A.

Leadership and Strategic Management

Key Questions for Assessing and Addressing Gender in this Functional Area1
Strategic Planning  Are gender integration and social inclusion taken into account during strategic planning
for programmatic activities?

Leadership  Does management take responsibility for the development and implementation of the
gender equality policy and social inclusion practices?
 Is there a balance of both males and females represented in senior management?
 Are there proactive strategies implemented to recruit or promote females into senior
management positions? Males?
 Does management show respect for diversity in work and management styles?
 Does management promote serious discussion of gender issues by both males and
females?
 Does management encourage balanced participation of males and females in
meetings, planning sessions, and events?

Gender Policy  Does the project office have a written gender equality policy that affirms a commitment
to gender equity and equality?
 Does the gender equality policy have an operational plan that includes clear allocation
of responsibilities and time for M&E?
 Do staff at all levels know about and understand the organizational/project gender
equality policies and objectives?
 Are gender equality policy and goals developed with, understood by, and acceptable to
the majority of staff members?
 Does everyone in the project feel ownership over the gender equality policy?
 Are written versions of gender equality policy and strategy readily available in local
languages?
 Does management have a plan for addressing negative or inappropriate
behavior/language related to gender? Is it implemented?

Staff Attitudes &  Are staff in the organization committed to the implementation of a gender equality
Culture policy?
 Are staff/management just as interested in practical gender integration tools as
addressing attitude and behavior change?
 Are gender and social inclusion issues taken seriously and discussed openly by males
and females in the organization?
 Do both males and females participate fully and take initiatives in the gender
integration and social inclusion processes?
 Is gender primarily understood as a “women’s issue”? Is addressing gender issues
seen as a charitable act towards women?
 Do management and staff encourage gender sensitive and inclusive behavior, for
example in terms of language used, jokes, and comments made?
 Do females and males feel listened to at different levels of the organization?
 What is the attitude towards male/female staff?
 Is the organizational culture conducive to inclusion of females—not militaristic or
bawdy?

1
Some questions were adapted from the following resources: The Gender Audit Questionnaire Handbook (Morris,
Commission on the Advancement of Women, InterAction 2003); Gender Mainstreaming Guide for Afghan Civil Society
Organizations (Azarbaijani-Moghaddam, Counterpart International 2006); Gender Manual: A Practical Guide for
Development Policy Makers and Practitioners (Derbyshire, Department for International Development 2002).
  Are meetings in the organization dominated by male staff? Or by female staff?
 Do males have a much easier time establishing personal and professional networks
within the organization than do females?

B. Project Management and Quality Control

Key Questions for Assessing and Addressing Gender in this Functional Area
Program Design and  Does the Program Design and Planning include participatory planning and
Planning gender/social inclusion analysis?
 Does the organization integrate gender and social inclusion outcomes into
log frame or other planning tools?

Program  Does the organization use gender integration action plans or other work
Implementation & planning tools to ensure social inclusion is considered in workplan
Impact activities?
 To what extent is the organization committed to equal access?
Knowledge  Is quantitative and qualitative gender-specific and relative social inclusion
Management data documented? Is it periodically analyzed?
 Are gender-specific impacts and results documented and shared?
 Is attention to gender issues included in routine systems and procedures
(quarterly, annual, and final reports; appraisal, planning and monitoring
procedures)?
 Does the Knowledge Management system include gender/social inclusion
impact evaluations?

Technical Expertise  Is there a designated gender/social inclusion resource officer,

representative, or focal point? Is the gender representative included in
areas beyond those which are obviously “women’s concerns”?
 Does the project rely on external gender/social inclusion consultants?
 Is there assigned staff responsible for gender integration and social
inclusion in different departments?
 Does the project consistently draw upon a person or division who is
responsible for gender and social inclusion programming?
 Do staff view gender representatives/consultants as “doctors” with a quick
fix in charge of handling all gender issues? Alternatively, do staff view the
responsibility for gender integration and social inclusion as shared?
 Do staff have the necessary knowledge, skills, and attitude to carry out
their work with gender and social inclusion awareness?
 Is there training of project staff in gender and social inclusion planning and
analysis?
 Do staff have access to resources on gender equality, gender integration
and social inclusion?
 Do project planning, M&E, and advisory teams consist of members who
are gender-sensitive?
 Do project planning, M&E, and advisory teams include at least one person
with specific expertise and skills in gender issues and social inclusion?
 Is data disaggregated by identity factors, such as sex and age? If yes,
which ones?
C. Financial Management and Accounting
Key Questions for Assessing and Addressing Gender in this Functional Area
Financial Strategic  Does the analysis of the funding environment include donor trends
Planning related to gender gaps and gender-focused issues?
 Are both females and males included in financial planning discussions?
 Do both females and males participate in evaluations or
organizational assets, skills and capacity?
Proposal Planning,  Do all project proposals begin with a needs assessment, including an
Writing, and Design analysis of gender roles and responsibilities in the targeted beneficiary
community?
 Are participatory methods used to incorporate the views and preferences of
both male and female community members in project design equitably
regardless of age, religion, socio-economic status, education, disability, or
ethnicity?
 Are best practices and lessons learned from past experiences of gender
integration, gender-targeted, and social inclusion programming incorporated
in subsequent project design?
 Are gender-related and social inclusion questions or criterion included in
project proposal approval processes?
 Are gender equality and social inclusion goals and objectives included in
project design?
 Do implementation strategies and plans take into account existing gender
roles and interests of both male and female participants, regardless of age,
religion, socio-economic status, education, disability, or ethnicity?
E. Human and Material Resources
Key Questions for Assessing and Addressing Gender in this Functional Area
Policy  Does the project have a written Equal Opportunities Policy, Sexual
Harassment Policy, or equivalent directives?
 What does this policy cover? How has it been implemented and promoted?
To what extent does it affect practice within the project office?
 Does the project have an anti-discrimination/sexual harassment policy?
What does this policy cover? How has it been implemented and promoted?
To what extent does it affect practice within the project office?
 Do female staff have recourse to management where they can safely voice
their views and concerns?
 Do male staff have recourse to management where they can safely voice
their views and concerns?
 Does the project require commitment to gender equality, gender integration,
and social inclusion as part of the condition of their employment and the
responsibility of their work?

Benefits  What are the sex disaggregated statistics regarding male/female wages?
 Do both males and females receive equivalent compensation for equivalent
work?
 What are the sex disaggregated statistics regarding male/female promotion
and retention?
 Are there flexible work arrangements in the project? Is staff encouraged to
take advantage of flexible work arrangements?
 Do compensation packages include parental leave policies for both males
and females?
 Is there a child care and dependent care leave policy?
 Does the project offer paid or unpaid sick leave? Can sick leave be used for
a child or dependent (elderly or other family member)?
 Does the project offer subsidies for daycare? Is there access to on-site
daycare?

Staff Recruitment &  Is sensitivity to gender issues and/or responsibility for gender integration
Promotion included in job descriptions? Assessed at interview?
 Is sensitivity to gender issues and social inclusion assessed and monitored
at performance appraisals?
 What are the numbers of men and women at each level? According to
role/sector (i.e., technical, policy, management, and field posts)?
Field/practice area?
 Are women and men equally represented in senior management positions?
Have there been any changes in the past five years? Ten years?
 Is management committed to promoting female representation at senior
levels of the program?
 Are men and women equally represented in the “hard” technical or
macroeconomic areas, or is there disproportionate female representation in
 the “soft” areas of social policy or social intervention (education, health,
small income-generating projects)?
 Are women disproportionately represented in work areas related to
traditional feminine skills such as the domestic (cleaning and cooking)?
 Do female managers and directors represent the program equally with men
in high-level meetings and events? Is the face of the program predominantly
male or operate in male circles? (Or the reverse?)
 Are there proactive strategies implemented to recruit or promote women
into senior management positions? To recruit women and men into areas
where there is a lack of gender equity or diversity?
 Is good performance in the field of gender equality valued in the program?
Training &  Is there training of senior management and members of boards in
Development institutionalizing the integration of gender equality into the management of
the program?
 Does the program promote teamwork, involving both men and women as
equal partners?

Facilities &  Do men and women require the use of separate spaces or facilities? If so,
Equipment are the accommodations equitable? Are the rooms equally equipped? Are
the spaces in similar conditions?
 Have both men and women been consulted about space and material
needs?
 Are resources distributed without regard to gender?
 Do both men and women have equal access to materials and resources?
Do they have access to the same spaces in the office? Are there areas that
are designated (formally or informally) as “just for men” or “just for women”?
F. External Relationships & Communications
Key Questions for Assessing and Addressing Gender in this Functional Area
Communications,  Are gender equality and social inclusion considerations incorporated in the
Advocacy, and project’s communications, fundraising, and media strategies?
Media  Were communications and media strategies informed by information
collected during a gender and/or social inclusion analysis?
 Have differences in access to information by males and females been
considered in the dissemination of information?
 Have differences in access to information by persons with disabilities,
language variation, and literacy been considered in the dissemination of
information?
 Are gender, language, and literacy considerations reflected in publications
(i.e., books, brochures, newsletters)?
 Are public relations campaigns and initiatives planned and informed by a
gender equality and social inclusion perspective?
 Were public relations campaigns and initiatives informed by information
collected during a gender and/or social inclusion analysis?
 Are public relations policies and plans influenced and advised by women’s
organizations, networks and gender experts?
 Are public relations policies and plans influenced and advised by
organizations, networks and experts that focus on marginalized and
vulnerable populations?
 Are advocacy campaigns and initiatives planned and informed by a gender
equality and social inclusion perspective?
 Are advocacy policies and plans influenced and advised by women’s
organizations, networks and gender experts?
 Are advocacy policies and plans influenced and advised by organizations,
networks and experts that focus on marginalized and vulnerable
populations?

Partnership  Is commitment to gender equity and equality, as well as social inclusion,

Development criteria in the program’s selection of partner or local CSO affiliates?
 Is a gender policy included in the written agreements outlining the project’s
relationship with partner or local CSO affiliates?
 Does the project provide training and tools on gender integration planning,
analysis, and evaluation to partner or local CSO affiliate staff?