Gender-sensitive budgeting examined for 2015-2017 plan

Inter-ministerial experts in gender issues, members of the steering committee for planning and gender-sensitive budgeting, have examined actions that could be integrated in the 2016 State budget to allow all citizens, irrespective of sex, to equitably contribute to nation building.

The steering committee held its first session in Yaounde on Monday December 22 under the chairmanship of Urbain Noel Ebang Mve, Secretary General in the Ministry of Finance.

Speaking during the opening ceremony, the chairperson said the development of the country lies in the hands of all citizens and it was high time people of all sexes were allowed, without discrimination, to chip in their contribution for the attainment of set growth objectives.

“Adhering to the Beijing programme of action where all signatory countries accepted the equality of sex and the emancipation of the woman as a fundamental principle of human development, our country has been working to ensure equality between men and women,” he said.

The drafting of the 2010-2020 Growth and Employment Strategy Paper, Urbain Noel Ebang Mve said, took into consideration conditions needed to elevate the woman folk for her optimum contribution to the country’s socio-economic development.

Monday’s session was therefore to propose ways and means of stepping up sensitization of stakeholders on the importance of continually integrating gender in budgeting as well as propose strategies for a systematic, structural and sustainable gender balancing in the process of national planning and budgeting.

The proposals of the committee, he said, will be timely enough for the country’s development planners to integrate into the 2016 State budget.