Gender mainstreaming in policy research programmes and schemes

Gender mainstreaming both as a concept and strategy was adopted in the Fourth World Conference in Beijing with an aim of mainstreaming gender perspective in different areas of development and planning process. Gender mainstreaming as a strategy focuses at the paradigm shift from involving larger women in the development projects towards bringing gender equality to the core of all development works. This requires assessment of any planned project through its implication or both women and men so that both of them can be the equal beneficiaries. As a strategy, gender mainstreaming requires attention towards gender perspective, making women visible in the development planning and linking gender concerns with the achievement of the development project. The outcome can be measured both quantitatively and qualitatively. Quantitative evaluation measures the number of women participation or number of women beneficiaries in the project. Similarly, qualitative evaluation deals with the fact that how far women are capable of questioning the existing power imbalances and promoting equitable gender relations within the development project and process. Gender mainstreaming is focusing to liberate women from subordination to promote gender equality. This expresses the core idea of liberal feminism of removing the existing discrimination at the societal level and transforming the mainstreaming by reordering the gender relations.