Advancing gender equality means a shift in thinking — from seeing boys and men as part of the problem, to including boys and men as part of the solution. (Credit: Sujoy Dhar/IPS)

Dear Editors,

Thanks for the story on working with males and females on gender equality.

You may also be interested in work that ICRW has done in this area. We developed and evaluated a program called “Gender Equity Movement in Schools” that is now being scaled up to 250 schools in Mumbai. Additionally, the project team has traveled to Vietnam for discussion on adapting the program to the Vietnamese setting.

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Ellen Weiss
Senior Technical Advisor
Research Utilization and Development
International Center for Research on Women

Out of 157 countries, India ranks in the bottom three for girls’ and women’s education, economic participation and empowerment in the latest Gender Equity Index compiled by international NGO Social Watch, followed only by Côte d’Ivoire and Yemen.

ICRW’s two-year programme uses games and role-play to engage 12- to 14-year old boys and girls in fostering equitable relations and scrutinising the social norms that construct gender roles. The students also learn how to spot and combat gender-based violence.

How are you advancing the third millennium development goal? We want to hear from you! Send us your ideas, examples and comments for making the world more gender equitable: mdg3 [at] ips [dot] org.