CASE STUDy 2
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Developing an organisational strategy on gender, sexuality and diversity in Cambodia In 2010, KHANA – the largest national HIV NGO in Cambodia, supporting approximately 70 local organisations – developed a gender, sexuality and diversity strategy. This was based on a rapid assessment commissioned by the senior management team to identify gender-related gaps and issues in programming, institutional culture and organisational practice. The assessment took a broad approach to gender, addressing the range of socially constructed roles and relationships, personality traits, attitudes, behaviours, values, powers and influence that society ascribes to women and men. The gender strategy commits KHANA to organisational policy, planning and programmes that will: > be informed by comprehensive gender and sexuality analysis and data disaggregated by sex, age and other relevant diversity factors > mainstream gender and sexuality into every stage of planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation > ensure sufficient funding and technical resources are available to build gender and sexuality mainstreaming capacity and change attitudes to gender equality and human rights within KHANA and its implementing partners > promote gender equality and human rights for all > promote diversity and the meaningful involvement of people living with and affected by HIV within KHANA, its implementing partners and the national response to HIV > actively address homophobia, sexual discrimination, harassment and inequality within the organisation through a code of conduct, awareness-raising and accountability systems > address systemic practices that create barriers to reducing the vulnerability of women and girls to HIV, including gender-based violence and sexual exploitation and abuse > actively involve men and boys as allies in promoting gender equality and meeting the practical and strategic gender needs of women > engage and coordinate with partners, governments, funders and civil society organisations to promote and support effective, creative ways to promote gender equality > monitor, evaluate and institutionalise organisational learning on mainstreaming gender into communitybased HIV programmes
> ensure budgeting, recruitment, training, management, and decision-making systems support women’s rights and gender equality. The strategy focuses on both internal and external actions, based on four objectives. 1. Creating an enabling internal environment that promotes diversity and equality of opportunity regardless of gender, sexuality or HIV status and supports staff to contribute fully. Key activities include: having family-friendly workplace policies; increasing KHANA’s ability to recruit and promote female staff; awareness-raising, leadership and role modelling from the senior management team on diversity and equality of opportunity; and addressing gender norms that discourage women from applying for promotion. 2. Integrating gender analysis and mainstreaming throughout the programming cycle, i.e. during needs assessment and planning, contracting and technical support to implementing partners, service delivery and monitoring and evaluation. Key activities include: raising awareness of gender inequality and its impact on HIV vulnerability; building capacity for gender and sexuality mainstreaming; addressing gender and sexuality norms and inequality in HIV prevention programming; and generating and disseminating the information needed to support gender mainstreaming. 3. Advocacy to promote, protect and realise the rights of women, men, transgender people and children to prevent and mitigate the genderbased vulnerabilities to and impacts of HIV. Key activities include: advocacy within KHANA and implementing partners; and advocacy around national programming and policy. 4. Empowering people living with or affected by HIV, and most at risk populations, to minimise their vulnerability to HIV infection and mitigate the gender-based impacts of HIV. Key activities include: working with other organisations that have empowerment programmes and expertise; and providing people with the knowledge, skills and opportunities they need to empower themselves. The gender strategy includes an indicative work plan, with key actions accompanied by short, medium and long-term indicators. The strategy also fed into KHANA’s annual replanning process. The draft strategy was presented to the KHANA board of directors in April 2010 and informally endorsed. Approaches to gender and sexuality: responding to HIV