Gender Analysis Project
Most people understand that men and women do not occupy equal positions in society and continuing differences in the responsibilities assumed by women and men in home, family and community life translate into vastly different life experiences. Gender is a critical issue in understanding the social and economic context in which policies, programs and legislation are constructed.
Increasing gender equity relies on careful consideration of the differences in women's and men's lives and recognition that different approaches may be required to produce equitable outcomes. There are many different realities for women in South Australia. These realities are derived not only from gender, but also from age, race, class, national and ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, language and religion.
It is increasingly important to build and strengthen partnerships among women and between women and men, and among universities, community groups, non-government organisations, the private sector and all levels of government as shifting resources demand more effective and informed policy options.
There is plenty of international evidence to show that applying effective models of gender analysis results in better policy and programs and stronger cross sector partnerships.
The Project
The Office for Women has been successful in gaining an Australian Research Council (ARC) Grant to develop a self-assessment audit tool focussed on Gender Analysis (GA). The Grant will fund the project for three years. This tool will provide a means for Government agencies to ensure they are meeting the needs of all of its citizens and will explore, develop and refine techniques for making public policy gender-inclusive and therefore effective.
GA does not exclude other forms of analysis, nor is it an add-on. It is the process of integrating consideration of gender factors into every stage of policy development and analysis. The project will involve researchers from The University of Adelaide and from Western Australia (Associate Professor Carol Bacchi and Dr Joan Eveline). The researchers will assess the current literature on gender analysis and develop a draft policy framework to pilot.
The project will involve cooperation between the Office for Women in South Australia and the Women's Policy Office in Western Australia. It is proposed to trial a gender impact assessment tool for use in three government agencies in each state (SA and WA). The project will result in three main outputs: a set of conceptual tools for gender analysis, a practical guide for evaluating policy at the design phase, and an in-house training component.
Gender Analysis Toolkits
Two toolkits are being trialled as part of the Gender Analysis Project.
They are entitled (click to download):
- Gender Analysis: Implementing the Canadian Model (pdf 132kb)
- Gender Impact Assessment: Implementing the Netherlands Model (pdf 134kb)
If you require any additional information on Gender Analysis or the Gender Analysis Project, please do not hesitate to contact the Office for Women.
ALTERNATIVE FORMATS: If you require an alternative format in Braille, large print or audio, please telephone (08) 8303 0961 or email officeforwomen@agd.sa.gov.au.
PLEASE NOTE: To download the pdf format documents you will require the latest version of Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. This can be downloaded free of charge from the Adobe site www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep.html (external website)
