Country profiles

Profiles have been developed of the experiences of gender-responsive budgeting of countries in the Asia Pacific region for the period 1984-2010.

The project is a research collaboration between Rhonda Sharp (University of South Australia), Diane Elson (University of Essex) and Siobhan Austen (Curtin University of Technology). Located at the University of South Australia the research was funded by an Australian Development Research Award.

In the country profiles we seek to provide an understanding of the different approaches to gender-responsive budgeting, the enabling and constraining factors operating within a country, the groups involved and the tools and strategies adopted. Some country profiles are provided in a short form while others are a long version, with the latter providing additional background on the country.

The country profiles (long versions) outline the:

• country's context
• key gender equality issues and the institutional arrangements in place
• budgetary context and
• gender-responsive budgeting experiences of the country with a focus on the national budgets.

The project uses quantitative and qualitative data to undertake a review of the evidence of the gender responsive practices of countries in the region. Timor Leste is a more detailed case study that focusses on the enabling and constraining factors. Included is a expenditure incidence analysis showing gender and locational differences in education in the country (see publications section). This analytical first was made possible with the contribution of Diane Elson.

The research team drew on a broad range of sources for the country profiles including published research and reports and 'grey literature'. In the case of Timor-Leste and Indonesia interviews were undertaken with key actors in the field. A list of references is provided for each country profile.

A summary of the twenty-six country profiles developed by this project have been included in the UN Women status report on gender-responsive budgeting in the Asia Pacific Region (see details in the section on profile updates in the section, Country Profile PDF files).