Women in Resource Management
Women in Resource Management
Since 2019, the Expert Group on Resource Management has been monitoring the current status related to the participation of women and equal opportunities for leadership for them in resource management. The Expert Group on Resource Management (EGRM) recognized the powerful and positive benefits of diversity and inclusion in resource management and has stepped up its activities to support the achievement of the following Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets:- 5.5 - Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life.
- 8.3 - Promote development-oriented policies that support productive activities, decent job creation, entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation, and encourage the formalization and growth of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, including through access to financial services.
The EGRM Women in Resource Management Initiative was launched in 2019 to channel activities that promote gender and diversity within the framework of sustainable resource management, with a particular focus on the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector.
COVID-19 pandemic, socio-economic recovery and women
It could take years of concerted work to recover from the destruction left in the wake of this pandemic. The UN system is switching to emergency mode to respond to the challenges. Incorporating gender equality and inclusion of women in the response, in line with SDG 5, will be critical in order not to risk backsliding on the limited gains made and jeopardizing attainment of the SDGs as a whole. The application of a gender lens in designing socio-economic responses is especially important, given the leading role that women have and are playing in fighting the pandemic.
The pandemic has significantly impacted MSMEs. Firms involved in the resource management value network have been under severe stress due to the disruption to markets. The Women in Resource Management Initiative will, amongst other issues, be responsive to the global efforts to rebuild societies which includes offering support to the healthcare sector, assuring essential services such as food-water-energy as well as protecting jobs, MSMEs and the informal sectors.
Working Group on Women in Resource Management
An EGRM Working Group on Women in Resource Management is under establishment, This Group will promote activities on gender in resource management.Details on the Group will be made available shortly.
Promoting gender participation in resource management
The Expert Group on Resource Management in its 2020-2021 Work Plan includes the following activity on "Promoting gender participation in resource management".Description
During the 2000-2015 development cycle, the world made some progress towards gender equality and empowerment of women. However, more work remains hence gender equality is a focus of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
This activity will explore how resource management can help attain SDG 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. SDG 5 recognized that providing women and girls with, inter alia, equal access to education, decent work, and representation in economic decision-making processes will fuel sustainable economies and benefit societies.
Work to be undertaken
Subject to the availability of extrabudgetary resources:- Review a number of resource management projects and try to determine challenges and opportunities in enhancing performance from a gender perspective;
- Select sector- or country-specific cases that illustrate how the principles outlined in SDG5 could be applied in resource management.
Deliverables and timeline
Policy dialogue(s) on promoting gender participation in resource management: December 2021;
- A network of women engaged in resource management projects: December 2021;
- Recommendations on mainstreaming gender in resource management: December 2021.