Applying a human rights-based approach and organisational change theory to create an enabling environment for gender-equitable extension services in Guatemala

Abstract

This paper describes how the human rights-based approach combined with institutional gender mainstreaming can be used to create an enabling environment for gender-sensitive agricultural extension. FAO assisted the Government of Guatemala in their implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). CEDAW, the only international human rights instrument that specifically addresses rural women's rights, was used as a framework for institutionalising gender, including in the Ministry of Agriculture's national rural extension system. A four-level approach was followed, addressing political commitment, policies, institutional mechanisms and individual capacities to create sustainable conditions for providing extension services that respond to the needs of both women and men farmers. The authors found that the application of a human rights-based approach combined with institutional gender mainstreaming can be an effective method to induce positive changes in the gender-sensitivity of rural advisory services.