Management Response

: Ethiopia
: 2017 - 2020 , Ethiopia (CO)
: Evaluation of Joint Program on Rural Women Economic Empowerment (RWEE)
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Ethiopia

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The relevance and timeliness of the evaluation findings and recommendations are appreciated by both the federal government ministries (Ministry of Women, Children and Youth, Ministry of Finance, Cooperative Promotion Agency and regional counterparts of both Afar and Oromia regions (Bureaus of Women and Children Affairs, Agriculture) and participating UN agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD and UN Women). This appreciation was received during the workshop conducted on October 18, 2018. The evaluation is expected to inform the ongoing JP RWEE and development of future JPs as the recommendation are accepted with specific actions. Both government counterparts and UN agencies have identified key actions to be taken based on the recommendations which will be monitored for compliance.
: Approved
Recommendation: Guideline for roll-out of partnerships and collaboration among programme stakeholders should be developed by UN participating and government implementing parties.
Management Response: The Participating UN agencies acknowledges the existence of the following documents at the global level: 1) An Operational Guidance Note for the Participating UN Organizations; 2) Partnership Building and Resource Mobilisation at global and country Level Information & Guidance Note; and 3)“ Strengthening Knowledge Management and communication in managing the Joint Programme Accelerating Progress towards the Economic Empowerment of Rural Women Indicative Framework”, however finds relevant, based on the existing documents, to have a country specific document. as the sustainability and specific partnership approach built by the joint programme is exemplary to inform future programmes of similar nature. It is also believed that having such guideline will provide clear direction, purpose and responsibility for all stakeholders involved in such kind of joint programme implementation and also to scale up and replicate good practices.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, Knowledge management
Organizational Priorities: Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Identify key elements from the global guideline package to be applicable to the Ethiopian context UN Women and Participating UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/02 Overdue-Not Initiated
2. Organize reflection meeting with all implementing partners to articulate good practices of the JP in coordination and partnership to deliver for women UN Women and Participating UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) and government stakeholders. 2020/05 Overdue-Initiated Identification of best practice process has been carried out but not finalized. The identification of best practices also continued at the time of COVID 19.
3. Prepare a partnership guideline based on the global guideline package and on the reflection and lessons drawn from JP RWEE experiences and also other practices in the same joint programme contexts UN Women and MOWCYA 2020/07 Overdue-Initiated Partnership guidelines were drafted but not approved yet by the government. Because project implementation manual already in place by the government, there is a need to reconcile the two documents in order to avoid duplication.
Recommendation: The government of Ethiopia and participating UN agencies should commit fund, take up the ownership of the JP activities in the target districts and expand to other districts by developing a scale up plan.
Management Response: The recommendation is partially accepted due to the fact that the JP has already considered replicating the JP to other regions by preparing a scale up and sustainability strategy, but the expansion of the programme will depend on availability of funds, which is an external factor Given the strong will of Government to scale up and replicate the JP, coupled with the minimal fund allocated from government and participating agencies, the effort will be strengthened by revising the scale up plan with the lessons extracted from the evaluation. Going forward, all fund mobilization efforts will also consider showing commitments from government and participating agencies to ensure the replication of this JP in a bigger scale /to other regions.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Partially Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Resource mobilization
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Revise the scale up strategy based on the lessons extracted from the evaluation and in consultation with government counterparts MOWCYA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/03 Overdue-Not Initiated
2. Lobby at the Programme Management Unit level for the allocation of fund allocation from both the participating agencies and government as well UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/04 Overdue-Initiated Discussion with each agency has started to map potential donners.
3. Strengthen the fund mobilization efforts in collaboration with government counterparts UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/04 Overdue-Initiated Based on the lessons learnt develop a concept note with government counter parts and explore options for joint fundraising with MOWYCA and Office of the President.
Recommendation: All parties but specifically, the government of Ethiopia must focus on immediate results with long-term impact in designing future programme.
Management Response: The recommendation to move rural women from enhancing smallholder farm productivity to higher level value-chain promoting interventions (such as processing) is accepted. Though feasibility and marketing assessment were conducted to ensure the availability of surplus supply of inputs (milk, fodder/pasture etc.), practical challenges were observed hence the recommendation is accepted to remedy future interventions of similar nature.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, National ownership
Organizational Priorities: Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Map the practical challenges of creating high level value chains with implementing partners at grass root level. UN Women and Regional Counter Parties. 2020/04 Overdue-Initiated Assessment has been carried out in two districts (Adami Tulu and Yaya Gulale) and support to the target women is ongoing based on the recommendation of the study. Further assessment covering the new target areas is also underway.
2. Ensure that the challenges identified are addressed in the ongoing and future initiatives by identifying capacity and resource gaps to address the identified challenges. UN Women 2020/06 Overdue-Initiated The identified key challenges will be shared and communicated with all concerned stakeholder as a lesson learnt and to deal with such kind of challenges. The technical working team is also discussing on these challenges regularly and trying to find solution in sustainable manner.
Recommendation: Government of Ethiopia and participating UN agencies should think of developing more strategies other than the community conversations and sensitization events to promote men’s participation in the process of women’s economic empowerment.
Management Response: Though the employed sensitization and community conversation strategies showed promising results, the recommendation is accepted to explore more on other male engagement strategies and incentives to ensure economic empowerment of women.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, Knowledge management
Organizational Priorities: Engaging men and boys, Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Identify innovative and relevant male engagement strategies for future rural women economic empowerment programme design and implementation MOWYCA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/08 Overdue-Initiated The male engagement strategy has been further strengthened by identifying, acknowledging and rewarding role model husbands, male community members and government staff. The approach has also been documented as best practice and shared widely among JP RWEE practicing community globally. It needs to be backed by guideline or toolkit for more influence and upscaling.
2. Ensure that the identified strategies are applied, lessons from the application drawn and documented MOWYCA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/05 Overdue-Initiated It has been identified, documented and has been incorporated into annual work plan and implementation. The same activity should extend in the upcoming scale up of the program.
Recommendation: Government of Ethiopia and UN participating agencies must understand that women’s empowerment is not limited to economic empowerment only. Future initiatives should include all empowerment dimensions as well as indicators in the M&E framework
Management Response: JP RWEE was implemented by applying a multi-sectoral and integrated approach to address the barriers of rural women at individual, community and institutional level. However, except the economic and political aspect, the cognitive and psychological dimension of empowerment was not addressed to the expected level to ensure empowerment of rural women at individual level, but as per the Evaluation Report seems to have been addressed indirectly. This recommendation, therefore is accepted valuing the proposed new approaches to see the overall empowerment of women along with identifying specific indicators accordingly.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Partially Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: UN Coordination, Normative Support
UNEG Criteria: Relevance
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Carry out a mapping exercise with implementing partners and targeted beneficiaries to identify the cognitive and physiological root causes of women disempowerment that were not covered by the first phase of JP RWEE. MOWCYA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/04 Overdue-Not Initiated A mapping of IPs will be conducted along with research on key gender and socio- economic issues and priorities as well as opportunities for women targeted at IDP and the host community.
2. Ensure that the identified root causes are addressed through the design and implementation of the ongoing and new JP RWEE initiatives. MOWCYA, UN Women 2020/07 Overdue-Not Initiated Solutions to the root causes to be identified will be incorporated in the second phase of JP RWEE very consciously in the M&E framework and annual work Plan.
Recommendation: Government of Ethiopia and UN participating agencies must ensure that future program activities need to address the different vulnerability contexts of rural women
Management Response: Although a needs assessment was conducted in the beginning of the programme. This recommendation is accepted considering the challenges observed while managing the two different contexts of rural women targeted in Oromia and Afar regions. For the way forward, a rapid need assessment which will include a specific aspect of the different contexts of the different types of targeted women (age, disability, health situation, etc… ) will be conducted to inform the programme planning and implementation of ongoing and future initiatives.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Women economic empowerment (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: National ownership
Organizational Priorities: Partnership, Agriculture
UNEG Criteria: Relevance
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Conduct rapid needs assessment of the contexts of targeted women and participating institutions under the ongoing second initiative of JP RWEE MOWCYA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/07 Overdue-Initiated A Rapid Assessment on the effect of COVID-19 on JP RWEE program and on beneficiaries has been conducted. However, due to COVID-19 the need-based assessment was not undertaken.
2. Ensure that the identified contexts are taken into account while responding to the needs of the targeted women MOWCYA, Regional counter parts, UN Women and Participating Rome Based UN Agencies (FAO, WFP, IFAD) 2020/08 Overdue-Initiated Specific actions in response to COVID 19 and the need of women targeted at IDP are being carried out.