End of Commitment Report – Improving Gender Equality Through the establishment of a Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission

Name of Evaluator

David Wuyep

Email

djwuyep@gmail.com

Member Name

Plateau, Nigeria

Action PlanAction plans are at the core of a government’s participation in OGP. They are the product of a co-creation process in which government and civil society jointly develop commitments to open governmen... Title

Action plan – Plateau, Nigeria, 2021 – 2023

CommitmentOGP commitments are promises for reform co-created by governments and civil society and submitted as part of an action plan. Commitments typically include a description of the problem, concrete action...

Improving GenderOGP participating governments are bringing gender perspectives to popular policy areas, ensuring diversity in participatory processes, and specifically targeting gender gaps in policies to address gov... More Equality Through the establishment of a Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission

Action

Full implementation of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Law which prohibits all forms of discrimination on the basis of gender and violence against women, children, and infants, abolishes discriminatory laws and practices and provides for temporary special measures to be adopted to accelerate gender equality. This will be done through the setting up of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Commission, tasked to deliver on the spirit and the letter of the law.

Problem

Discrimination on the basis of gender or marital status Marginal Participation of women in decision-making positions Lack of Economic empowerment of women and other vulnerable groups Prevalent Incidents of gender-based violenceReforms that combat gender-based violence are essential for fostering an inclusive society and government that respects human rights and promotes gender equality. Technical specifications: Commitments... More.

1.1 What was the overall level of progress in the commitment implementation at the time of this assessment?

Limited

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

Two out of seven milestones were completed for this commitment. Three of the outstanding milestones are ongoing. The non-completion of one of the milestones, review, and amendment of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Law made it impossible to complete the ongoing milestones and initiate action on the remaining two milestones as they are dependent on the review and passage of the law.

Provide evidence that supports and justifies your answer:

• Plateau State Events
• Virtual Inauguration of Interim Committee for the GEO Commission
• Advocacy visit to Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice

1.2 Describe the main external or internal factors that impacted implementation of this commitment and how they were addressed (or not).

The slow legislative process in the Plateau State House of Assembly, further compounded by long interruptions of sessions of the House of Assembly due to the electionsImproving transparency in elections and maintaining the independence of electoral commissions is vital for promoting trust in the electoral system, preventing electoral fraud, and upholding the democr... More and political transition programs impeded the achievement of the key milestone, that is, the review of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Law, upon which most of the remaining milestones depend.

1.3 Was the commitment implemented as originally planned?

Few of the commitment milestones were implemented as planned

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

Advocacy visits to key stakeholders were carried out as planned but the review of the Gender and Equal Opportunities Law is ongoing. Because the reviewed Law has not been passed, take-off funds for the commission have not been mobilized and the substantive board of the commission has not been constituted. Consequently, the Office structure has not been commissioned. However, sensitization of beneficiary stakeholders has started.

Provide evidence for your answer:

• Advocacy visit to Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice

2.1.1. – Did the government disclose more information; improve the quality of the information (new or existing); improve the value of the information; improve the channels to disclose or request information or improve accessibility to information?

Yes

Degree of result:

Marginal

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

The long delay in the passage of the revised Gender and Equal Opportunities Law has hindered the achievement of the remaining milestones that would have made a substantial impact on the target stakeholders.

2.1.2. – Did the government create new opportunities to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation inform or influence decisions; improve existing channels or spaces to seek feedback from citizens/enable participation/ inform or influence decisions; create or improve capabilities in the government or the public aimed to improve how the government seeks feedback from citizens/enables participation/ or allows for the public to inform or influence decisions?

Yes

Degree of result:

Marginal

Explanation: In narrative form, what has been the impact on people or practice.

The long delay in the passage of the revised Gender and Equal Opportunities Law has hindered the achievement of the remaining milestones that would have made a substantial impact on the target stakeholders.

2.1.3 Did the government create or improve channels, opportunities or capabilities to hold officials answerable to their actions?

Not Applicable

2.1.4 Other Results

Not Applicable

2.2 Did the commitment address the public policy problem that it intended to address as described in the action plan?

Unclear

Provide a brief explanation of your answer:

The commitment has not been implemented and so the problems it sought to address have not been addressed.

3. Provide at least one lesson or reflection relating to the implementation of this commitment. It can be the identification of key barriers to implementation, an unexpected help/hindrance, recommendations for future commitments, or if the commitment should be taken forward to the next action plan.

More time should have been allocated for the implementation of this commitment, considering how slow the legislative process can be.