Gender Champions to move a motion to establish a gender and equity monitoring unit in Parliament

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“…every government institution or sector will be required to
 present the Certificate of Gender and Equity Compliance 
before its plans, budgets are approved by Parliament”.
Gender champions within Parliament are plotting to move a motion requiring the establishment of a ‘Gender and Equity Monitoring Unit’ within parliament that will be mandated to check for adherence of the various government sectors to Ministry of Finance’s Budget Call Circular directive on gender and equity budgeting.

Working hand in hand with the Uganda Women Parliamentarians Association, the Parliamentary Budget Office, Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and the Forum for Women in Democracy, the Members of Parliament want this unit to be established as an independent body that will play an advisory role to the various parliamentary committees when auditing the compliance of the different sectors to the budget call circular gender directive. It will also be responsible for recommending to the Equal Opportunities Commission that is under the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development which sectors would be befitting to receive the ‘Gender and Equity Certificate of Compliance’ in a given time frame.

In a move to ensure that government meets its gender equality objectives, every government institution or sector will be required to present the Certificate of Gender and Equity before its plan, budget, policy statement, bill or loans are approved by Parliament. “For the first time gender accountability is going to be taken seriously,” stated Hon. Rosemary Nyakikogoro.

It is yet to be decided where the unit will be housed, but it was proposed for it to be initially established as a department within the Parliamentary Budget Office while members with the support of the Speaker of Parliament continue to work out arrangements of having a fully fledged and independent unit within the Parliamentary Structure as is the case with the Parliamentary Budget Office which was established through the Budget Act 2001.

A select committee has been constituted to develop guidelines and specific Terms of Reference for the Gender and Equity Monitoring Unit detailing the functions of this unit and its operational framework. This committee was also tasked to develop the Gender and equity checklist that would guide the parliamentarians when checking for compliance to the gender directivr for the Financial Year 2012/13. Given her proficiency in gender analysis and gender budgeting, Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE), was co-opted on this committee to provide technical guidance in this process.

Ms. Patricia Munabi Babiiha, the Executive Director, FOWODE, voiced her support to support such an initiative which makes gender budgeting a reality in Uganda.

Story by: Carol Namagembe
Program Officer Communications 
Forum for Women in Democracy (FOWODE)

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