Gender Sensitivity...

“If someone believes they are limited by their gender, race or background, they will become more limited.”

Gender sensitivity is the act of being aware of the ways people think about gender so that individuals rely less on assumptions about traditional and outdated views on the roles of men and women.

The phrase ‘gender sensitivity’ is perhaps an unfortunate piece of jargon, but it is convenient shorthand since a better, simpler and less loaded phrase does not yet present itself. As most people know, but many still do not fully grasp, ‘sex’ refers to biological differences, while ‘gender’ describes the characteristics that a society or culture dense as masculine or feminine. So in one sense, being sensitive to gender is not a matter of nicety or manners, but very much correlated with being sensitive to culture.

General Dos & Don’ts on Gender and Peace-building

Some Dos

1. Do understand that unintended and counter-productive gender-specific effect the society at large (gender-sensitive Do no Harm).
2. Make sure that women and men equally participate in the identification and design of the project.
3. Collect and make use of sex-desegregated data.
4. Support research and, education and awareness-raising on the negative impact of traditions that limit and oppress women instead of unilaterally trying to erase them.
5. Formulate a clear vision of the explicit aims and expected results in terms of gender equality and women's participation in peace-building.

Some Don’ts

1. Do not assume that women and men belong to homogeneous groups and, as such, have the   same interests and needs because of their sex.
2. Rather than focusing on women as victims, think of creative ways to strengthen women's capacity to survive, articulate their ideas, experiences etc.
3. Do not be unclear about what the project may achieve with regard to gender equality in general and women's participation and empowerment in particular.
4. Do not neglect working on women’s leadership and networking.
5. Do not neglect to work with men and to pay attention to women’s roles in the family as social key    unit in conservative societies.
6. Do not “enforce” quotas and affirmative action if the gendered structures are too rigid and deep-root