Engaging Men and Boys: A Report on Pathways to Gender Equality in India; Transforming MENtalities
Publisher: UNESCO
Author(s): Sapna Kedia, Suneha Kandpal, Nalini Khurana, and Ravi Verma
Date: 2024
Topics: Gender
Countries: India
The engagement of men and boys towards gender equity has witnessed significant growth and evolution in recent decades, spurred by landmark events such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1979 and the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. There is now a consensus that men and boys are vital partners in achieving gender equity, which requires their engagement to transform harmful masculinities and address the impacts of patriarchy on women and girls, men and boys, gender-diverse people and society at large.
This report builds on the work UNESCO has undertaken in India, namely, two reports on Transforming MENtalities: a Stakeholder Mapping and Analysis in 2019 and a Roadmap and Scoping Study in 2021. It focuses on understanding and documenting initiatives engaging men and boys in India to advance gender equity, and on documenting barriers, enablers and progress towards gender transformation. The research combines insights from a literature review and online key informant interviews (KIIs) with practitioners from ten selected programmes across India. Criteria for programme selection included their target groups, duration, location, rationale and strategies. The researchers conducted two workshops, with representatives from organizations that run programmes with men and boys for gender equity and with gender equity subject matter experts, to gather recommendations and insights from stakeholders.