October 2007 · Number 112 53807 A regular series of notes highlighting recent lessons emerging from the operational and analytical program of the World Bank`s Latin America and Caribbean Region. Gender in Peru: Can women be integrated into transport projects? Luz Caballero y Nerida Alcahuasi The Rural Roads Project (2001-2006), RRP, was esteem. The reality of the Peruvian woman lies in a good practice example in a number of ways, not domestic violence and the political and social violence least with respect to gender equality. It included experienced in the country in past decades which, 12 of the poorest departments (50 percent of the together with other factors, led to 20 percent of women country), and the rehabilitation being heads of households. When rural and maintenance of 15,000 women earn a salary in the agricultural kilometers of rural roads by sector, it is less than that of rural routine rural maintenance micro- men, and even then, the entirety of enterprises, whose management their income is spent to support their has been fully transferred to households. local and regional governments. Improvement works were also Road Accessibility carried out on 7,000 kilometers Small, appropriately focused rural of bridle paths, an informal infrastructure interventions can means of rural transport mostly contribute to the well-being of used by women and children. women and their families. First, the In addition to the impacts on project made physical access easier rural poverty reduction and improvements in transport by integrating rural communities into road networks conditions (access to markets, health, education, etc.), the and the socioeconomic system, thereby contributing project's decentralization and institutional strengthening to the reduction of opportunity costs of women's component produced other outcomes such as improved time and opening up opportunities for their mobility. access to information and greater transparency and Second, as salaried members of the rural maintenance accountability. People in the affected area have been micro-enterprises, women also had access to economic empowered to exercise their civil rights, including resources, which had a positive impact on the well- democracy and the project has encouraged cooperation, being of their households. Third, women were active the forming of associations, and participation; and participants in the public consultations and also benefited finally, contributed to civic mindedness among rural from access to the decision-making process, generating inhabitants. Gender was a factor throughout the project a sense of civic pride and self-confidence. and was included in the objectives,. In this regard, as in so many others, this project surpassed its expected goals. Women's Voices Heard Rural Peruvian Women The main achievement of the Rural Roads Project with regard to gender issues was the improvement of the Women constitute 49.2 percent of Peru's rural bridle paths. population, and their reality is very similar to many rural women worldwide: overwork without remuneration, This was not simply a result of female representation limited participation in decision making, lack of control on the Rural Road Committees (See Figure 1), which over, and access to, resources, illiteracy, and low self- were the road rehabilitation crews, but also because Inclusion efforts were launched with the review of What shame to dress in a MEMVR procedures, terms of reference, manuals, helmet and vest! Everyone in and guides, with the aim of detecting and eliminating the village laughed at me, requirements that restricted female participation, saying I looked really ugly in as well as broadening recruitment and providing the garb of a man and with a incentives for hiring men and women alike. Emphasis helmet like the head of a was placed on training and awareness-building with worm. And my bones a focus on gender, conducting different training ached, my hands blistered workshops and modules, one for MEMVR male and and I felt self conscient female micro-entrepreneurs, and another targeted working among men in the toward operators of the project. Moreover, a middle of the road and I had a hard time getting up early. Gender Action Plan was prepared and included its But soon, everything stopped hurting and I found my own budget, goals, such as the establishment of a courage. I started leaving my house with my head held percentage for female participation, objectives, such high - who cares about what people may say if I have a as gender equity, and follow-up through gender focal job that feeds my children! points. The ambitious objective of 10 percent female participation in micro-enterprises was comfortably surpassed at the end of the project, reaching 24 during the participatory process of prioritizing roads to percent. be improved, women, being the most frequent users of this type of road, enthusiastically expressed themselves Eligibility Criteria for Working in Micro-Enterprises and described how the lack of accessibility and transport Some of the initial selection criteria for micro- services had impeded them in their daily lives. In entrepreneurs were as follows: applicants had to be addition, their basic needs were taken into consideration. literate, have experience in construction or masonry, and have leadership qualities and business qualifications Figure 1 - Rural Roads Committees: Com position by Gender, or experience. To achieve gender equity, some were indicating the number of women (1st Quarter 2006) adapted while others were eliminated. Literacy was no longer a requirement, and socioeconomic 21.38% Other criteria were included to give priority to women who 33.17% 24% on the Management Board Fiscal head households, because they are usually the most 52.08% Facilitator 42.25% Women economically disadvantaged. Experience in agricultural Treasury 18.70% Men and domestic management tasks, in addition to active Secretary President 4.60% participation in associations, were taken into account in the selection processes. With the aim of attracting female 0 200 400 600 800 1000 candidates, the promotion and publicity of the work Total opportunity that was being presented with the MEMVRs Methodology specifically targeted women, as a demonstration that At the beginning of the project, only 4 percent they were also capable of working in this sector. of members of routine road maintenance micro- Moreover, the establishment of minimum participation enterprises [Microempresas de Mantenimiento Vial quotas stipulating that 10 percent had to be women Rutinario MEMVRs] were women. At that point, a entrepreneurs ensured that there was no discrimination "gender matrix" was drafted, setting out an overview in against women. different areas: family, community, micro-enterprises, and institutions. In addition, it projected some desirable Breaking the Mold goals, and showed available resources and the The peculiarities of rural communities, macho requirements for achieving those goals. Although only behavior, ignorance about women's opinions, lack of partly operationalized, the matrix provided a glimpse information, shame and feminine modesty, and their lack of the latent exclusion of women and the vision of of confidence, are a few of the gender barriers found gender equity. 2 · October 2007 · Number 112 at the beginning of the project, mainly a result of the they are more qualified, including roadbed cleaning or traditionally male-orientation of this sector. The project sign maintenance, while men focus on the repair of "dry contributed to the process of social change in rural walls" (muros secos) or the canalization of watercourses. communities. Empowerment of Women Female Colleagues: the Main Advantages Owing to the fact that they often have limited resources, In MEMVRs, women are encouraging transparency and fall victim to abuse from alcoholic husbands, domestic in cash management, building confidence and morale, violence, and illiteracy, which stunts their personal promoting cleanliness and hygiene, camaraderie, and development, rural women have little opportunities to cooperation. Their high level of responsibility ensures escape their surroundings. These need to be nurtured and increases the quality of works, and stoppages during by ad hoc programs. Interaction of women with groups the work day are decreasing both in number and duration. outside of the domestic sphere was facilitated by their Male colleagues have stopped drinking on the job and participation in MEMVRs and on Rural Road Committees. are better fed, because female colleagues maintain their The salary they earned as MEMVR members gave them domestic role within the work crews and usually take security and control of the economic resources that they charge of meal preparation. used to make small purchases and the opportunity to establish small businesses for earning additional income to The "Working" Woman improve the welfare of their families. The traditional, general view of construction as being a male preserve hinders the inclusion of gender Impact on Democracy considerations in this sector. However, during the Rural Through its participatory processes involving women and Roads Project, women proved they were fully capable by improving access, the RRP helped foster the active of carrying out the arduous road rehabilitation works, practice of democracy, a fact demonstrated during the and successfully adapted to the work crews. In fact, last national elections where the increase in participation with rare exceptions related to physical strength (for in departments where the RRP intervened was markedly example, moving large stones), the tasks are very similar higher than the national average (4 percent). This is to agricultural work (see Figure 2). In mixed teams, the illustrated in the table below. The case of women has division of tasks by ability produces team synergies. In been particularly successful, with a 13 percent increase other words, women eventually carry out tasks for which in female votes in the department of Huancavelica. Figure 2 - Tasks Associated with Routine Road Maintenance Consists of routine interventions to Rehabilitation Life 4/5 Years prevent road deterioration Mainly manual: Patching Cleaning platform Routine Cleaning curbs Maintenance Daily and Permanent Cleaning culverts (US$600/Km) Cleaning dips Cleaning ditches Cleaning riverbeds Mending dry walls Periodic Repairing and cleaning wood bridges Maintenance Every 4 years Removing stones from the slopes Rubbing and Cleaning Traffic sign maintenance Surveillance and control Emergency Maintenance October 2007 · Number 112 · Department Increase (2006 elections compared trained in gender issues. Decentralized gender focal to 2002) points who reported to a central focal point were established, and a team of gender specialists was retained Total Hombres Mujeres throughout the project. In this manner, the project has TOTAL PERU 4% 3% 4% promoted a culture of inclusion within the executing Huancavelica 10% 7% 13% agency itself, and the commitment of its managers and Ayacucho 9% 7% 12% professionals, as well as their competence and good performance, suggest that social inclusion efforts are Huanuco 7% 5% 9% likely to be maintained in the future. Apurímac 7% 6% 9% Cusco 6% 5% 6% Achievements and Challenges: Sustainability Cajamarca 5% 5% 5% A number of challenges remain. It has been noted that Ancash 5% 4% 6% when MEMVR staff numbers are cut, for whatever reason, women are the first to leave. In some cases Pasco 5% 4% 5% women are so uncomfortable working on the roadways Puno 4% 3% 4% with men that they leave the job; in a few cases, they San Martín 4% 5% 4% save and decide to invest in other income-generating Junín 2% 1% 4% activities. Moreover, the passage of time and the lack of reinforcement and follow-up, as well as incentive and sanction mechanisms, and the growing level of Impact on Citizens decentralization of responsibilities, functions, and While women living in the project area participate in resources toward local governments have led to a the economic realities of their environment, they rarely regressive trend in terms of women's participation participate in decision-making concerning community in MEMVRs. As MEMVRs enter the free market, activities, this being especially true in the case of integration decisions will belong to the male or female indigenous women. Sometimes because of a lack of recruits. However, it has equally been noted that women formal education and self-esteem, and at other times micro-entrepreneurs that continue working on the because of their monolingualism (Quechua), rural roadways in the long term as part of road maintenance women find it especially difficult to participate in the crews have high levels of self-esteem and self-worth. decision-making processes of their communities and to Some MEMVRs are initiating shifts for women with publicly express themselves. Providing incentives for the economic difficulties and especially to allow single ongoing participation of women in all activities, both in mothers to earn an income. The new Peruvian law those related to capacity-building in road maintenance, on equal opportunities between men and women is an and in gender workshops and participatory consultations, excellent tool to be used to ensure continuity of the helped to generate civic and political awareness among gender equity efforts sparked by the Second Rural Roads women. During one workshop in which rural women Project. were participating, one of them commented, "I didn't know I had rights." ******** Provias Descentralizado: Betting on Social Inclusion About the Authors Provias Descentralizado differs from other transport Luz Caballero is a Consultant in the Transport Unit of the agencies because of the multidisciplinary nature of its Sustainable Development Department of the Latin America and staff complement, which includes engineers, economists, the Caribbean Region and Nerida Alcahuasi is the focal point for gender in Provias Descentralizado (transport agency). This article and sociologists, among others. The institutional will has been reviewed by Lizzy Dasso (Senior Spacialist in Social to integrate women into both its policies and projects Development and Civil Society in the World Bank's Office in was critical to the success of the gender initiative. Lima), Nicolas Peltier-Thiberge (Task Manager of the Project), and Management, head office staff, staff in decentralized Edgar Quispe ( Director of Provias Descentralizado) offices, and external promoters were sensitized and "en breve" is produced by the Knowledge and Learning Team of the Operations Services Department of the Latin America and the Caribbean Region of the World Bank - http://www.worldbank.org/lac · October 2007 · Number 112