GAD Legal Mandates and Instruments:

A. International Mandates
In the international level, prioritizing the achievement of gender equality is evident especially on
the Beijing Platform of Action to the inclusion of gender equality in the Millennium
Development Goals and more recently in the Sustainable Development Goals. By becoming a
party to CEDAW, a State is legally obliged to take all appropriate measures to eliminate
discrimination against women and advance gender equality. Also, as parties to Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the States are legally
obliged to take all appropriate measures to eliminate discrimination against women and advance
gender equality.

The 1995 Beijing Platform for Action flagged 12 key areas where urgent action was needed to
ensure greater equality and opportunities for women and men, girls and boys. It also laid out
concrete ways for countries to bring about change. The Platform for Action imagines a world
where each woman and girl can exercise her freedoms and choices, and realize all her rights. As
a defining framework for change, the Platform for Action made comprehensive commitments
under 12 critical areas of concern:
Poverty
Develop macroeconomics mechanisms to improve access to economic resources.
Education and Training
Ensure equal access to education and promote life-long education and training for girls and
women.
Health
Increase women's life-long access to affordable, appropriate, and quality health care and to
information dealing with maternal mortality, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS, and
sexual and reproductive health.
Violence
Adopt and implement legislation to end violence against women, ratify the UN Convention on
the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, and encourage international
cooperation to dismantle trafficking in women.
Armed Conflict
Increase participation of women in conflict resolution at decision-making levels; condemn ethnic
cleansing and rape as a consequence of war and a violation of human rights.
Economy
Promote women's economic rights and independence, including access to employment and
appropriate working conditions and control over economic resources.
Decision-making
Ensure women's equal access to and full participation in public sector power structures; increase
women's capacity to participate in decision-making and leadership positions.
Institutional Mechanisms
Create and strengthen national bureaucracies to ensure that the advancement of women is vested
in the highest-possible level of government.
Human Rights
Promote human rights of women by fully implementing all human rights instruments, especially
the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Media
Promote a balanced and non-stereotyped portrayal of women in the media.
Environment
Integrate gender concerns and perspectives in policies and programs for sustainable
development.
The Girl-Child
Eliminate discrimination against the girl-child: enforce rights to succession; eliminate female
genital mutilation, son preference, and economic exploitation of child labor; and strengthen the
role of the family in improving the status of the girl-child.
In September 2000, building upon a decade of major United Nations conferences and summits,
world leaders came together at the United Nations Headquarters in New York to adopt
the United Nations Millennium Declaration.
The Declaration committed nations to a new global partnership to reduce extreme poverty, and
set out a series of eight time-bound targets - with a deadline of 2015 - that have become known
as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
The final MDG Report found that the 15-year effort has produced the most successful anti-
poverty movement in history:
Since 1990, the number of people living in extreme poverty has declined by more than half.
The proportion of undernourished people in the developing regions has fallen by almost half.
The primary school enrolment rate in the developing regions has reached 91 percent, and
many more girls are now in school compared to 15 years ago.
Remarkable gains have also been made in the fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria and
tuberculosis.
The under-five mortality rate has declined by more than half, and maternal mortality is down
45 percent worldwide.
The target of halving the proportion of people who lack access to improved sources of
water was also met.
The concerted efforts of national governments, the international community, civil society and the
private sector have helped expand hope and opportunity for people around the world.
Yet the job is unfinished for millions of people—we need to go the last mile on ending hunger,
achieving full gender equality, improving health services and getting every child into school.
Now we must shift the world onto a sustainable path.
The 8 MDG Goals
1.Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2.Achieve universal primary education
3.Promote gender equality and empower women
4.Reduce child mortality
5.Improve maternal health
6.Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
7.Ensure environmental sustainability
8.Develop a global partnership for development

The global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), or Global Goals, will guide policy and
funding for the next 15 years, beginning with a historic pledge on 25 September 2015, to end
poverty. Everywhere. Permanently.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a framework of 17 goals and 169 targets
across social, economic and environmental areas of sustainable development, which United
Nations (UN) Member States have committed to making a reality over the next 15 years.
While the SDGs are not legally binding, governments are expected to take ownership and
establish national frameworks for the achievement of the 17 Goals.
The SDGs are to succeed the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which expire at the end
of 2015, but are much broader in their scope. Unlike the MDGs, which were focused on social
issues, the SDGs set out targets across all three dimensions – social, economic and
environmental – of sustainable development. Furthermore, while the MDGs were targeted at
developing countries, the SDGs are applicable to all countries. The SDGs form part of the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development which UN Member States adopted at the UN
Sustainable Development Summit in September 2015. The adoption of the Agenda is the
culmination of a lengthy process of intergovernmental negotiations and consultations that lasted
nearly three years.
The 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) to transform our world:
GOAL 1: No Poverty
GOAL 2: Zero Hunger
GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-being
GOAL 4: Quality Education
GOAL 5: Gender Equality
GOAL 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
GOAL 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
GOAL 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
GOAL 10: Reduced Inequality
GOAL 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
GOAL 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
GOAL 13: Climate Action
GOAL 14: Life below Water
GOAL 15: Life on Land
GOAL 16: Peace and Justice Strong Institutions
GOAL 17: Partnerships to achieve the Goal
Gender inequality is one of the biggest obstacles to sustainable development, economic growth
and poverty reduction. Thanks to MDG 3 on gender equality and women’s empowerment,
progress in enrolling girls into school and integrating women into the job market has been
considerable. MDG 3 gave the issue of gender parity a lot of visibility, but its narrow focus
meant that it failed to address important issues such as violence against women, economic
disparities and the low participation of women in political decision-making.
Almost half of the world’s population are female. No society can attain genuine sustainable
development when half of its population is marginalized.
Goal 5 advocates equal opportunities for men and women in economic life, the elimination of all
forms of violence against women and girls, the elimination of early and forced marriage, and
equal participation at all levels.
Goal 5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
5.1: End all forms of discrimination against all women and girls everywhere
5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres,
including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation
5.3: Eliminate all harmful practices, such as child, early and forced marriage and female genital
mutilation
5.4: Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public
services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility
within the household and the family as nationally appropriate
5.5: Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all
levels of decision-making in political, economic and public life
5.6: Ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights as agreed
in accordance with the Program of Action of the International Conference on Population and
Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcome documents of their review
conferences
5.7: Undertake reforms to give women equal rights to economic resources, as well as access to
ownership and control over land and other forms of property, financial services, inheritance and
natural resources, in accordance with national laws
5. 8: Enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications
technology, to promote the empowerment of women
5. 9: Adopt and strengthen sound policies and enforceable legislation for the promotion of
gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls at all levels

In 18 December 1979, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination

against Women was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. It entered into force as
an international treaty on 3 September 1981 after the twentieth country had ratified it. By the
tenth anniversary of the Convention in 1989, almost one hundred nations have agreed to be
bound by its provisions.
The Convention was the culmination of more than thirty years of work by the United Nations
Commission on the Status of Women, a body established in 1946 to monitor the situation of
women and to promote women's rights. The Commission's work has been instrumental in
bringing to light all the areas in which women are denied equality with men. These efforts for the
advancement of women have resulted in several declarations and conventions, of which the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women is the central and
most comprehensive document.
Among the international human rights treaties, the Convention takes an important place in
bringing the female half of humanity into the focus of human rights concerns. The spirit of the
Convention is rooted in the goals of the United Nations: to reaffirm faith in fundamental human
rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women. The
present document spells out the meaning of equality and how it can be achieved. In so doing, the
Convention establishes not only an international bill of rights for women, but also an agenda for
action by countries to guarantee the enjoyment of those rights.
In its preamble, the Convention explicitly acknowledges that "extensive discrimination against
women continues to exist", and emphasizes that such discrimination "violates the principles of
equality of rights and respect for human dignity". As defined in article 1, discrimination is
understood as "any distinction, exclusion or restriction made o.1 the basis of sex...in the political,
economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field". The Convention gives positive affirmation to
the principle of equality by requiring States parties to take "all appropriate measures, including
legislation, to ensure the full development and advancement of women, for the purpose of
guaranteeing them the exercise and enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms on a
basis of equality with men"(article 3).
The agenda for equality is specified in fourteen subsequent articles. In its approach, the
Convention covers three dimensions of the situation of women. Civil rights and the legal status
of women are dealt with in great detail. In addition, and unlike other human rights treaties, the
Convention is also concerned with the dimension of human reproduction as well as with the
impact of cultural factors on gender relations.

B. National Mandates

The Philippines is a state party to the United Nation (UN) Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), is obligated to pursue and implement
program, project and activities that will contribute to the achievement of women’s empowerment
and gender equality.
Republic Act 9710 or The Magna Carta of Women (MCW) is a comprehensive women’s
human rights law that seeks to eliminate discrimination through the recognition, protection,
fulfillment, and promotion of the rights of Filipino women, especially those belonging in the
marginalized sectors of the society. It conveys a framework of rights for women based directly
on international law.
The MCW establishes the Philippine government’s pledge of commitment to the Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women’s (CEDAW) Committee in its
36th Session in 2006 and to the UN Human Rights Council on its first Universal Periodic
Review in 2009. It is the local translation of the provisions of the CEDAW, particularly in
defining gender discrimination, state obligations, substantive equality, and temporary special
measures. It also recognizes human rights guaranteed by the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
Salient features of the law include:
Increasing the number of women in third level positions in government to achieve a fifty-fifty
(50-50) gender balance within the next five years while the composition of women in all levels
of development planning and program implementation will be at least 40 percent;
Leave benefits of two (2) months with full pay based on gross monthly compensation for
women employees who undergo surgery caused by gynecological disorders, provided that they
have rendered continuous aggregate employment service of at least six (6) months for the last
twelve (12) months;
Non-discrimination in employment in the field of military, police and other similar services
that include according the same promotional privileges and opportunities as their men
counterpart, including pay increases, additional benefits, and awards, based on competency and
quality of performance.
Provision for equal access and elimination of discrimination in education, scholarships, and
training. Thus, “expulsion, non-readmission, prohibiting enrollment, and other related
discrimination of women students and faculty due to pregnancy out of marriage shall be
outlawed.
Non-discriminatory and non-derogatory portrayal of women in media and film to raise the
consciousness of the general public in recognizing the dignity of women and the role and
contribution of women in family, community, and the society through the strategic use of mass
media;
Equal status given to men and women on the titling of the land and issuance of stewardship
contracts and patents.
In addition to guaranteeing substantive rights, the MCW establishes the responsibility of the
government to take actions in order to end discrimination against women. It provides that the
Philippines government must “ensure the substantive equality of men and women” and mandates
the State to take steps to review, amend or repeal existing laws that are discriminatory towards
women.
The Government, in its entirety, shall fulfill these duties through the development and
implementation of laws, policies, regulatory instruments, administrative guidelines, and other
appropriate measures. It shall also establish mechanisms to promote the coherent and integrated
implementation of the MCW and other related laws and policies to effectively stop
discrimination against Filipino women.
The MCW mandates all government offices, including government-owned and controlled
corporations and local government units to adopt gender mainstreaming as a strategy for
implementing the law and attaining its objectives. It also mandates (a) planning, budgeting,
monitoring and evaluation for gender and development, (b) the creation and/or strengthening of
gender and development focal points, and (c) the generation and maintenance of gender statistics
and sex-disaggregated databases to aid in planning, programming and policy formulation.

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7192. An Act Promoting the Integration of Women As Full and
Equal Partners Of Men in Development and Nation Building and For Other Purposes
SECTION 1. Title -- This Act shall be cited as the "Women in Development and Nation Building
Act."
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy. -- The State recognizes the role of women in nation building
and shall ensure the fundamental equality before the law of women and men. The State shall
provide women rights and opportunities equal to that of men.
To attain the foregoing policy:
(1) A substantial portion of official development assistance funds received from foreign
governments and multilateral agencies and organizations shall be set aside and utilized by the
agencies concerned to support programs and activities for women;
(2) All government departments shall ensure that women benefit equally and participate directly
in the development programs and projects of said department, specifically those funded under
official foreign development assistance, to ensure the full participation and involvement of
women in the development process; and
(3) All government departments and agencies shall review and revise all their regulations,
circulars, issuances and procedures to remove gender bias therein

The Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development (1995-2025) signed on September

8, 1995, through Executive Order 273 by then President Fidel V. Ramos, contains the long-term
vision of women’s empowerment and gender equality and translates the Beijing Platform for
Action into policies and strategies and programs and projects for Filipino women.
The PPGD is designed:
(a) To promote gender equity and equality and to help women and men actualize their potentials,
the PPGD pursues efforts to mainstream gender and development (GAD) in government and
foster cooperation between government and NGOs; encourage gender-sensitive industry and
employment planning, including equal opportunities for training in informatics and other fields;
adopt gender-sensitive laws; and promote the value of effective parenting and shared roles.
(b) Its advocacy for democratic participation, women's empowerment and self-determination is
supported by strategies to protect women's rights under and participation in, agrarian reform and
other structural changes for rural development; increase women's political involvement; promote
women's legal and political education; and reform media messages and public's image of women.
(c) Respect for human rights and desire for peace and social justice underlie the strategies of
protecting women overseas contract workers, setting up shelters and crisis center for women,
adopting laws dealing with violence against women and the like, and monitoring human rights
violations.
(d) Sustainable development that equally benefits women and men rests on a sustainable
environment, which constitutes part of the strategy for rural structural changes.
In addition, the PPGD relates the gender issues and strategies to macro forces and trends --
globalization, trade and market liberalization and the international division of labor, information
revolution and interactive TV and the like -- the promise misery as they do a good life. Thus, it
likewise posits broad courses of action, such as: adherence to a type of economic development
that is less dependent on foreign debt, and one that recognizes both the positive effects of
economic liberalization and the need to protect vulnerable groups, such as women workers and
small farmers; streaming women into innovative high-technology levels of knowledge and
employment; gaining some control over key aspects of both computer software and hardware
development, thus generating employment for women and men not only in the lower-end but
also in the better-paying end of the informatics job market, and creating an environment within
which women could control their fertility and sexuality with informed choice and minimum
health problems, achieve safe motherhood; and gain access to health services. The PPGD
recognizes that development strategies can exacerbate both the benefits and the ill effects of
macro and supranational forces. In response, it offers an alternative view of development, one
that is gender-responsive and revolves around a humane and people-centered definition and
practice of development.

The Framework for Action, the Framework Plan for Women, 2001-2004 envisions
development as equitable, sustainable, free from violence, respectful of human rights, supportive
of self-determination and the actualization of human potentials, and participatory and
empowering (NCRFW, 2000). Development is defined as the sustained capacity of women and
men to achieve a better and more satisfying life. For women, this means realizing their full
capacity as individuals and overcoming socio-cultural, economic and political barriers that deter
them from attaining an improved quality of life. The Plan is about breaching these barriers.
Regardless of class or origin, the plan ensures that women and men will equitably benefit from
development. The Plan focuses primarily on three areas of concern: (1) promotion of women’s
economic empowerment; (2) protection and fulfillment of women’s human rights; and (3)
promotion of gender-responsive governance. These three areas of concern emphasize the
importance placed by the present administration on eradicating the structural causes of poverty
as well as transforming it into one that is good, effective and efficient governance. Moreover, the
Plan incorporates the innovative strategies and interventions put forward by the PPGD; it also
provides the standards and mechanisms to fulfill the country’s commitments to international
agreements such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against
Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Platform for Action and the Beijing +5 Outcome document.