directors. This was a challenge that brought out the
need to go for the diversity and not just the tokenism where minority was represented by token
individuals yet they had No say in decision making bodies. In the same vein, Campbell (2020)
reminds, that companies’ attempts to include women or representatives of minorities into
institutions is a positive step, but if the surrounding organizational culture and relations remain
unchanged, then the result will be hardly revolutionary. It is not enough to promote people to
decision-makers while their views are not taken into account in organizational plans.
Additionally, Ahmed (2020) explains the dilemma of demanding multicultural representation
and the fact that there are always conditions that benefit representatives with certain kinds of
experience or knowledge. To overcome these issues recruitment and promotion policies need to
apply diversity practices and in addition, ideas should be implemented on how to support
diversity within organizations. Managers are required to engage social actors in a way that grants
their input equal value to that of any other member of that society so that all inputs contribute to
the final decision. This entails the process of ever so consciously tearing down obstacles to
integration. Therefore, although progress in the diversification of decision-making bodies has
been established, the work goes on in pursuit of actual power on the part of diverse
representatives. Such a strategy will make it possible to incorporate gender mainstreaming and
produce more pluralist results for international organizations given that interconnectivity can
comprehensively tackle issues of minorities.
IV. Culturally sensitive approaches
It was deemed necessary to come up with the culturally sensitive ways of undertaking a gender
mainstreaming as the international organizations began to appreciate complexities of translating
gender equality objectives across various cultures. It has also been noted that gender is
profoundly integrated into cultural activities and values, implying that if targeting gender
mainstream, cultural aspects should be accounted for. For instance, UNESCO has introduced
new culturally appropriate strategies for gender equity in education since it has worked with the
indigenous people and other cultural leaders to champion girls’ education (Vega, 2022).
According to Evans (2021) when implementing development projects especially in other
countries, it is important to engage those who are conversant with the cultural practices regarding
gender relations. However, the provision of culturally appropriate measures is ambiguous,
especially where there is conflict between imposed universalism of gender equality and the
agency’s cultural context. According to O’Connor (2020), there is a pendulum of tension in
which international organizations try to balance between cultural relativism and human rights
libertarianism. In addition, reversing the equality of the sexes and males there is a possibility to
consider so called ‘culture’ as a reason for discrimination. To overcome these challenges, one
requires engaging in diplomacy and discussions while noting that culture is a constantly
Page 17 of 25
changing factor. This approach is described by Campbell (2020), who makes points about the
need to promote positive changes of culture that are in a positive way linked with gender while at
the same time rejecting negative cultural practices that are against gender equality. It focuses on
situations and conditions that can take into consideration and at the same time being culturally
sensitive to the different places in the world to achieve the objectives of empowering women. In
any case the use of culturally appropriate measures is thus a new way in gender mainstreaming,
which therefore introduces people to the understanding of the increased variation in gender
inequality. Using local contacts and supporting cultural differences, talking to people,
international organizations should strive to find more efficient and enduring ways of fighting for
women’s rights all over the world. In this way, gender mainstreaming not only increases the
efficiency of gender-related projects and initiatives but also transforms global human rights and
social justice initiatives as a whole.
6. Future directions and innovations
I. Technology-driven solutions
The inclusion of IT solutions into promotion of gender equality initiatives is thereby currently an
emerging area for international organizations. That is; these enhancements can thereof possibly
improve the data collection process, facilitate implementation of programs as well as the
coverage and also effectiveness of gender mainstreaming. For instance, the International
Telecommunication Union has continued to be very instrumental when it comes to exploiting the
use of technology in elimination of gender digital divides through the use of big data analytics to
detect inequality trends in Information and communication technologies (ICT) in terms of gender
(Zhang, 2019). In the same manner, the World Food Program has made use of block chain
technology in the transfer of secure cash to women within the contexts of improving on their
plight of economic autonomy (Quinn, 2020). AI and also machine learning approaches are thus
seen as valuable applied to gender mainstreaming and hence to gender bias detection in
organizations’ processes as well as decisions. These technologies can predict from big data for
different bias and come up with better practices that are less biased. However, as Ahmed (2020)
has noted, there are disadvantage of using technologies in implementing gender mainstream.
Issues like data protection, manipulation of the algorithms, worsening the inequality gap, and
many more are the matters of concern which should not be overlooked. That is why; if
technology is not made available to all, it may even serve to increase the gap even further.
Furthermore, Evans (2021) supports that with the help of technology, it is possible to reach a
broader audience but technology should not exclude qualified professionals and the approach
that should take into consideration the context of gender-related problems. It is here that the use
of technology interventions is only going to work when it is ‘linked’ and embedded into the
context of care, the communities it is operating in. Nevertheless the prospects for the technology
to transform the delivery of the gender mainstreaming strategies are thus quite promising. It
therefore provides effective approaches to collecting and also analyzing data by sex, gender as
Page 18 of 25
well as organizing interventions, and hence tracking progress in achieving gender equality.
Technological integration enhances inclusiveness that can be adopted by international
organizations in addressing gender equality and woman’s empowerments the different fields. In
the end, the use of technology for achieving gender mainstreaming goals will be thereby critical
and hence should be done incorporating appropriate technology for sustainable use.
II. Partnerships with civil society
It has become a practice to focus on the involvement of civil society actors in the implementation
of gender mainstreaming interventions with a view of improving the operations and
accountability of international organizations has emerged. These partnerships can offer the
necessary grass-root view, context knowledge, and execution which are crucial in gender equity
projects. For instance, United Nations development program has recently shifted focus on
multilateral partnerships and engagements with women’s rights organizations due to their close
correlation with the advancement of progressive changes (Khan, 2022). In the same way, the
World Bank has broadened its partnership with CSOs in the definition and in the delivery of
gender-sensitive initiatives, with the purpose to take advantage of existing knowledge and
connections locally (Jacobs, 2021). But, these strategic partnerships thus entail some unique
problems on the table. Baker (2019) explained that violence often prevails where and when the
scales are faster tilted in the direction of major IOs as opposed to the relatively weaker LINGOs,
they end up in mere showcase that is Partnership rather than a genuine collaborative effort. There
remain therefore common tensions between the formal structures and procedures essential in
large international organizations and the fast, adaptive strategies use in civil society
organizations. This can result to lack of easier working relations thus hinders implementation of
goals and objectives. According to Campbell (2020), for partnerships to work, they cannot just
be funded, but also require decision making responsibilities divided as well as modification of
practices to accommodate the partnership. This may take form in weakening structures to adjust
with the flexibility of civil society organizations while making certain that the concerns of these
bodies are indeed included as inputs into authorities’ choice-making structures. Nevertheless, it
is crucial to continue partnership with civil society for gender mainstreaming in view of the fact
that they are much closer to the society thus able to understand the different needs of the women
and other marginalized groups. Through strategically building such partnerships, the
international organizations can thereof ensure effectiveness of their gender equality programs
and also at the same time, deliver long-term and thus beneficial results for all parties involved
within the community. Thus, the enhancement of these partnerships will be essential for
progressing the international promotion of gender equality in the most efficient and revolutionary
way.
III. Men's engagement in gender equality
Thus, male involvement in gender equality processes has become more recognized as an
essential focus of the gender mainstream approach. This approach therefore understands that
eradicating gender disparities in the provision of services entails the realignment of the gender
Page 19 of 25
structure, hence engaging men and also women. Likewise, the International Labor Organization
has also established programs that sought to involve the male population in the fight for
women’s rights and gender equality at the workplace, given the fact that they usually are capable
of being Influencers in this area (Campbell, 2020). Nonetheless, getting men involved in gender
equality related activities come with the following difficulties. Then you have anti-feminist
males who feel threatened every time a man’s right is removed, as is the case with gender
equality; and secondly, you have the feminists who are against males joining any groups that are
started by women. In his view, proper approaches have to be adopted for engaging males in the
fight for better gender parity to call for attention to the war on any gender parity issue yet
maintaining the dominance of women in the fight against gender inequalities. Furthermore, as
Evans (2021) noted, it is for this reason that the cookie-cutter approach with regard to the
handling of gender issues where men are portrayed as oppressive and all the while are portrayed
as having no understanding of gender issues due to their social class or color must be done away
with. It can be suggested that integration of interventions into specific settings and communities
can improve the efficiency of such programs. Nevertheless, the increasing attention given to
interest in male participation has been a progressive advancement towards the extended and
normalized involvement in gender mainstreaming. Thus, engaging men and also boys in the
discussions about gender equality and thus the processes of its achievement, organizations would
thereby contribute to the development of more equal relations between genders. This
engagement is therefore crucial for the long-term forgiveness of positive changes to gender
equality as well as people of all genders in societies.
IV. Sustainable Development Goals alignment
There is a trend for linking Gender Mainstreaming initiatives with the Sustainable Development
Goals, as most International Organizations claim that gender equality and sustainable
development are interdependent processes. Within the mentioned section, goal number 5 relates
to the subjects of gender inequalities, while concerns related to gender are also inherent to most
of the goals set. UNDP has been advancing in incorporating gender analyses in all its SDG work,
because it sees gender equality both as goal on its own and as enabler of all other development
goals (Khan, 2022). In the same vein, the FAO elevates gender equality as vital in enhancing
food security and promoting sustainable agriculture; thus, mainstreaming the promotion of the
gender goals of both SDG 2, which is about hunger eradication, and SDG 5, which focuses on
gender equality. Nevertheless, there are still difficulties in executing this correspondence in a
completely effective manner. In Young’s (2021) opinion, engaging in the SDG framework and
thinking this way, it is sometimes possible to strive toward easier and more number-based goals
neglecting the important roots of gender inequality. This could thus partly explain why this view
is just obsessed with measurable impacts, whereas the complex issues call for thorough analysis
and also radical approaches. Furthermore, as Ahmed (2020) stated, general nature of most of the
SDG targets can sometimes water down specific goals on gender equality hence making it
challenging to implement specific and strategic measures. To tackle these issues, it is therefore
crucial to achieve a proper approach to gender sensitive or gender mainstreaming and hence
Page 20 of 25
development strategies encompassing more complex multi-sectorial methods of sustainable
development approaches. It entails the obligation to not only monitor separate Gender-Specific
Indicators but also to study and address Gender-Sensitive Factors on the societal, economic, and
cultural levels. While these challenges pose a complex task for implementing gender
mainstreaming together with the SDGs; this effort can be thereby considered as a major
opportunity to improve the consistency as well as effectiveness of the measures in the field of
gender equality in the framework of the international development agenda. Through the
integration of gender perspectives into every intervention in the course of implementing the
SDGs, there would be better and improved chances of developing sustainably and becoming
more inclusive to people of all gender.
Page 21 of 25
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