2014: A recently released report by the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Water Governance Facility at the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), titled ‘Gender Practice in Water Governance Programmes: From Design to Results,’ examines successful strategies for mainstreaming gender into water governance programmes.

The report analyzes gender-mainstreaming strategies implemented by eleven projects supported under the programmatic area of Democratic Economic Governance (DEG) by the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) Achievement Fund (MDG-F). It finds that the inclusion of strong gender-mainstreaming objectives in programme design impacted outcomes less than project leadership and inclusion of woman’s organizations.

This report includes sections on: incorporating gender into programme design; putting gender into practice; and achieving gender-related results. The report concludes with discussion of successes and remaining challenges, highlighting the complexity of producing results. The report identifies as success factors: management support and expertise; use of collective strategies for gender empowerment; inclusive strategies that also involve men and boys; and well formulated monitoring and assessment of impacts. [Publication: Gender Practice in Water Governance Programmes: From Design to Results]