Table of Contents
Acronyms
1.0. / Introduction to the Strategy / 4
· Background / 4
· GMD strategic approach / 5
· Strategic objectives / 5
2.0. / The Communication Strategy / 8
· Communication issues and challenges / 8
· Guiding principles / 10
· Communication goal and objectives / 11
· Target audience / 11
· Communication channels / 12
· Outcomes, monitoring and evaluation / 13
3.0. / Implementation of the Communication Strategy / 13
· Roles and responsibilities / 13
· Implementation plan matrixes / 15
Acronyms
FSI: Female Scholarship Initiative
GMD: Gender Mainstreaming Division
GMP: Gender Mainstreaming Programme
IEC: Information Education and Communication
Mak: Makerere University Kampala
M&E: Monitoring and Evaluation
PhD: Doctor of Philosophy
No: Number
P.R.O: University Public Relations Officer
T.V: Television
PART 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE STRATEGY
1.1 Background
Gender Mainstreaming is one of the six priority areas of the Makerere University Strategic Plan (2002-2007). Among the strategies to achieve this objective, Makerere University has established the Senate Committee on Gender Mainstreaming as a policy organ and the Gender Mainstreaming Division (GMD) within the Academic Registrar’s office as an implementing unit. The aim of the division is to foster a gender responsive all-inclusive and people friendly institution.
Accordingly, GMD is implementing a 10-year strategic plan aimed at institutionalizing gender mainstreaming in the University’s function. The plan (2007/8 – 2017/8) aims at tackling challenges faced in:
· blending the GMP within the structures of the Programme of Academic Registrar
· establishing links with relevant units of the University through sentinel sites
· attitudinal changes of the individual actors, and
· reaching out to the middle and lower cadre staff of the University.
The GMP strategic plan is an outcome of the situational analysis of the gender terrain at Makerere University carried out by the Gender Mainstreaming Programme (GMP) in its attempt to address gender imbalances by making men’s and women’s concerns and experiences an “integral dimension of the University’s function.”[1]
The findings showed that:
· Whereas the 1.5 affirmative action programme introduced in 1996 and the creation of Programme of Women Studies had increased the population ratio of women and highlighted related issues at the University, serious inequities remained.
· The increased perception of gender equality as “politically correct” has not translated into practice. There is still a gap between the embrace of perception and principle of gender equality with the practice of various actors across the University spectrum.
· The inclusion of gender equality in the University’s activities, as well as specific agendas, is still hampered by male superiority complex of some staff among other factors.
1.2. GMP strategic approach
The mandate of the GMP is to mainstream gender in the key functions of the University which include;
· teaching, learning and increased access to university education at Makerere by young women
· basic applied research
· outreach programmes; governance and administration
· student welfare
· public space and security for the benefit of the University and beyond
The execution of the above mandate is guided by a number of principles and assumptions that:
· View gender as cutting across all university functions
· Require sustained visibility, and heightened women specific interventions to address historical imbalances
· Use participatory approaches and create vital linkages with stakeholders
· Realize that some changes can be achieved immediately but others can only be attained in the medium or long term.
1.3. Strategic objectives
The Gender Mainstreaming Division’s strategic objectives are rooted in Makerere University’s vision that positions the organization as an “icon for gender equity and equality.” Furthermore, the strategic objectives are informed by the University’s mission of gender responsiveness and its integration in teaching, learning, research, and governance activities for the benefit of its stakeholders.
GMP’s Strategic Objectives:
· To promote and advocate for the enactment and effective implementation of gender responsive policies in Makerere University.
· To advocate for gender balance in access to the University, especially for girls from disadvantaged backgrounds and in science disciplines.
· To support women staff into leadership positions at Makerere University.
· To promote gender equity and equality in staff and student’s welfare through strengthening the sentinel sites to mainstream gender in their work plans, programmes and their budgets.
· To support gender mainstreaming in teaching and learning through engendering of the University curricula.
· To support gender focused research and publications.
· To effective use of the media in order to influence decision making and policy formulation at the national level.
· To engage in knowledge transfer partnerships and networking with gender institutions/organizations at the national, regional and international levels.
· To ensure self-reliant, resourceful and sustainable GMP by resource mobilization and investment.
The above objectives are envisaged to translate into:
· Existence of gender responsive policies at Makerere University
· Gender equity and equality for staff and students’ welfare at Makerere University
· Increased female access to higher education (FSI: undergraduates)
· Increased female access to higher education (Diploma holders; undergraduates)
· Increased female access to higher education (Masters and PhD: post graduate students)
· Gender mainstreamed in teaching and learning at Makerere university
· Gender focused research and publications, effective use of the media and established resource centre
· GMP’s outreach and collaboration with like-minded institutions at the national, regional and international levels
· A self-reliant, resourceful and sustainable GMP
· Effective and efficient operational management and strategic transformation of the GMP into a directorate.
Part of the implementation of the strategic plan required a communication strategy to guide the gender mainstreaming activities related to research and publications, as well the media and the established resource centre. This strategy operationalizes the communication aspects of the strategic plan, and enhances the realization of the above strategic objectives. It will link GMP’s strategic plan and provide a framework for reaching various University internal and external stakeholders, including the general public.
PART 2: 2.0. THE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY
This communication strategy is aimed at increasing knowledge and awareness of the various actors at the University to appreciate better how gender affects their activities and assume the responsibility of integrating equalities in every aspect their activities.
The strategy seeks to operationalise objective 7 of the GMP Annual Plan 2007/08 on the “Production of professional publications; effective use of the media and dialogue; excellent public relations and documentation; production of gender based research; and the establishment of a resource centre.”
The above communication activities are envisaged to complement the other activities of the GMP strategic plan as spelt out in the above objectives. The strategy therefore maps out ways and means of how the collective communication aspects of the GMP activities will be channeled and targeted to reach intended audiences for maximum results.
2.1. Communication issues and challenges
The strategy prioritizes the key communication aspects of the overall 10 year GMP strategic plan after which they are matched with communication activities required to address them with a view to maximizing gender mainstreaming in the University function. The key communication issues are:
a). Perception and image
One of the main challenges for the slow integration of GMP and gender equality in the university functions is wrong perceptions of what the GMP and gender equality are. Key stakeholders, both within and outside the university have grossly misconceived the meaning, role and place of gender equality. For example, some of the university target audiences, including key staff noted the following while explaining the role of GMP;-
· The GMP is an experiment that will fade away than be entrenched in the university function.
· Gender equality, owing to the programme’s dependency on donor funding, is a “foreign concern.”
· GMP is responsible for “whatever it is all about...” That is, they do not know what GMP does and generally do not care to know…
The above misconceptions also manifest in the continued use of gender-insensitive language at the University. Whereas old stereotypes such as chairman and manpower are slowly giving way to new concepts such as chairperson and human power, in meetings, people still use the male pronoun (he) and jokes that make women conscious of their sex e.g. you walk slowly like a woman.
b). Limited knowledge and awareness
There is generally limited understanding by a cross section of actors at the University as well as the external audiences of GMP and gender equality due to;-
· High prevalence of male superiority complex at the University and the country at large.
· Lack of awareness of what to do to embrace the GMP objectives and gender equality in the University structures and activities by individual actors.
Whereas many staff and students have attended at least one workshop organized by the GMP, this has not yet translated into deeper understanding of the Division’s function especially by the male university staff and students. A significant number of males at the University for example, feel gender issues are over-hyped but they nevertheless accept that the inclusion of females in their different units is increasingly influencing their decisions and activities to be more gender-sensitive and inclusive. This affirms that increased female numbers across University units is a major factor in increasing male understanding of gender mainstreaming.
c). Limited information and communication capacity
The above perception and knowledge problems are further compounded by:
· Limited source of information about GMP, gender equity and equality. At a moment, there is no clear source of information, sustained campaign and channels on GMP and gender equality outside the Programme.
· Limited access to available source of information about GMP and gender equality
· Limited gender analytical skills by actors across the University units. This includes gender-sensitive language skills in the communication aspects of the teaching, administrative and socializing processes.
· Limited communication materials on gender mainstreaming at Makerere University e.g. brochures and booklets.
The prevalence of information and awareness gaps on gender among males than women is attributed to low access of information about gender mainstreaming. While most of the female members of staff say they have access to information about how to mainstream gender in the University functions, this is not the case among their male counterparts. Male members of staff and students say they do not have enough access to information on gender mainstreaming. Furthermore, while the majority of the females find the current information appealing and relevant, some male counter parts feel it is sometimes biased against them.
It therefore follows from the above issues that the main challenges for mainstreaming gender in Makerere University are; negative perception and image concerning gender, limited knowledge and awareness and limited information and communication capacity. The communication strategy should therefore go a long way in addressing these issues.
2.2. Guiding principles
The communication strategy is guided by the need to have sustained visibility of gender issues across the University function. In this regard, the strategy is built on three levels of communication: awareness, adoption, and consolidation.
· Awareness
The strategy will start by creating awareness and understanding of GMP and its activities; the need and process of mainstreaming gender in the activities of the University; as well as the roles expected of the various actors in and outside the University in attaining gender equity and equality in the University function.
· Adoption
The above awareness activities will then be used to guide actors and units to undertake actions that will support the engendering process of the University function.
· Consolidation
Based on timely monitoring, the communication activities will be regularly updated to model the adopted engendering practices, encourage the actors and units to maintain and consequently the practice. Consolidation activities will include research and best practice documentation.
In addition to the above levels, the strategy proposes a participatory approach in communication. To enhance the stakeholders’ ownership of the strategy, the various categories of the target audiences as well as the beneficiaries, having been involved in the developing of this communication strategy, will be deeply involved in its implementation.
Also, the communication strategy will be guided and implemented with the wider University communication policies, standards and guidelines.
2.3. Communication goal and objectives
Goal
Objectives
This strategy’s communication objectives are linked to the GMP strategic plan objectives and the associated communication issues and challenges.
1. To increase the percentage of university staff, students and stakeholders who are knowledgeable about gender and its importance in relation to;- engendered curricula, gender focused research, leadership and networking by 2015.
2. To streamline and enhance the communication capacity of the GMP and increase its ability to communicate clear and consistent messages across university staff, students and stakeholders by 2015.
2.4. Target audience
The target audiences for this communication strategy are:
1. Internal audience: This category is composed of University academic and non academic staff and students. It includes the middle and lower cadre staff in the Programme of Academic Registrar, research, teaching and non teaching units as well as the University Council, Senate and top administration. These various actors need information on how to engender their activities in the policy, learning, research, working, career development and communication spheres. In addition, they need gender analytical and mainstreaming skills on how to engender their activities and consequently institutionalize gender equity and equality in the overall University function.
2. External audience: This includes the government, policy makers, academic institutions, prospective students, the media and the general public. These audiences need information to understand the GMP and the progress of the engendering process at the University.
2.5. Communication channels
The strategy uses a combination of both interpersonal and mass communication channels. These range from; publications, meetings, workshops, student orientation week, articles, newspapers, radio and website. A specific and focused deployment of communication channels and tools is indicated in the strategy implementation plan (15-18 below). Channel choice and mix is informed by the nature of communication issues, target audience and the cost-effectiveness of the channel. Please also see audiences and channel mix section below.