In March 2012, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) held the Subregional Workshop on Gender and Urban Poverty in South Asia to share experiences and enhance lateral learning among ADB and its project partners on addressing gender and social inclusion issues in urban development projects in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Participants included senior government officials, nongovernment organizations, community-based organizations, researchers, ADB urban and gender specialists, and representatives of international development agencies.This report presents the synthesis of knowledge, experiences, good practices, and recommendations shared at the forum with the aim of assisting ADB and its partner agencies in the planning of urban development projects to facilitate gender- and socially inclusive outcomes and reduce poverty in South Asia.
The Community-Based Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project aimed at expanding the coverage of improved water supply and sanitation facilities to poor and remote areas, and improving health and hygiene practices. Promoting equality between women and men and gender relations is relevant to the main aim of the project as well as to the project strategies. In this initiative, the focus was on gender equality and social inclusion, with an emphasis on inequalities among women and men, and among people from various castes and ethnic minorities. The project developed a gender, caste, and ethnicity strategy that sought to ensure the participation of women and ethnic minorities in decision-making processes, as well as their increased representation in leadership positions. It encouraged user committees led or owned by women and community-based organizations to participate in project activities for making positive changes in the lives of women and for their empowerment.