Social Analysis and Action: a methodology for communities to lead their own way out of gender inequalities
Through a series of discussions, community members accept to engage in a critical self-reflection about their gender norms.
©FAO/Riccardo Gangale
Social norms, defined as the unwritten rules existing within a given group or society, can strongly shape the way people live and behave. They are usually deep-rooted, unconscious and rarely unchallenged. Sometimes they may be too sensitive to discuss, becoming a taboo. When it comes to gender, these norms can affect the interactions and power relations between men and women within households and/or entire communities. They can create and perpetuate inequalities that often curb women’s access to resources and opportunities, thereby undermining their productivity and incomes, which can severely threaten food and nutrition security.
Confronting harmful social norms is a complex yet feasible and potentially extremely beneficial endeavor. This is what tells the evidence from the Social Analysis and Action in Food and Nutrition Security (SAA-FNS), a tested methodology developed by CARE International in order to transform gender and social norms through a community-led participatory process.
To become familiar with the methodology and discuss its application in their work, about 50 colleagues from the United Nations Rome-based Agencies (RBAs) – FAO, IFAD and WFP – as well as the European Union attended a technical learning workshop on the SAA-FNS. FAO and CARE hosted virtually the workshop on 16 December 2021 in the framework of the Joint Programme on Gender Transformative Approaches for Food Security and Nutrition (JP GTA), implemented by the three RBAs in collaboration with and through the financial support of the European Union.
“This successful initiative contributed to promoting staff’s capacity development and expanding the gender transformative agenda across the RBAs’ work, both of which are central to the JP GTA’s mandate,” said Hajnalka Petrics, the JP GTA Global Coordinator. “But this is just part of the beginning of a larger process. By getting familiar with the methodology and discussing possible ways to apply it, colleagues should be better able to refine them and take action aimed for a positive impact on households’ and communities’ food security and nutrition.”