Human Rights Education Associates

Gender and Humanitarian Action

26 April-6 June 2017 (E05517) | Closed
Instructor: Gretchen Alther

There is increasing recognition that humanitarian crises affect people differently and that there is a need to ensure that the differing needs of men, women, boys and girls are met within humanitarian response. Humanitarian programmes have often neglected to see and address these differences and by doing so neglect to meet the needs of those most affected. Additionally, by failing to address gender, humanitarian responses risk inadvertently making the situation of those affected by crises even worse. Adopting a gender sensitive approach to humanitarian action is essential in ensuring that the differentiated needs of men, women, boys and girls are effectively met.

This e-learning course introduces staff members of (international) development agencies and NGOs to the relevance of gender to humanitarian programming. The course identifies why addressing gender matters in humanitarian response and will make participants familiar with key frameworks underpinning gender mainstreaming approaches. Participants will deepen their knowledge on tools used to ensure programming is gender responsive, such as gender analysis and the basic principles of ensuring equal participation of males and females. It will enable participants to take a close look at specific cluster responses through the use of case studies. One session will be dedicated to assessing responses to gender-based violence in humanitarian action. Participants will also be introduced to the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Gender Marker, a key tool now being used in humanitarian action. The course will provide basic knowledge and skills on gender to staff of international humanitarian organisations, aiming to deepen their engagement on gender responsive programming.