Gender equality mainstreaming in health evaluations and research workshop #HSR2022
At the upcoming Seventh Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR2022)in Bogota, Colombia, hera Director Marieke Devillé, along with Alejandra Martinez will deliver a participatory workshop on gender-responsive evaluation and research approaches. The session will cover fundamental gender concepts, approaches and provide tools for applying a gender lens to health systems. The workshop will also provide practical hands-on approaches to assessing research and evaluation proposals from a gender perspective.
Despite significant political commitment and support, gender mainstreaming in health systems work remains a considerable challenge. An important lesson that hera has learnt is that without explicit objectives, standards and actions on advancing gender equality, the rights and specific needs of girls and women are often overlooked in development and humanitarian projects and programmes (including in their monitoring and evaluation components). Our aim in providing the workshop is to share the lessons learned from research, monitoring and evaluation context and to strengthen our contribution to ensuring that girls and women are not discriminated against and that harmful, unfair gender norms are not perpetuated in the programmes and projects that we support.
The overarching theme for this year’s conference is Health Systems Performance in the Political Agenda. In these challenging times, it is crucial that health system research and implementation communities come together in forums such as HSR to help set the agenda and collectively identify problematic areas in current practices to help us face and respond to the ongoing threats of pandemics, conflict, and climate change with strong health systems and sound health policies.
Earlier this year, hera supported the symposium's parent organisation, Health Systems Global. Under the leadership of hera CEO Leen Jille (who will also be attending HSR2022), a small hera team supported HSG in developing a new five-year strategic plan. In the development of the HSG strategic plan, it was clear all along that the broad and diverse membership of HSG is a significant strength of the organisation and community. The HSR conference was seen as a crucial flagship for this work. We are excited now to be connecting again to the HSG global community and contributing to HSR2022. Please come to our workshop on gender equality mainstreaming if you are at the conference. The session takes place on October 31st starting at 1:00 PM (Level 3 – ÑO). We hope to see you there.
