| Overview : The Ministry of Gender, Children, Disability and Social Welfare (MoGCDSW) and the United Nations (UN) in Malawi has since 2015 been developing and implementing Gender Joint Annual Work Plans aimed to enhance collaboration to effectively formulate prioritized Joint Work Plans. The first Joint Annual Work Plan was developed in 2015. The plans are based on the identified priorities within the framework of Ministry of Gender Strategic frameworks namely: The Ministry of Gender Strategic Plan, Joint Sector Strategic Plan, Institutional Strengthening Framework and White Paper on the National Gender Machinery. The Integrated Work Plan builds upon the previous process of mapping of all UN-supported gender interventions in Malawi and covers all interventions in which UN Agencies are supporting the MoGCDSW. The Joint Work Plan covers output activities of all departments under the MoGCDSW, setting out specific activities to be implemented and clearly indicating the resources and responsibilities associated with each of the output areas. This is a mechanism for joint programming on gender equality and women’s empowerment under the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF). UN Women has been coordinating the UN Gender Technical Working Group in the implementation of activities of the Joint Annual Work Plan. The process of developing the Joint Annual Work Plan aim to achieve the following objectives: - To enhance collaboration between the UN in Malawi and the MoGCDSW to effectively formulate prioritised Joint Annual Work Plans;
- To support the MoGCDSW to identify main priorities within the framework of Ministry of Gender Strategic Plan, Joint Sector Strategic Plan, Institutional Strengthening Framework and White Paper on the National Gender Machinery;
- To facilitate better coordination of activities of MoGCDSW and UN interventions and advance achievement of targeted development results.
The MoGCDSW is responsible for coordinating the implementation of the Joint Annual Work Plans, in collaboration with ministries, departments and agencies, parastatals, the private sector, development partners, media, civil society and faith-based organizations, and other relevant stakeholders. This coordination is specifically aimed at minimizing duplication of efforts, resources and fostering greater coherence of approaches and programmes in line with principles of working as one UN. To enable effective implementation of the JAWP, the MoGCDSW and participating UN agencies will strengthen existing partnerships and create strategic new ones, particularly with stakeholders who have relevant expertise and experience. Collaboration with media, traditional authorities and faith-based organizations will be undertaken to raise public awareness and promote changes in attitudes towards gender roles and relations. The Ministry will also continue to strengthen collaboration with international development partners. |
