The Iraq-Public Sector Modernization programme (I-PSM), a multi-agency UN joint programme, supports the Government of Iraq and regional Government of Kurdistan to modernize the public sector and build effective, efficient, and responsive public administrations. KIT provided support and gender analysis to help I-PSM achieve its goals.

The I-PSM worked to develop an effective, efficient, and responsive public sector through an administration-wide reform strategy and pilot implementation in the three key service sectors of Health, Education and Water & Sanitation (WATSAN).

A gender review

KIT reviewed the I-PSM Programme Document from a gender perspective, redesigned the log frame to include gender indicators, and provided a gender analysis of three road maps for Health, Education and Water & Sanitation.

Issues revealed

The gender reviews identified a number of issues. These issues included: gendered gaps in formulating overall goals and policy objectives of the programme and sectors; the absence of gender differentiated analysis of needs, interests and impacts; and that gender equality outcomes were not reflected in the programme document, results framework and road maps.

We also found that although gender equality was an intent, it was not made operational by – for example – allocating resources to this aim. A key recommendation of the review was that resource allocation should:

• explicitly address gender issues where these are a priority
• demonstrate that resources are available to achieve policy objectives, and that
• Gender Responsive Budgeting should be used to ensure that government is putting resources behind stated commitments to address gender issues

The work done by KIT provided UNWomen with the rationale to develop a programme on Gender Responsive Budgeting as part of the I-PSM for the Kurdistan autonomous region of Iraq. KIT was contracted to implement a capacity building programme on GRB.The UNWomen Representative for Iraq wrote the following in appreciation of KIT’s work.