Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda

While the international norm on gender mainstreaming, UN-backed since 1995, has been widely adopted in national policies, gender inequalities are rarely systematically addressed on the ground. To explain this limited effectiveness, this paper takes a discourse analytical perspective on gender policy...

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Main Authors: Acosta, Mariola, Bommel, Severine van, Wessel, Margit van, Ampaire, Edidah L., Jassogne, Laurence T.P., Feindt, Peter
Format: Journal Article
Language:Inglés
Published: Elsevier 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/100258
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author Acosta, Mariola
Bommel, Severine van
Wessel, Margit van
Ampaire, Edidah L.
Jassogne, Laurence T.P.
Feindt, Peter
author_browse Acosta, Mariola
Ampaire, Edidah L.
Bommel, Severine van
Feindt, Peter
Jassogne, Laurence T.P.
Wessel, Margit van
author_facet Acosta, Mariola
Bommel, Severine van
Wessel, Margit van
Ampaire, Edidah L.
Jassogne, Laurence T.P.
Feindt, Peter
author_sort Acosta, Mariola
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description While the international norm on gender mainstreaming, UN-backed since 1995, has been widely adopted in national policies, gender inequalities are rarely systematically addressed on the ground. To explain this limited effectiveness, this paper takes a discourse analytical perspective on gender policy and budgeting, with a focus on the translation of the international norm into domestic norms and policies. An in-depth, inductive analysis of 107 policy documents in Uganda examines how the gender mainstreaming norm has been translated at three administrative levels: national, district, sub-county. The analysis finds five processes that reduce the norm's transformational potential: neglecting gender discourse, gender inertia, shrinking gender norms, embracing discursive hybridity and minimizing budgets. Overall, gender mainstreaming largely stopped at the discursive level, and often paradoxically depoliticized gender. The findings explain why gender mainstreaming might be helpful but not sufficient for advancing gender equality and suggest additional focus on promising practices, women's rights movements and stronger monitoring.
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publishDate 2019
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spelling CGSpace1002582025-12-08T09:54:28Z Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda Acosta, Mariola Bommel, Severine van Wessel, Margit van Ampaire, Edidah L. Jassogne, Laurence T.P. Feindt, Peter climate change agriculture food security While the international norm on gender mainstreaming, UN-backed since 1995, has been widely adopted in national policies, gender inequalities are rarely systematically addressed on the ground. To explain this limited effectiveness, this paper takes a discourse analytical perspective on gender policy and budgeting, with a focus on the translation of the international norm into domestic norms and policies. An in-depth, inductive analysis of 107 policy documents in Uganda examines how the gender mainstreaming norm has been translated at three administrative levels: national, district, sub-county. The analysis finds five processes that reduce the norm's transformational potential: neglecting gender discourse, gender inertia, shrinking gender norms, embracing discursive hybridity and minimizing budgets. Overall, gender mainstreaming largely stopped at the discursive level, and often paradoxically depoliticized gender. The findings explain why gender mainstreaming might be helpful but not sufficient for advancing gender equality and suggest additional focus on promising practices, women's rights movements and stronger monitoring. 2019-05 2019-03-12T13:26:02Z 2019-03-12T13:26:02Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/100258 en Open Access Elsevier Acosta M, van Bommel S, van Wessel M, Ampaire E, Jassogne L, Feindt PH. 2019. Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda. Women's Studies International Forum 74:9-19.
spellingShingle climate change
agriculture
food security
Acosta, Mariola
Bommel, Severine van
Wessel, Margit van
Ampaire, Edidah L.
Jassogne, Laurence T.P.
Feindt, Peter
Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title_full Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title_fullStr Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title_full_unstemmed Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title_short Discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms: The case of agricultural and climate change policies in Uganda
title_sort discursive translations of gender mainstreaming norms the case of agricultural and climate change policies in uganda
topic climate change
agriculture
food security
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/100258
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