Gender analysis that provides the Government with transparent information about the gender impact of its decisions is now required across Budget and policy processes. There is a window, in advance of the 2024-25 Budget, for HR practitioners to consider their agency’s gender analysis capability needs.
To support APS policy officers to implement gender responsive budgeting practices, the Office for Women has developed Including Gender: An APS Guide to Gender Analysis and Gender Impact Assessment (the Guide), a Gender Impact Assessment Template and a Quick Reference Guide to Gender Analysis.
While Australia has made significant gains towards gender equality, inequality still exists in a range of areas across people’s lives. These existing inequalities mean that even when a policy seems gender neutral, it can still impact people differently or disproportionately based on their gender. This means policies can have unintended consequences, exacerbate or perpetuate existing inequality or fail to achieve their intended outcomes.
Gender responsive budgeting weaves consideration of gender impact through the budget process and is a key way the Government can identify and fund measures that close gender gaps. Gender analysis of new budget proposals is a key tool to support gender responsive budgeting and support policy developers and decision makers to understand and react to gender impacts.
Gender analysis is now a requirement for new budget proposals. The level of gender analysis completed should be targeted and proportional to the potential impact, value and scope of the policy. This provides information to decision makers about whether the policy proposal has a gendered impact or not, and what the impact is. Gender analysis can reveal how government actions affect members of the community. This information shows the Government how proposed budget measures impact gender equality, along with other priorities such as boosting economic growth.
All departments must now undertake a minimum level of gender analysis for all New Policy Proposals (NPPs) and Cabinet Submissions. Criteria have been set to determine whether NPPs require a Gender Impact Assessment and more detailed analysis.
For any questions about the use of the Guide and its contents please contact the Office for Women at OFWCapability@pmc.gov.au. The Office for Women are available for department wide presentations on the Guide and invite departments to discuss their agency’s capability needs with us. We welcome your feedback on the Guide.
