Existing strategies to mainstream gender in development reveals a gap in addressing the situation of women living in poverty. This is mainly due to the fact that existing global instruments and measures are based on national data that are sometimes disaggregated between rural and urban population, but ignoring gender disparities.

This is despite compelling evidence that nationwide averages fail to highlight gender differentials vis-à-vis several aspects of human existence.

Eliminating gender disparity at all levels of education helps to increase the status and capabilities of women. In developing countries the gender gap in enrolment narrowed during the last decade.

However, the progress indicated by national figures has been uneven in countries where many girls and boys remain out-of-school or drop out too early. Female literacy rates are still low, particularly in poor areas (more than 70 percent). This limits the opportunities women can have to take up employment in the formal sector.

The evidence suggests that in poor urban and rural areas, nearly 95 percent of working women are employed in the informal or in the agriculture sector. In response to this, one of the Habitat Agenda goals is to strengthen small and micro-enterprises particularly for women. However, the success of this goal depends on other factors related to family and social policies, and particularly to women’s access to political decision-making. Although there has been and continues to be a drive to increase women’s participation in Parliaments, their representation is still low in the world (less than 20 percent).

There is need to develop a comprehensive framework of gender indicators, sensitive to the situation of women that complement the MDGs and Habitat Agenda. This recognition has led the UN-HABITAT Gender Mainstreaming unit to embark on the development of gender indicators covering various problem areas for women. These include shelter, education, employment, health, HIV/AIDS, crime and violence, social capital, governance, decision-making, etc.

Preliminary results for Africa show that urban households headed by women are generally poorer than those headed by men. One quarter of households are headed by women, and 75 percent of these households lack adequate shelter as illustrated by demographic and health surveys conducted in Africa (1990-2000). In a context where ownership documentation is vested in the household head who is mainly the man, a woman does not fully enjoy secure tenure.

As shown, for example, by the Addis Ababa Urban Inequities Survey of 2003, women are more exposed to being redered homeless. The majority of homeless women in Addis Ababa are either widowed or divorced. The lack of adequate shelter also infringes on privacy, including sexual privacy, especially for women. Young girls are therefore often exposed to earlier sexual intercourse, higher frequencies of unwanted pregnancy, and are at greater risk of HIV/AIDS.

In sub-Saharan Africa, more than 30 percent of teenage women (15-19) have become mothers or pregnant with their first child. According to the World Health Organization, in sub-Saharan Africa the proportion of young women living with HIV/AIDS is double that of their male counterparts young men (8 percent against 4 percent). Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) also indicate that in most African countries, women do not have control over their earnings, their own health, household purchases, and their visits to family or relatives.

For instance, in Zambia the 2002 DHS shows that 60 percent of married women cannot decide on the use of their own earnings. It also shows, for example that 79 percent believe “domestic violence” is justified when a woman goes out without the permission of her husband.

The lessons learned here show that the empowerment of women goes beyond education, employment and parliament, and should be considered within specific social contexts and cultural values.

To effectively promote gender equality and empower women, local policy needs to be informed about the consequences of the vastly different living conditions experienced by women and men. For that purpose, there is need to assemble and disaggregate existing indicators to capture gender differentials. Although some data exists on critical areas like access to basic services and governance, they should be collated and analyzed, while other data have to be collected through primary research.

Gora Mboup, Senior Demographic and Health Expert, is a Human Settlements Officer with UN-HABITAT’s Monitoring Research Division. Mary Amuyunzu-Nyamongo, is the Director of African Institute for Health and Development (AIHD)