DECLARATION AND CALL FOR ACTION OF THE PHILIPPINES’S “NATIONAL SUMMIT ON GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT (GAD) IN CO-OPS”

Posted on June 2, 2014

Background:

1. “Declaration and Platform of Action of the Regional Conference on Gender Integration in Co-operatives, 10 Years Before and After,” Tagaytay City, PH, November 2006 (see the “Declaration and Platform of Action”) This Declaration and Platform of Action addressed to governments, all levels of co-ops, and regional co-op organizations was the output of this Regional Conference attended by women and men co-operators and gender advocates from Asia-Pacific countries (including the Philippines) and the Chairperson of the International Co-operative Alliance (ICA) Global Gender Equality Committee in November 2006, Tagaytay City. The Conference participants noted:

  1. the diverse context in which co-ops operate as well as acknowledge the diversity of women and men served by co-ops
  2. that significant gains have been achieved in the past decade, notwithstanding the uneven results in implementing the strategies identified in the previous 1997 Platform of Action, to increase women’s quality participation in leadership and decision-making as well as to mainstream gender in co-ops
  3. that barriers and challenges persist to women’s full and active participation in co-ops and that globalization has brought forth new and more serious forms of poverty and inequalities among women and men

and, thereby, the participants of the said Tagaytay Regional Conference strongly challenged co-ops to live up to their values and principles of democracy, equity and equality, and to their nature as instruments for poverty alleviation.

2. “Call for Action to the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) to support Gender Equality in Philippine Co-ops,” Quezon City, PH, December 2012 (see the “Call for Action”-Quezon City) This Call for Action was formulated during the “Public Awareness Conference on Gender Equality (GE): Empowering Women and Men, and Co-ops” by 15 Philippine co-ops that had participated and gained accomplishments in the “Promoting GE Among Philippine Co¬operatives” Project in 2010-2012 of the AWCF, supported by the We Effect—Swedish Cooperative Centre (SCC). The Conference was held on December 6, 2012 in Cubao, Quezon City, PH. The Call for Action addressed to the CDA, as the most relevant government agency supporting co-ops in the Philippines, was to elicit the agency’s support to GE mainstreaming and integration in co¬ops. CDA’s support to GE will then help bring about greater economic and social benefits to the movement through:

  1. requiring gender-sensitivity training or gender-awareness sessions as one of the courses for co-op officers and key management staff
  2. requiring co-ops to engage in gender-related activities so as to address gender issues in their co-ops and thus become gender-fair and gender-responsive organizations and workplaces
  3. requiring co-ops to integrate GE in their bylaws.

3. “Call for Action to the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) to Support Gender Equality in Co-ops in Region 2, Philippines,” Tuguegarao City, PH, May 2013 (see the “Call for Action”-Tuguegarao City) This Call for Action was crafted by 73 co-ops that attended a forum on GE for co-ops. The forum was organized in Tuguegarao City by CDA’s Cagayan Valley-Region 2 office. The co-ops’ Call for Action raised the same points in the Call for Action made in December 2012 by 15 co-ops in Cubao, Quezon City, with the additional concern expressed that GE should be included in the monitoring and evaluation of co-op performance through social audit and visitation.

4. Formation of gender equality resource centers (GERCs) 2013 (see GERC brochure and GERC article) The Philippines’s private co-op sector already has gender-fair co-operatives that can attest to the economic and social benefits of advocating and practicing GE. These co-ops also want to help other co-ops meet their GE objectives and needs. Thus some of the co-ops together formed in 2013 the Gender Equality Resource Centers (GERCs) based in the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao regions of the country. The gender focal specialists and advocates of these GERCs have themselves undergone intensive trainers’ training in GE and are also long-time co-op advocates and workers. These GERCs are ready to help fellow co-ops and other development agencies achieve greater sustainability in operations and service through gender equality.

–The above-mentioned Declarations and Calls for Action, events, and developments all led to this Declaration and Call for Action crafted in the National Summit on Gender and Development in Co-ops.

Preamble

“We women and men from different co-operatives in the Philippines participating in the National Summit on Gender and Development in Co-ops, with the theme Inspiring Women and Men in Co-ops, held on March 25-26, 2014 in Subic Bay Travelers Hotel and Event Center, Subic Bay Freeport Zone, Philippines, organized by the Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF), an Asian regional organization that promotes co-op development and gender advocacy, and the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA), the Philippines’s lead government agency tasked for co-op development, with the following Summit objectives:

  1. To know the importance of gender and development (GAD) that leads to the integration of gender equality (GE) in co-ops and, ultimately, to greater co-op growth and development
  2. To know how co-ops can comply with the requirements of Memorandum Circular 2013-22, pertaining to Guidelines on Mainstreaming Gender and Development in Cooperatives issued by the CDA on November 18, 2013
  3. To be inspired by the sharing in the Summit by key organizations and resource persons, and to join other co-ops in helping other co-ops nationwide in becoming even better and stronger co-ops

Concerns raised by the delegates

  1. Awareness on GAD by the leaders
  2. Capacity-building of co-ops on GAD
  3. Diverse cultural and religious beliefs
  4. Health concerns of women and men members
  5. Livelihood for women and men
  6. GAD plan and budget
  7. Enabling mechanisms in co-ops for GAD (training, capacity-building, committees, policies, programs, projects, activities)
  8. Sex-disaggregated data (SDD)
  9. Gender balance in leadership, management, staff, and membership
  10. Documentation of specific gender issues
  11. Disaster preparedness
  12. Senior citizens, differently abled persons, youth and children
  13. Linkages/networking for GAD or GAD-related
  14. Implementation of GAD-related programs/projects/activities

And also including these concerns raised during the presentations and open forum of the National Summit on Gender and Development in Co-ops:

  1. Gender balance in co-op membership (there are more women members because co-ops have more programs that women can avail of, thus leaving out the men)
  2. Gender balance in the board or leadership of co-op (there is no equality if the leaders are either all women or all men
  3. Electronic violence against women and children (e-vaw) (e.g., cybersex activity. In some instances, co-op resources/facilities are being used to commit e-vaw.)
  4. Inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) in gender integration (LGBT cannot be ignored. Sexual orientation—gender identity (SOGI) issues can be considered.)
  5. Improve gender training to elicit active participation among women and men participants (Will also lead to not having antagonistic trainers who can turn off male participants [to this end, 1. already being promoted in the field is a workshop on men talking to men about men; 2. paradigm shift through gender awareness is needed for acceptance of each other by both women and men, especially in leadership; and 3. men need to recognize importance of gender equality, which is not being “under” the women].)

Recommendations/Resolutions

We believe that co-ops are instruments for social justice, equity, and economic development

We recognize that GAD is a means or tool to achieving the goals of co-operatives in addressing gender issues in the co-operatives

And we resolve to implement the following actions in these entry points: (Note: See attached workshop results of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao co-ops in the National Summit on GAD in Co-ops.)

POLICY – There shall be approved and implemented policies related to GAD and GE.

    • Disaster preparedness
    • Diverse cultural and religious beliefs
    • Health concerns of women and men members
    • Gender balance in co-op membership (there are more women members because co-ops have more programs that women can avail of, thus leaving out the men)
    • Gender balance in the board or leadership of co-op (there is no equality if the leaders are either all women or all men)

CO-OP DEVELOPMENT PLAN – The approved Co-operative Development Plan shall include strategies/programs/activities/projects that address issues and concerns on gender and policy implementation.

    • Improve gender training to elicit active participation among women and men participants (Will also lead to not having antagonistic trainers who can turn off male participants [to this end, 1. already being promoted in the field is a workshop on men talking to men about men; 2. paradigm shift through gender awareness is needed for acceptance of each other by both women and men, especially in leadership; and 3. men need to recognize importance of gender equality, which is not being “under” the women].)
    • Electronic violence against women and children (e-vaw) (e.g., cybersex activity. In some instances, co-op resources/facilities are being used to commit e-vaw.)
    • Senior citizens, differently-abled persons, youth and children
    • Inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) in gender integration (LGBT cannot be ignored. Sexual orientation—gender identity (SOGI) issues can be considered.)

PROGRAMS/ACTIVITIES/PROJECTS (e.g., regular GAD national summit) – The co-operative shall prove that gender programs and projects in the Co-operative Development Plan are implemented.

    • Capacity-building of co-ops on GAD
    • Linkages/networking for GAD or GAD-related
    • Livelihood for women and men

BUDGET – A GAD budget must be allocated to the programs/activities/projects in the Co-operative Development Plan.

    • GAD plan and budget

MECHANISMS AND INSTRUMENTS – There shall be mechanisms and instruments established in the co-operative that will ensure GAD mainstreaming is facilitated, implemented and monitored.

    • Awareness on GAD by the leaders
    • Sex-disaggregated data (SDD)
    • Documentation of specific gender issues

We call on co-ops to implement, monitor, and evaluate GAD mainstreaming, and for the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA), Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), and other government agencies involved in co-op development; and local government units (LGUs), Cooperative Development Councils (CDCs), the Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF), and funding organizations to support through the development of tools and capacity-building the mainstreaming of GAD by co-ops; and for CDA to:

  • Provide technical assistance
  • Develop enabling framework and mechanism
  • Assist in human resource development and capacity-building
  • Build local and international linkages and partnerships for GAD
  • Support local GAD initiatives and events

We commit to be gender-fair cooperatives that respect human rights, cutting across barriers or borders of religion, color, age, ethnicity/race/culture and gender. The programs/plans/projects/activities must include all aspects, with no discrimination whatsoever even in all sectors of the community.

We commit to fully support and sustain GAD and GE in co-operatives and the immediate approval and implementation of their programs/plans/projects/activities. These also include the approval of policies, budget, and other mechanisms that may further be identified for their realization.
We commit to use all strategies, tools, and mechanisms available to ensure that GAD and GE will be echoed to all co-operatives even in the farthest regions and to mobilize the co-operative sector to adopt the Memorandum Circular issued by the CDA..

Lastly, we commit to disseminate information gathered from the National Summit, and to continually educate our members on the importance of GAD and GE on all facets of co-operativism.

Adoption

We hereby adopt this Declaration and Call for Action, done in the “National Summit on Gender and Development in Co-ops” on the 26th day of March 2014 at Subic Bay, Philippines.

Signed

568 delegates (34% male and 66% female) from 429 co-op organizations (primaries, unions, federations, co-op banks), LGUs, CDA, and AWCF from all over the Philippines that attended the said National Summit.

Workshop Results

-from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao co-ops that participated in the Philippines’s “National Summit on Gender and Development in Co-ops,” (theme: “Inspiring Change for Women and Men in Co-ops”), March 25-26, Subic Bay, PH. Organized by Asian Women in Co-operative Development Forum (AWCF) (www.coopwomen.org) and Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) (www.cda.gov.ph).

The National Summit had 568 delegates (34% male and 66% female) from 429 co-op organizations (primaries, unions, federations, co-op banks), LGUs, CDA, and AWCF from all over the Philippines.

Workshop Questions for each group:
1. What are our co-ops’ pressing concerns and issues related to gender and development?
2. How can our co-ops address or resolve these concerns and issues through the different entry points?

  • Policy
  • Co-op Development Plan
  • Mechanisms and Instruments
  • Programs/Activities/Projects
  • Budget

3. What is our co-ops’ commitment to address or resolve these concerns and issues?

Workshop Results:

A) LUZON
1. What are our co-ops’ pressing concerns and issues related to gender and development (GAD)?

Gender equality (co-op officers/staff)

  • Leadership
  • Livelihood opportunities
  • Women empowerment
  • Most members are women
  • Co-ops are not aware of GAD
  • More women are active than men
  • More co-ops’ activities, income-generating projects are more likely for women
  • Board of Directors (BOD) and members are mainly composed of males due to our co¬op’s clientele demography, which comes from the Philippine Air Force (PAF), Philippine Navy, and pensioners of Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)
  • Working towards making 50-50 representation of male and female in the workforce
  • Minimal participation of women in membership
  • Lack of seminars/training in GAD
  • Lack of knowledge/ information on GAD
  • No committees and programs
  • Lack of GAD Plan
  • Integrate gender equality (GE) in the co-op policies as to membership, programs and services, human resources, election guidelines, system and procedures, bylaws and plans
  • Strongly encourage family members to be members of the co-op

2. How can our co-ops address or resolve these concerns and issues through the different entry points? (Policy, Co-op Development Plan, Mechanisms and Instruments, Programs/Activities/Projects, Budget)

Policy

  • Propose amendment subject for General Assembly (GA) approval/creation of GAD committee/appointment of GAD Focal Person
  • Integration in bylaws
  • Committee will formulate action plans/agenda/activities related to GAD
  • Propose to the BOD for approval of Step 2
  • BOD will present to GA for approval

Co-op Development Plan; Programs/Activities/Projects; Budget; Mechanisms and Instruments

  • Adopt Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) Memorandum Circular (MC) 2013-22 (on mainstreaming GAD in co-ops)
  • Conduct GE Sensitivity Training
  • Identify GAD issues/concerns of members/officers/staff
  • Conduct survey, databanking, inventory
  • Inclusion in our five-year plan
  • GAD will be incorporated in the budget in 2015
  • Activities by programs will be done this year for GAD
  • In membership, couple may recruit each other and be a member of the co-op
  • On loan, in couples with the same business, one loan will be allowed
  • Generating income for all
  • To attract more men in membership, they will be given a discount/incentives on membership fee
  • Encourage more participation of women in co-ops through organization of women’s association in co-ops
  • Restructuring premembership education seminar (PMES) to include GE
  • Organize Laboratory Co-op
  • Allocating budget from the Cooperative Education and Training Fund (CETF) and Community Development Fund (CDF) for the GE programs and activities

3. What is our co-ops’ commitment to address or resolve these concerns and issues?

  • Implement Gender Mainstreaming–adoption of International Law on Human Rights
  • Gender Fair (equality) Co-ops
  • Respect for human rights
  • After GA approval, for immediate implementation including information dissemination and continuous education to members
  • Conduct of GE Sensitivity Training and creating policy pronouncement on GE
  • All policy, plans, budgets, mechanisms, instruments are in GE
  • Practicing GE in all aspects in coops
  • Ask CDA or resource speakers from GAD to conduct trainers training on policy making for mainstreaming GAD on coops
  • To promote equal opportunities for men and women in GAD
  • To improve the social life of men and women equally
  • Federation/Union’s inclusion of GAD in their training program
  • Inclusion of the program in the PMES
  • Allocate a budget for this program
  • To implement the above issues and concerns not later than the third quarter of 2014 adopting GAD

B) VISAYAS

1. What are our co-ops’ pressing concerns and issues related to gender and development (GAD)?

    1. Gender awareness (lack of awareness on GAD for officers and employees)
    2. Working environment for the employees
    3. Health concerns for the members (maternal care facilities and support, gender desk)
    4. Gender Programs and Plans Gender equality to be included
    5. Absence of focal persons and committee
    6. Lack of research on GAD (gender equality) Absence of sex-disaggregated data
    7. Livelihood (income-generating projects)
    8. Linkages (local government units [LGUs])
    9. Capability Building (Gender-fair language)
    10. Policies to be gender fair (Human resource [HR] Policy to be reviewed)
    11. Absence of GAD Plan and Budget
    12. Need training for online GE Programs

1. Lack of awareness /promotion in GAD

a. Capability building on GAD including gender-fair language

i. Information dissemination
ii. Campaign materials

b. Conduct of Gender Sensitivity Training

i. Linkage with LGUs, federation, support providers

c. Research and Development

2. Development of GAD Plans and Programs

3. Implementation

a. Need for policies/funds, committee, budget, gender focal person (GFP)
b. Need for plans and programs

4. Mechanisms

a. Meeting of Board of Directors (BOD) (statement of support from the BOD)
b. Determine the unit that will handle GAD, staff, structure, budget, activities
c. Report to respective co-operatives
d. Incorporate in the premembership education seminar (PMES)
e. Monitoring

C) MINDANAO

1. What are our co-ops’ pressing concerns and issues related to gender and development (GAD)?

1. lack of gender awareness in offices, management, staff and members (for information, awareness and training)
2. lack of family income (insufficient)
3. diversity of religious/cultural beliefs
4. absence/lack of sex-disaggregated data
5. document all possible issues raised by the members as to

A. violence
B. subordination
C. marginalization
D. stereotyping
E. men are better than women in terms of authority and leadership
F. usually, women have an idea of entrepreneurship than men
G. human trafficking
H. children in conflict with the law (CICL)
I. improper use of GAD plan
J. malnutrition
K. financial literacy and discipline
L. climate change
M. marital relationship and problems resulted to delinquency in loan payments
N. family financial management affects co-op membership participation and cooperation

6. no specific program for women in support of men for livelihood
7. GAD not yet introduced to some coops; GAD not yet prioritized; no policy on GAD
8. committee on GAD not functioning
9. employees of our co-ops are males; dominated by male employees or vice versa
10. non-inclusion of GAD-related program/policy/plan/activities (PPPA) in the co-ops’ list of activities and its budgetary requirements

2. How can our co-ops address or resolve these concerns and issues through the different entry points?

1. conduct Gender Sensitivity Training (GST)
2. formulation of gender equality (GE) plan and proposed budget
3. incorporate GAD module in the Education Committee modules; premembership education seminar (PMES) and Ownership Seminar (OS), and other co-op training
4. designating a GAD focal person and gender committee in every branch
5. strategic plan for GAD development
6. modules, GE role models, pool of trainers, monitoring and evaluation tools, benchmarking, regular reporting
7. revision and integration of GE policies to human resource (HR) policy approved by the general assembly (GA)
8. conduct GE PPPA
9. setting up 70%-30% gender representation to BODs, elected and appointed committees. This concerns the Election Committee code or policies of the co-operative approved by the GA.
10. posting GE materials in each co-op
11. partnership of the City Cooperative Development Councils (CCDCs)/Municipal Cooperative Development Councils (MCDCs) in promoting GE among co-ops in order to avail of the 5% GAD budget of the local government unit (LGU)
12. formulate GE assessment tool
13. conduct GE Mindanao summit for reporting, monitoring, evaluation
14. strengthen gender equality resource center (GERC) and implement PPPA set by the latter
15. the co-op will make a policy on GAD

A. Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) and co-ops should conduct seminar or orientations on GAD objectives
B. include GAD on co-op’s strategic planning with a budget charged against the Community Development Fund (CDF)
C. budget preparation

16. preparation of GAD policy/plan (women/men board members)
17. integrated-localization on GAD program

A. appoint a GAD focal person/co-op
B. complaints/problems are addressed through GAD focal persons

18. mainstream GAD in all policies through GA-approved implementing rules and regulations
19. actions, programs, activities, and training must incorporate GAD like GST, infra projects that cater to both men and women
20. team-building activities and celebrations such as “family day”

3. What is our co-ops’ commitment to address or resolve these concerns and issues?

1. support, sustain GAD
2. full implementation of programs
3. prepare a GAD plan/program (depending on co-op’s orientation)

A. equality program (elective members of bod/management)
B. livelihood program for men and women (empower women)
C. financial literacy and financial discipline program/seminar for members

4. capacity building/capability building
5. re-orientation on values
6. pursue tree-planting initiatives of LGUs, and support reforestation
7. disaster risk prevention program
8. use of Cooperative Education and Training Fund (CETF)/CDF for GAD budget, and augment whenever possible
9. revisit, re-evaluate the 5-year development plan, and include the budget and activities as regards to mainstreaming GAD

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