Management Response

: Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (Turkey)
: 2021 - 2025 , Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (Turkey) (RO)
: Evaluation of UN Women’s work on GRB in the Europe and Central Asia Region with specific focus on the Regional Programme “Transformative Financing for Gender Equality towards more Transparent, Inclusive and Accountable Governance in the Western Balkans” (2020-2024) (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Serbia)
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Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (Turkey)

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UN Women Europe and Central Asia Regional Office welcomes the evaluation and appreciates its comprehensive analysis of GRB interventions across the region. The findings confirm the relevance and transformative potential of GRB as a cross cutting strategy for gender equality and women’s empowerment. We acknowledge the need to strengthen internal coherence, enhance technical capacities, and secure sustainable financing to maintain momentum. The recommendations align with our strategic priorities and inform the next Regional Strategic Note and resource mobilization efforts.
: Approved
Recommendation: RECOMMENDATION 1 UN Women’s position on GRB and financing for gender equality. The Europe and Central Asia Regional Office should consider making GRB and private financing for gender equality key cross cutting strategies to support its impact areas and outcomes, rather than discussing prioritization. It is important to articulate how to practically integrate GRB in all portfolios and what the entry points are (see Recommendation 2). This would strengthen the relevance and positioning of UN Women’s GRB work across the region within a broader context of financial reforms and development management.
Management Response: Establish a regional working group to develop an ECA GRB & gender-responsive public finance positioning paper within the new UN Women Strategic Plan, including approaches, partnership modals (incl. IFIs and oversight institutions)., and practical guidance on integrating GRB across impact areas and aligning it with broader financing for gender equality initiatives to drive transformative results.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Alignment with strategy
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Relevance
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Establish a regional working group to develop an ECA GRB & gender-responsive public finance positioning paper within the new UN Women Strategic Plan, including approaches, partnership modals (incl. IFIs and oversight institutions)., and practical guidance on integrating GRB across impact areas and aligning it with broader financing for gender equality initiatives to drive transformative results. UN Women ECARO 2026/07 Not Initiated Requires time and efforts from the country offices across the region
2. Advocate for inclusion of GRB in the new UN Women ECA Strategic Plan with a clear articulation of two complementary approaches: a) Dedicated GRB Interventions: Maintain targeted GRB projects and initiatives that provide specialized technical assistance, capacity building, and policy support to governments and partners. These interventions will ensure depth and innovation in GRB practices. b) Mainstreamed GRB Integration: Embed GRB principles and tools across all thematic portfolios and impact areas, ensuring that gender-responsive budgeting becomes a standard practice within broader programming and financing for gender equality. This approach will create synergies with other financing strategies and maximize transformative impact. UN Women ECARO 2026/03 Not Initiated
Adopt a region-wide narrative line positioning GRB as a tool for fiscal resilience and crisis response (war, climate, backlash), to protect political space for GRB. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated
Provide awareness raising training for the RPAC and LPAC members to consider GRB integration during the project approval. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated
Deliver at least one training session on GRB for the programme managers at the country level on GRB so they consider GRB tools while preparing project proposals for different donors. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated
Consolidate Regional GRB Specialist function through resource mobilization. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Initiated
Recommendation: To enhance internal coherence, the Regional Office should focus on promoting GRB internally as a unifying framework, establishing institutionalized collaboration processes to identify synergies and the transformative potential of GRB in each respective thematic area. Taking into account resource mobilization challenges for GRB only focused projects in some countries, the integration and allocation of resources for GRB across UN Women’s Country Office portfolios should be considered.
Management Response: The Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia agree with this recommendation and acknowledges the importance of strengthening internal coherence and collaboration to position GRB as a unifying, cross cutting framework across all thematic areas. We recognize that embedding GRB within broader portfolios not only enhances programme quality, but also addresses existing resource mobilization challenges for standalone GRB projects in some contexts.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and participation in public life
Operating Principles: Alignment with strategy
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Coherence
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Conduct a region wide portfolio mapping to identify GRB entry points as a transformative strategy UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated
Strengthen GRB results architecture by defining a core set of regional indicators and reporting standards (incl. SDG 5.c.1-related measures, GRB index) and integrating them into routine RBM/knowledge management processes for systematic visibility. UN Women ECARO 2026/04 Initiated
Institutionalize quarterly, results-oriented coordination through the GRB Community of Practice (CoP), ensuring focus on integration decisions, addressing barriers, and driving cross-portfolio joint actions UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Not Initiated
Make the GRB roster available across thematic portfolios to support budget related interventions across RO ECA. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Initiated
Appoint GRB accountability focal points across RO/CO portfolios to ensure integration, reporting, and quality assurance. UN Women ECARO 2026/04 Initiated
Ensure the production of an annual regional report on GRB integration and results drawing on annual country reports UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Not Initiated
Recommendation: External coherence and coordination by leveraging its expertise, gender analysis and data, convening power and partnerships, the Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia should strengthen its strategic position and collaboration with other stakeholders, including those international leading PFM reforms and development planning. The Regional Office should rethink collaboration methods with CSOs and the regional GRB Watchdog Network in particular, and continue consolidation of partnerships with diverse structures of governments and oversight institutions.
Management Response: The Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia agrees with this recommendation and recognizes the importance of further strengthening external coherence and collaboration to enhance the impact and visibility of GRB and financing for gender equality across the region. We acknowledge that UN Women’s convening power, gender analysis, data, and long-standing partnerships position the organization strongly to engage with key actors leading public finance management (PFM) reforms, development planning, and oversight.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and participation in public life
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM, Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Coherence
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Target priority PFM reform windows and support Ministries of Finance to embed GRB into core budget systems (budget circulars, MTBF/programme budgeting, and performance frameworks) using evidence and policy solutions. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Initiated
Leverage existing collaborations with international finance institutions and develop new partnerships, where missing, for more a impactful footprint in public finance reforms (building on partnerships with EBRD, AFD, IMF/WB, ADB and others). UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Not Initiated
Convene dialogue with CSOs and GRB Watchdog Network to define joint actions. UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Initiated Conditioned to resource mobilization
Strengthen CSO technical capacity for budget analysis, advocacy, and accountability functions (incl. public revenue / expenditure scrutiny). UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Initiated Conditioned to resource mobilization
Convene dialogue with CSOs and GRB Watchdog Network to define joint actions. UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Initiated Conditioned to resource mobilization
Position UN Women as a regional thought leader on gender & PFM via a 3 years periodic flagship report on GRB based on GRB Index data. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Initiated Conditioned to resource mobilization
Formalize partnerships with oversight institutions (SAIs and parliamentary committees) by producing a joint subregional report on a gender equality–related topic, within the framework of a regional mechanism for GRB oversight and follow-up UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Initiated Conditioned to resource mobilization
Recommendation: Thematic focus while transferring ownership of budget planning to institutions, UN Women should engage more on other critical areas, such as gender analysis, public revenue, expenditure, monitoring and reporting on GRB to further strengthen the relevance of programmes and demonstrate their effectiveness. Support should be provided to follow up on GRB audits to guarantee that institutions develop action plans and that recommendations are implemented.
Management Response: The Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia agrees with this recommendation and acknowledges the importance of broadening the thematic focus of GRB beyond budget formulation and planning. We recognize that strengthening gender analysis, public revenue and expenditure reviews, monitoring and reporting, and follow-up to GRB audits is essential to deepening the effectiveness, relevance, and sustainability of GRB interventions across the region.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and participation in public life
Operating Principles: Oversight/governance, Knowledge management
Organizational Priorities: Organizational efficiency
UNEG Criteria: Coherence
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Support institutionalization of GRB through legal/procedural instruments (by-laws, standardized guidance, and implementation tools) to reduce discretion and improve sustainability. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Initiated Requires external expertise which depends on funds availability
Enable digitalization of GRB tracking by supporting integration of GRB tagging/monitoring within PFM systems when reform windows open. UN Women ECARO 2027/12 Not Initiated Dependent on government budget system and readiness for reform as well as external expertise which depends on funds availability
Follow up on GRB audit recommendations and action plans with specific institutions UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Initiated Requires external expertise which depends on funds availability
Launch a “Revenue & Tax” thematic stream (gender impact of tax policy, informality, care-related incentives) to expand GRB beyond expenditure and inform equitable fiscal reforms. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated Requires external expertise which depends on funds availability
Create standardized toolkits for the work with audit institutions to scale up gender-responsive auditing and budget scrutiny across countries. UN Women ECARO 2026/02 Overdue-Not Initiated Requires external expertise which depends on funds availability
Recommendation: The Regional Office should explore possibilities to focus more on strategic support to Country Offices, stakeholders and resource mobilization at the country level, rather than on programme management and administration, to further strengthen the relevance of GRB interventions. Advisory support in programming and implementation, knowledge generation, exchange and transferring of best practices to other countries are other actions to consider.
Management Response: The Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia agrees with this recommendation and acknowledges the importance of strengthening its strategic role in supporting Country Offices, national stakeholders and resource mobilization efforts. We recognize that focusing more on high level advisory support, knowledge generation, regional coordination, and cross country learning rather than programme administration will enhance the relevance, visibility and impact of GRB work across the region.
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Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and participation in public life
Operating Principles: Alignment with strategy, Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Define and institutionalize the RO’s strategic GRB role (second-line support: quality assurance, advisory services, partnership leverage, innovation) aligned with CO needs and reform windows. UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Initiated
Develop donor engagement plan that articulates RO regional added value and positions GRB within broader financing/reform agendas. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Initiated
Create knowledge exchange platform on GRB across the region to accelerate learning, replication and innovation across sub-regions. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Initiated
Continue with cross country exchange and learning based on CO requests. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Not Initiated Conditioned to the mobilization of resources
Recommendation: UN Women’s capacities. Further capacity development of UN Women’s personnel in the region across thematic impact areas on GRB and attracting new personnel with PFM expertise is necessary.
Management Response: The Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia agrees with this recommendation and recognizes the importance of strengthening UN Women’s internal capacities on GRB and public finance across thematic areas. Sustained expertise both through capacity development of existing personnel and strategic recruitment of staff with PFM competencies is essential for deepening the quality and effectiveness of GRB work in the region.
More detail
Description:
Management Response Category: Accepted
Thematic Area: Governance and participation in public life
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Organize GRB capacity-building sessions including GRB–PFM capacity programme (foundational to advanced GRB–PFM modules), for personnel across thematic areas. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Not Initiated
Advocate for establishing GRB specialist capacity in COs through dedicated posts or embedded functions aligned with the resource mobilization strategy and regional and CO Strategic Note delivery requirements. UN Women ECARO 2026/12 Not Initiated
Provide just in time micro trainings and clinics through the CoP linked to live office needs and emerging reform windows. UN Women ECARO 2026/06 Initiated Requires external expertise which dependent resource mobilization.
Integrate GRB into onboarding and learning management systems (including manager briefings and mandatory refreshers) to institutionalize minimum competency standards. UN Women ECARO 2026/09 Not Initiated