Increase in Gender Budgeting

General Studies Paper -3

Context: The Interim Budget 2024-25 has increased the Gender Budget.

• The quantum of Gender Budget reported in 2024-25 is 38.6%more than budget estimates of 2023-24.
• The share of Gender Budget in the total Union Budget increased to 5% in 2024-25 from 5% in 2023-24.

What is Gender Budgeting?

• Gender Budgeting is a strategy with gender responsive formulation of legislation, policies, plans, programmes, and schemes; resource allocation; implementation; tracking of expenditure, audit, and impact assessment.
• It aims to ensure that public resources are collected and spent efficiently based on differing gender needs and priorities.
• Gender Budgets are not separate budgets for women; neither do they imply that funds be divided into half for men and women or that budgets should be divided into half.
• They are attempts to disaggregate the government’s budget according to its differential impact on different Genders, and reprioritize allocations to bridge gender gaps.
• Gender-responsive budgeting in India was adopted in It comprises two parts: 
• Part A: It encompasses schemes that allot100 percent of the funds for women (such as maternity benefits).
• Part B: It consists of schemes that allocate at least 30 percent of funds for women (such as the Mid-Day Meal scheme).

Need for Gender budgeting

• Addressing Gender Inequality:  The Gender Gap Report 2023 ranked India at 127 out of 146 
• Gender budgeting provides a systematic framework for addressing these inequalities by allocating resources towards programs and initiatives that promote gender equality.
• Enhancing Development Outcomes: Gender equality yields significant development benefits, including poverty reduction, improved health outcomes, and enhanced economic growth.
• Gender budgeting helps in mainstreaming gender considerations across all sectors of the economy, thereby contributing to more inclusive and sustainable development outcomes.
• International Commitments:India is a signatory to various international agreements and conventions that mandate the promotion of gender equality and women’s rights, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Gender budgeting is necessary to fulfill these commitments.
• Ensuring Targeted Interventions:Gender budgeting helps in identifying and prioritizing the specific needs and priorities of women and girls.

Challenges

• Data Availability and Quality: Gender budgeting relies on accurate gender-disaggregated data to identify specific needs and assess the effectiveness of interventions.
• However, data collection mechanisms lack gender disaggregation, making it challenging to formulate evidence-based policies and allocate resources efficiently.
• Fragmentation of Initiatives:Gender-related initiatives in India are fragmented across different ministries and departments, leading to duplication of efforts, inefficiencies, and gaps in service delivery.
• Regular monitoring:Absence of robust monitoring mechanisms to evaluate the accountability and progress of gender budgeting initiatives reduces its effectiveness.

Way Forward

• Gender budgeting is a critical tool for advancing gender equality, promoting women’s empowerment, and achieving inclusive and sustainable development in India.
• By addressing the challenges in implementation of gender budgeting  India can address the root causes of gender disparities and work towards creating a more equitable and just society.