The Implementation Challenge of Gender Mainstreaming for Women Empowerment in Afar Regional State in Selected Public Sectors Bureaus

Abstract Implementation could be the process of gender mainstreaming policy, project and program into practice. It is the transformation of the policy, objectives, targets and goals into reality. It is identified from the study of a lot of researches that there is no such research has been yet studied in Afar regional government and that is why the author inspired to study the situation in Afar region using (education bureau, women and social affairs bureau, and regional pastoral agriculture bureau) as a case. The specific research objectives and research questions address awareness problem in gender mainstreaming, resource mobilization for gender mainstreaming, institutional capacity to implement gender mainstreaming and strategies being used to implement gender mainstreaming in Afar regional public sector bureaus. The qualitative research approach was used to collect and analyse the data from secondary sources and quantitative research approach was used to collect and analyse data from the primary source. The findings of this descriptive research reveals that experts and political leaders were not satisfied on the implementation of gender mainstreaming women empowerments in Afar regional public sector bureaus. Finding of the study indicates that the tackling measures by government are not considered as enough to avoid work place discrimination. Public sectors in the region are not effective and efficient in level and utilization of resource mobilization for gender mainstreaming. Representation of men’s and women’s has not balanced in any bureaus and determines that still there is Patriarch nature is observed in the Afar region. Government structures don’t have gender mainstreaming department and if it exists it is not equipped by the staff and experts. Absence adopted gender mainstreaming implementation mechanism. No Organizational structure with enough staff to undertake the task provided for the organization and if they exist, they can’t accomplish their duties and is considered as a factor that is affecting and has affected implementation gender mainstreaming in the region. Capacity building strategies are not working. Recommendation of the study the study suggested that research should be conducted on gender budgeting for better implementation of gender mainstreaming and the study recommends further study on factors influencing policy formulation in gender mainstreaming as well as factors contributing to female marginalization in projects.