COMESA, in collaboration with the Investment Climate Reform (ICR) Facility, hosted a three-day training workshop on gender-disaggregated data and statistics for Eswatini from August 5 to 7, 2024.
The workshop’s goal was to introduce participants to concepts of gender and gender statistics, including data collection techniques, data analysis, and the policy implications of using gender data, according to the COMESA Secretariat.
This initiative supports the COMESA Gender Policy, Gender Reporting Framework, Council Decisions on Gender Statistics, the Minimum Set of Gender Indicators in Africa, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
The training marked a significant effort to improve the collection, analysis, and application of gender-disaggregated data in the region. It aimed to equip statisticians, researchers, and policymakers with the skills and tools needed to better understand and address gender disparities across various sectors
Speaking at the event, Nomzamo Dlamini, Director of Gender and Family Issues in the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office of Eswatini, emphasized, Gender statistics are a critical tool for monitoring and measuring the diverse realities of the lives of women, men, boys, and girls, and they help policymakers formulate policies, monitor changes, and inform the public.
She further highlighted that gender data is crucial, with 54 gender-specific indicators across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the global level to help track progress and accountability for gender equality, and groups facing multiple inequalities and deprivations.
Ms. Dlamini also pointed out that “while gender data is essential for monitoring advancements, significant challenges exist in its collection, analysis, and dissemination.”
She observed that although data supports national statistical systems, there is uneven coverage of indicators and notable data gaps, with some indicators lacking sufficient data.
“The collection and analysis of gender data pose considerable challenges, and intentional solutions are needed to address these issues and improve the availability and accuracy of gender data,” Dlamini stated, stressing the need for greater investments in and support for national statistical systems and more collaboration between producers of official statistics and other producers and users of gender data.
She added that gender statistics are crucial for informed decision-making as they highlight areas where gender disparities exist, the meeting concluded, emphasizing the importance of policies and programs that effectively address the needs of both men and women, and boys and girls for inclusive social and economic development.
Head of Cooperation at the European Union (EU) Delegation to the Kingdom of Eswatini, Eva Maria Engdhal, noted that gender gaps are prevalent across various sectors of societies, including political participation and economic empowerment.
She stressed that gender statistics rely on sex-disaggregated data and allow the monitoring, measurement of progress, and comparison of different groups on various social and economic dimensions, including gender-based violence, access to resources, education, employment, decision-making, and opportunities.
Engdhal added, “By quantifying these gaps, targeted actions can be taken to effectively address and rectify these inequalities,” and emphasized that “building skills and capacity to collect and use disaggregated data by sex, age, disability, and other criteria is key to policy formulation, monitoring changes, measuring progress, and contributing to sustainable development.”
Director of Gender and Social Affairs at the COMESA Secretariat, Beatrice Simwapenga Hamusonde, highlighted the crucial need to integrate a gender perspective into the collection and analysis of data within the national statistical system, stating that accurate data is essential for informed decision-making and for effectively targeting interventions to address existing gaps.
“By strengthening the capacity to produce and use gender statistics, Eswatini will move closer to achieving regional, continental, and global targets on gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls,” Hamusonde stated.
A national gender statistics committee, comprising representatives from the national Central Statistics Office, the Gender Department, and the Planning Department at the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office, was formed to “coordinate the collection of gender-disaggregated data to feed into the COMESA dashboard on gender and social integration and the development of the national gender report.
The ICR Facility, co-funded by the European Union (EU), the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF), along with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the British Council, is implemented by GIZ, the British Council, Expertise France, and SNV.