Gender Equality | Economic Empowerment | Social Inclusion
GENDER ANALYSES & AUDITS
Lydia has conducted numerous analysis of gender roles in the context of a project or activity. This is done using both qualitative and quantitative methods, where Lydia collaboratively designs tools, collects the data and analyzes the findings to inform gender strategy or make adjustments to work plans. Lydia has also conducted multiple gender audits of organizations to assess organizational political will to gender equality, technical capacity, accountability mechanisms and organizational culture. This has helped organizations get a baseline on gender equality and build ownership.
ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT
Lydia ensures that projects and activities benefit both men and women by designing activities that allow women to participate equally in existing economic activities. Lydia promotes women’s access to and control over productive resources while promoting control over women’s own time (workload and leisure balance). Lydia also promotes intra household decision making, including over use of income from economic activities.
YOUTH TRAINING
Lydia has been trained on USAID’s Positive Youth Development approach and engages youth, their families, communities and other relevant stakeholders to empower youth. Through training and mentorship, Lydia supports teams to build skills, assets and competencies for youth, while fostering healthy relationships that strengthen the environment and transform systems. Lydia has also been trained on the Mercy Corps GirlSPARKS methodology and has used these skills to find most marginalized girls, bring them to the centre of program design to promote ‘do no harm’ policy.
HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
Lydia ensures men, women, boys and girls have equitable access to assistance and services during humanitarian crises. Lydia has supported programs working with refugee communities, conflict affected communities and communities affected by disease outbreaks such as Ebola and COVID-19 with skills and resources to promote inclusivity and impartiality. Lydia trained the teams - including private sector - on protection against sexual exploitation and abuse and monitoring and response mechanisms.
GENDER TRANSFORMATIVE
MARKET SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT
Lydia has supported projects/activities through the complex interrelationships of value chains, economic, social and political systems. This includes the analyzing and transforming the underlying norms, networks and patterns that shape behaviours to ensure an inclusive and resilient market system. Some of the value chains she has supported are maize, rice, coffee, livestock and poultry.
COACHING & MENTORSHIP
Lydia provides on-the-job capacity building, supportive mentoring and coaching for project gender and youth specialists and key partners throughout Africa, Middle East and Asia, to help them implement organizational principles, policies, procedures and guidelines related to inclusiveness, gender equity, equality and women’s empowerment. She has established a network of gender advisors and equipped them with skills and resources to drive the gender agenda in their context.