International Women’s Day 2019

Friday, 8 March 2019, is International Women’s Day. The observance celebrates women’s achievements and seeks to spark change on issues related to gender equality. The theme for this year is #BalanceforBetter.

At The Hague Academy for Local Governance, we try to work towards gender-balanced local governance around the world. Gender mainstreaming, gender sensitisation and promoting gender equality and the rights of women worldwide have been important aspects of the training programmes at The Hague Academy for Local Governance. The Academy organises several trainings each year tailored to development officers, municipality officials, regional civil servants and ministry-level professionals. For example, Freddy Sahinguvu gave a training this year on ‘Gender Sensitive Inclusive Governance’ for the Gender Monitoring Office in Rwanda.

GMO oversees effective implementation of the various national, regional and international commitments related to gender equality. Naome Nayebare, one of the participants, said about the training: “The training programme was an optimal learning experience that enhanced our skills in relation to the principles of governance and the delivery of gender equality.” She added to this that Freddy “was also very knowledgeable and clearly an expert in his sector. Most notably, he understood the regional contexts and combined that knowledge with the global context.”

In this spirit and to mark International Women’s Day 2019, the Academy is pleased to highlight a selection of our current and past activities. And we encourage you to join the online conversation using the hashtags #IWD2019 and #BalanceforBetter.

2019 Training

Gender Responsive Governance | 18-29 November 2019
Designed for both men and women, this 2-week course dives into gender-sensitive topics in local governance and explores the strategies and tools for mainstreaming gender approaches. As a participant, you will learn how to design inclusive policies and projects which can respond more effectively to the needs of women as well as men. Apply now

Articles

UN Women India Gender Responsive Governance
In 2017 and 2018, The Hague Academy received two groups from UN Women India and various Indian ministries. The objective of this program was to provide senior officials of different organisations working on local governance and gender issues in India, best practices of gender mainstreaming and women’s empowerment in The Netherlands.

How to Systematically Improve Gender Equality in Your Organisation
28 February 2019
Do you want to become a more efficient organisation or institution? Then consider more sufficient effort into improving diversity, gender equality and gender balance into your organisation.

Strengthening Gender Equality in Rwanda
15 February 2019
From 27 to 29 November 2018, the Academy organised a three-day course on Gender Sensitive Inclusive Governance in Bugesera, Rwanda. The course addressed specific needs of the Gender Monitoring Office (GMO), a constitutional regulatory body established by the Government of Rwanda to monitor the respect of gender equality principles, promote gender accountability at all government levels, and combat gender-based violence and related injustices.

Applying Gender Sensitive Strategies at the Local Level
18 December 2018
From 19 to 30 November 2018, The Hague Academy convened its annual open course on Gender Responsive Governance. Participants from nine countries, including Eswatini, New Zealand, Palestine, and Ukraine, gathered to discuss practical approaches to improving the meaningful participation of marginalised groups.