Promoting Gender-Responsive
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Peacebuilding Sustaining Peace PROMOTING GENDER-RESPONSIVE APPROACHES TO NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT FOR PEACE IN NORTH KORDOFAN, SUDAN The contents of this volume do not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations Environment Programme, UN Women or UNDP. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expressions of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the United Nations Environment Programme, UN Women or UNDP concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder provided acknowledgement of the source is made. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose whatsoever without prior permission in writing from the United Nations Environment Programme, UN Women and UNDP. This project was funded the by Government of Finland; however the views expressed in this report do not necessarily reflect official policy of the Government of Finland. Cover Image: © UN Environment Design and layout: Claudia Zimerman First published in March 2019 © 2019, United Nations Environment Programme, UN Women and UNDP PROMOTING GENDER-RESPONSIVE APPROACHES TO NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT FOR PEACE IN NORTH KORDOFAN, SUDAN Acronyms and Abbreviations CEAP Community Environmental Action Planning CMC Community Management Committee (C2SP) C2SP Community Security and Stabilization Programme IDP Internally Displaced Persons JP Joint Project NRM Natural Resource Management NGO Non-Governmental Organization PBSO United Nations Peacebuilding Support Office UN United Nations UNAMID African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur UNDP United Nations Development Programme UN Environment United Nations Environment Programme UN Women United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women 4 FINAL REPORT DECEMBER 2018 Table of Contents Acronyms and Abbreviations 4 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7 CONTEXT 15 Increasing conflict over natural resources 17 Shifting gender roles and increasingly female communities 18 THE PROJECT 21 Objectives 23 Approach 24 Activities 25 Livelihoods component 25 Governance component 26 Conflict prevention and resolution component 29 Documentation and knowledge management component 31 Overview of Project Activities 33 RESULTS 35 Project outcomes 35 Livelihoods 37 Governance 39 Conflict Prevention and Resolution 42 Documentation and Knowledge Management 44 Uptake and Sustainability of Results 45 CASE STUDIES 49 I. The gender dynamics of shifting migratory patterns among pastoralist groups 49 II. The ripple security impacts of climate change: from traditional livelihoods 52 to artisanal mining GOOD PRACTICES AND LESSONS LEARNED 55 Thematic/Programmatic 55 Operational 57 Monitoring and Evaluation 58 5 FINAL REPORT DECEMBER 2018 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Photo credit : UN Environment The Joint Project “Promoting Gender-Responsive The pilot project, which built on interventions Approaches to Natural Resource Management for conducted under the UNDP’s Community Security Peace” was the first pilot project established by and Stabilization Programme (C2SP), started in the global Joint Programme on Women, Natural October 2016 and ended in October 2018. It was Resources and Peace, which aims to promote supported with a USD 300,000 grant* from the natural resource-based interventions as a tool for Government of Finland, and jointly managed and women’s political and economic empowerment implemented by the Sudan country offices of in peacebuilding contexts. UNDP, UN Environment and UN Women. 7 FINAL REPORT DECEMBER 2018 Climate change, conflict and increasingly female communities The Joint Project of UNDP, UN Environment and migration can now extend far longer, especially for UN Women on Promoting Gender-Responsive young and unmarried men. This has resulted in a Approaches to Natural Resource Management for significant increase in female-headed households, Peace was implemented in the locality of Al Rahad a phenomenon largely recognized by traditional in North Kordofan State, Sudan, a community beset leaders and elders as the “new normal”. by climate-related environmental degradation and increasing conflicts over natural resources. This feminization of the resident population is further compounded by the increasing seden- The effects of climate change have generally been tarization of some of the pastoralist groups, reflected in increasing temperatures, significant which are not only staying in the area for longer variability and uneven distribution of rainfall, periods of time, but often also splitting, leaving wind storms and localized drought, which have women and children behind in Al Rahad while contributed to crop failure, soil degradation men continue along their migration route. and water scarcity. In addition to undermin- Sedentarized pastoralist groups – largely women ing agricultural productivity, these factors have – typically turn to the land to generate income, impacted pastoralist movements. Along with the renting fields from the local community to graze closure of cattle routes in South Kordofan due their sheep and goats or to produce small crops. to conflict and the expansion of mechanized agriculture, resource depletion has concentrated Despite their significant roles in natural resource cattle in Al Rahad and increased the length of management, women (across all socio-economic time that pastoralist groups stay in the area. and ethnic grounds) have generally been margin- alized economically and politically, and have not While other drivers of conflict play an important been engaged in the existing conflict resolution role as well, escalating tensions between differ- mechanisms that address disputes and griev- ent groups of resource users making demands ances over natural resources. Community-level on an increasingly degraded environment have structures that are typically involved in the contributed to the outbreak of violent conflict in management of natural resources and resolu- the area with increasing frequency and worsen- tion of conflicts, such as the traditional native ing outcomes. According to Al Rahad’s Conflict administration and the popular committees have Mediation and Peacebuilding Center, the area either not included women at all (native admin- witnessed 9 violent conflicts between July 2016 istration) or included them to some degree and April 2018, resulting in 24 deaths. Five of those (popular committees), but not on matters related events and 15 of those deaths took place in a to conflict resolution. For example, women have single month, between 11 March and 13 April 2018. traditionally not been part of the Jodeya or mediation mechanisms set up by communities to In addition to violent conflict, the impacts of address conflicts and tensions at their level. The climate change and environmental degradation roles of nomadic women in formal decision-mak- are contributing to important shifts in the social ing or community management processes are composition of Al Rahad, which are manifested particularly limited due to cultural taboos and in a marked feminization of local communities. high rates of illiteracy. As a result of the economic hardships caused by faltering traditional livelihoods, men in the community, especially younger men, have increas- ingly been migrating to the capital Khartoum, to join agricultural schemes in White Nile State and Gezira State, or to participate in gold mining operations in other parts of the country. Originally lasting only for the fallow months, the period of * This grant was supplemented with in-kind contributions from the three partners, as well as the Implementing Partner, Vet-Care Organization. UNDP also made significant efforts to capitalize on synergies with the C2SP programme activities in the area. FINAL REPORT DECEMBER 2018 The Project Recognizing the prevailing situation linked to In order to strengthen community governance conflict, environmental degradation and related and management of natural resources in ways social shifts in Al Rahad, the project undertook that contribute to conflict prevention, the project targeted interventions to ensure that women supported communities in Al Rahad – as repre- from all groups were supported to exercise their sented by an expanded Community Management agency in local planning and decision-making Committee comprised of 50% of women – to processes governing the use of natural resources undertake a collective Community Environmental and to strengthen their role in the prevention Action Planning process (Component 2). During and resolution of natural resource-based con- this process, representatives from different flicts. Building on and complementing the C2SP’s groups jointly analyzed natural resource chal- interventions, the project sought to achieve three lenges, developed an action plan, and imple- specific outcomes: mented concrete solutions to prioritized prob- lems. The process was key not only to building (->) STRENGTHEN WOMEN’S ECONOMIC women’s skills for sound governance of natural EMPOWERMENT THROUGH NATURAL RESOURCE- resources, but also to demonstrating their leader- BASED LIVELIHOODS; ship and conflict resolution potential. (->) STRENGTHEN WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION IN In addition, the pilot project specifically sought RESOURCE GOVERNANCE THROUGH COMMUNITY to strengthen women’s capacities for conflict ENVIRONMENTAL