December 2005 Special Issue GENDER AND THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS It has now been five years since the landmark United Nations Millennium Declara- Contents tion and related Development Goals (MDGs), wad adopted by Member States. The Declaration is a blueprint for action and has created a political momentum which holds great potential not only for improving the rights and empowerment of GENDER and the Millen- nium Development Goals women, but more fundamentally for achieving the MDGs. The targets and indica- tors represent concrete benchmarks to measure progress on the eight development What are the Millennium goals. Development Goals? The 2000 Millennium Declaration commits States to promote gender equality and Engendering the MDGs the empowerment of women as effective ways to combat poverty, hunger, disease and to stimulate development that is truly sustainable. CARICOM Progress The acknowledgement that the achievement of women’s rights and equality is cen- and the MDGs tral to the achievement of social and economic development is a significant achieve- ment. This issue of Gender Dialogue, looks at gender equality and women’s em- powerment and the achievement of the MDGs. What are the Millennium Development Goals? The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) – which range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, by the target date of 2015 – form a blueprint for tackling critical issues facing developing countries – poverty, hunger, inadequate education, gender inequality, child and maternal mortality, HIV/AIDS and environmental degradation. The MDGs have galvanized international efforts to strengthen cooperation to meet the needs of the world’s poorest. “The Goals are underpinned by the comprehensive approach to development framed by the agreements reached at the world summits held by the United Nations in the 1990s. They are derived from the Millennium declaration, which is even broader in scope and proposes that action be taken to build consensus in such crucial areas as peace, security and disarmament, human rights, democracy and good governance”. (Jose Luis Machinea, Executive Secretary, ECLAC). “The power of the MDGs lies in the unprecedented global consensus and commitment that they represent. They establish a common index of progress, and a common focus for global partnership for development, which emphasize the needs of poor people. The MDGs also provide an opportu- nity to raise awareness about the connections among the eight Goals and the rights and capacities of women”. (Noeleen Heyzer, UNIFEM). Page 2 Issue No. 17 Engendering the MDGs Gender inequality remains a portunities for advancing gen- ity’ (UN 2000b, 10), as demon- ‘more work needs to be done, major obstacle to meeting the der-equality initiatives in that it strated in the low level of re- at every level, to create the MDG targets in most develop- provides an international ena- sources, both financial and enabling environment envi- ing countries. In fact, achieving bling environment with which human allocated to national sioned in the Platform for Ac- the goals will be impossible to hold governments and do- machineries. tion, in which women’s rights without closing the gaps be- nor agencies accountable for Problems such as the lack of are recognized as an indispen- tween women and men in gender responsive results. resources and lack of account- sable part of human rights and terms of capacities, access to What is important about the ability for the implementation women as well as men have the resources and opportunities, MDGs framework is that for of the gender mainstreaming opportunity to realize their full and vulnerability to violence every Goal, there is direction mandate to ensure equity in potential. and conflict. on gender equality that exists public sector delivery at na- This uneven progress results In the Caribbean despite the in the core human rights trea- tional level are obstacles to from a complex set of condi- entrenched gender inequalities, ties. Engendering the MDGs achieving Goal 3, and have tions that lie at the heart of there has been noticeable pro- therefore requires that ongoing emerged in many progress women’s inequality. The struc- gress towards the achievement connections are made between reports on efforts to imple- tures that perpetuate gender of gender equality particularly the Goals and other global ment these agreements. For inequality and discrimination in the areas of educational at- agreements, such as the Beijing example, the five-year review pervade economic, social, po- tainment, employment and Declaration and Platform for of progress in implementing litical, cultural, legal, and civic health care. During the past Action and the Vienna Decla- the Beijing Platform, held in institutions, norms, and prac- three decades legislative ration, CEDAW and the Cairo June 2000, showed that the tices around the world. The changes coupled with policy Programme of Action of the path to progress was one know-how and investments changes have resulted in a International Conference on where on the one hand there required to eliminate them are marked improvement in the Population and Development was significant improvement in rarely committed, especially in situation and status of women. (ICPD). The majority of States the social and economic status poor countries. The political Although the concerns of are already under formal, legal of women, yet on the other will required to achieve gender women are more visible, many obligations to realise gender hand new and emerging issues, equality is variable, or alto- challenges remain which ham- equality, particularly those as well as the lack of gender gether lacking. (Noeleen per the full attainment of gen- states that have ratified CE- responsive policies were ham- Heyzer – UNIFEM) der equity and equality. DAW. In this respect, CARI- pering women’s progress. In order to bring about the Women are still the major vic- COM is the first region where required transformation politi- tims of economic and social every country have ratified the cal commitment at the highest CEDAW Convention. As the Secretary-General’s disadvantage as expressed in report states: ‘an improved international and national lev- the higher numbers of women In keeping with their commit- understanding of gender equal- els is integral to the implemen- living in poverty, their under- ments to implementation of ity does not necessarily auto- tation of policies to effect representation in the political these agreements, and in recog- matically translate into gender meaningful changes in the allo- process and their segregation nition of the relevance of gen- equality in practice. Despite cation of resources, which in the labour market in low der to national development progress, the persistence of would result invisible changes paying jobs. CARICOM governments have traditional and stereotypical in the distribution of power, The inclusion of goals and all established national machin- gender roles, often reinforced opportunity and social change targets in the MDGs of interest eries for the advancement of by legal and/or institutional necessary for the achievement to women must therefore be women and gender equality, structures, impedes women’s of gender equality and understood that at the global however despite the espoused empowerment. women’s empowerment. There commitments there are still is therefore need for greater level, there is recognition of the fact that women’s rights many areas of inequalities that commitment towards main- and equality are fundamental to remain problematic. The pro- Although positive actions have streaming gender in the devel- the achievement of economic motion of gender equality con- been taken in almost every opment of national policies and social development priori- tinues to be relegated to a country, the Secretary- and actions in the achievement ties. The MDGs provide op- lower level of national prior- General’s report concludes that of the MDGs. Issue No. 17 Page 3 Gender Equality and the Millennium Development Goals At the core of Goal 3 is an acknowledgement that gender equality and the empowerment of women is achievable with the necessary leadership and political will. The problems of gender inequality are Gender equality is well known, but it remains extremely difficult to translate this knowledge into development policy and practice at the level required to bring about the desired transformation in the distribution of the foundation for power, opportunity and outcomes for women and men. The MDGs with their concrete time-bound the MDGs targets for action provide a glimmer of hope for change. ‘Gender equality and The existence of a separate goal on gender equality is the result of decades of advocacy, research and empowerment of coalition-building at the international concerning the actions to be taken by the global agenda for women’ – Goal 3 of gender equality and women’s human rights. Its very existence demonstrates that the global commu- nity has accepted the centrality of gender equality and women’s empowerment to the development the Millennium paradigm. The Goals are therefore not new but rather build on the development agendas as agreed Development Goals - upon in the Beijing Platform for Action where twelve critical areas for the advancement of gender is at the core of all equality were agreed upon in 1995. The Goals also lend support to the Convention on the Elimina- the MDGs, from tion of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and its Optional Protocol, both of improving health and which are binding Instruments advocating actions to mainstream gender in all areas of life. fighting disease, to The Mexico City Consensus: Paths to Gender Equality (June 2004), also reflects this consensus reducing poverty and building. The full text can be found at mitigating hunger, http://www.eclac.org/publicaciones/UnidadMujer/6/LCG2256/lcl2256i.pdf expanding education and lowering child mortality, increasing CARICOM Progress and the MDGs access to safe water, and ensuring environmental The Caribbean Community (CARICOM ), has used the MDGs as an important tool for the develop- sustainability.