AGD Elearning English - Learning Journal Module 1 Ver 12 - 04.02.2016

UNHCR / P.
Smith
Table of contents
1. How to use this learning journal.............................................................................................. 3

2. What does an Age, Gender and Diversity approach mean? ................................................... 4
3. Relationships and the protection environment .................................................................... 10
4. How protection risks vary ...................................................................................................... 13
5. Influences on the protection environment ........................................................................... 17
6. How age influences the protection environment ................................................................. 20
7. How gender influences the protection environment ............................................................ 23
Sex, gender and protection/programming implications ....................................................... 24
8. Diversity and protection ........................................................................................................ 30
9. Using the AGD lens ................................................................................................................ 32
10. Key points ........................................................................................................................... 35
AGD elearning English_Learning Journal Module 1 ver 12_

04.02.2016.docx 2 http://learn.unhcr.org
1. How to use this learning journal
This learning journal has been written to form part of the Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD)
approach e-learning course.
We encourage you to read this journal and then try the activities in the e-learning. You may
work through the e-learning course and the journal section by section, or complete the e-
learning and then study this journal. Choose the method that suits you best, but to maximize
your learning please do use both the journal and the e-learning.
The value of working with others

Do not think you have to do this on your own. In fact, you will get the most out of this course if
you talk about it with colleagues. This learning journal asks you to make notes about AGD issues
that you see in your working life. Discuss these questions with your colleagues and make a note
of what you talk about.
This is actually the best way to learn!
Making notes
There are spaces in this journal for you to make notes about your own experiences. Please do
take the time to do these activities – they will really help you to learn more about the AGD
approach.

2. What does an Age, Gender and Diversity approach
mean?
Whenever we carry out an assessment, make a decision, draft a plan or take any kind of action,
we need to take age, gender and diversity issues into consideration. This is what we mean by
the Age, Gender and Diversity approach. It applies to all persons of concern: asylum-seekers,
refugees, returnees, stateless and internally displaced persons.
UNHCR is an organisation that strives for gender equality, respects diversity and promotes the
equal enjoyment of rights by all persons of concern regardless of their background. This
includes working to ensure that all persons of concern are able to participate fully in the
decisions that affect their lives, families and communities.
We are committed to addressing discrimination and inequality where we find it and to ensuring
that we do not inadvertently contribute to further discrimination and injustice.
Organizational
practices inclusive
and accessible to all
Equal access to and enjoyment of

Fair protection for
AGD approach rights for women, men, girls and
all
boys of all ages and backgrounds
Targeted actions to
address protection
gaps
The AGD approach requires us to make all organisational practices, policies and programmes
inclusive of, and accessible to all persons of concern, as well as responsive to their specific
needs.
We must ensure fair protection for all persons of concern and we must programme targeted
actions to address protection gaps.
This will ensure equal access to and enjoyment of rights for women, men, girls and boys of all
ages and backgrounds.

The UNHCR Age, Gender and Diversity Policy
We have a policy document that defines in detail our commitment to the approach.
Here is the policy’s key objective:
“Through the systematic application of an Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) approach in
its operations worldwide, UNHCR seeks to ensure that all persons of concern enjoy their
rights on an equal footing and are able to participate fully in the decisions that affect
their lives and the lives of their family members and communities.”
You can find the full Age, Gender and Diversity policy document on Refworld.
What’s in a word?
As an example of how it is possible to forget an AGD approach, read this extract from a
commentary to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees
“Refugees, including vulnerable groups such as women and children, have the right to
international protection”
What is a potential problem with this?
Think about the following:
 While the sentence tries to highlight the situation of many women and children it reduces
the different experiences of women and children into one category: ‘vulnerable group’.
 Women and children usually amount to 75% of any displaced population. Not all of them
can be put into the same box. In addition to gender equality, we need to ensure that we use
an age and diversity lens to explore whether certain women and children have specific
needs and capacities. Some women may hold positions of power in the community,
whereas others may have nothing.
 Categorising all women and children as ‘vulnerable’ perpetuates the stereotypes of women
and children as ‘weak’, ‘incapable of decision making’, and ‘unable to lead’. This hides the
important capacities that women have and can use to support each other and their
communities.
 The wording can make people think that women and children are the only ‘vulnerable’
people. In fact, many others may face similar risks for many different reasons, for example,
those with disabilities or lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI1) people.
1
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) is a composite term used to name groups of persons who do not
identify with conventional or traditional notions of male and female gender roles in their societies. Transgender describes

How does the AGD approach help?
It is often quite hard to see something if you are not looking for it. To show you how true this is,
click on this YouTube link (if you are on-line) or type it into your browser address bar and follow
the instructions:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahg6qcgoay4
An AGD approach ensures that we don’t miss things that are right in front of us or take things at
face value, and so lose important information about preventing and addressing protection risks.
We need to ask ourselves:
 What are the age, gender and diversity issues in this situation and how will they affect the
success of our work?
 What do we need to do to meet the specific needs of individuals or groups?
 How can we reduce unintended discrimination, which is caused by simply not looking
properly?
Here are two examples that show how an AGD approach helps us improve our protection
activities.
Malawi
In Malawi, the operation has seen a positive impact as a result of using participatory
assessment and the multifunctional team approach, both of which are key elements of the AGD
approach.
NGO groups facilitated the operation of a women’s group aimed at developing self-reliance
activities. The NGOs provided a meeting space and some seed money for buying materials
needed to produce goods. This group initially included people from all of the main nationalities
in Malawi, and later women from minority nationalities also joined. Training in small income
generation projects was provided but the leadership of the groups remained with refugee
women.
50:50 representation for women and men as elected refugee leaders on the camp management
structures was mandated. The leadership rotates every two years giving women a greater
chance of participation. Although leaders can be re-elected, in practice most only do two years
due to leaving the camp, losing interest or poor performance. This strong representation gives
women a loud voice in management issues, such as how food is distributed and other services
are delivered.
persons whose gender identity or expression is different from the sex they were assigned with when born. Intersex describes
persons whose sexual development is different from the typical.

Women are included in water, sanitation and hygiene committees. As these committees are
critical, membership includes a high percentage of women.
Women and gender-based violence groups have been set up. Women have been included in
high numbers in the committees and groups. Some of the groups are led by women and men
act as deputies. Although membership is voluntary women have taken the lead in these groups.
Bosnia and Herzegovina

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, age, gender and diversity assessment led to the Office promoting
male involvement in combating SGBV through an awareness-raising campaign. This sensitised
men to the harmful effects of SGBV, and was conducted both within the refugee population
and the host community.
The AGD lens

Doing an age, gender and diversity analysis will help us to be truly sensitive to the needs of
persons of concern. Having a better understanding of the individuals and groups within our
community of concern will enable us to better assess and review operational priorities.
Doing this is like putting on a special pair of glasses with lenses that makes us see each person
of concern as an individual with their own past, present and future, as well as their own needs,
experiences and capacities.
Integrating an AGD lens into everyday work is good practice. We must not see AGD as an extra
load in an already full working day.
Ensure our efforts are inclusive and
Understand causes of inequality and
accessible
protection risks
AGD-sensitive Reach those most in need
Enables us to Identify key stakeholders Outcomes
analysis
Build on individuals’ own capacities
Identify enabling and disabling
elements in protection environment
Promote respect for differences
An AGD sensitive analysis enables us to:

 understand the complex and connected causes of inequality and the protection risks facing
individuals and groups of individuals
 identify key people involved, including persons of concern themselves
 identify factors that can affect the protection environment.
This in turn enables us to:
 ensure that our efforts are inclusive of and accessible for all
 reach those most in need of UNHCR’s support by taking specific actions to help individuals
with particular needs

 build on persons of concern’s own capacities in order to support them more effectively
 promote respect for differences as an enriching element of any community and as
necessary for progressing toward a situation of full equality2.
In other words, by internalising age, gender, and diversity perspectives in the planning,
budgeting, design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of our activities we will provide
better protection and better services to all, including those most in need.
Who is responsible for implementing AGD?

We all have a responsibility for implementing the AGD approach, whether we work in the field
or in Headquarters, in an advocacy-based operation or in direct service delivery, or are a
UNHCR driver or a senior manager.
The UNHCR 2011-2016 Forward Plan for Age, Gender and Diversity Mainstreaming provides
some clear actions for both Headquarters and field staff. It identifies seven strategic outcomes
related to AGD we need to achieve over a five year period:
 Strengthened internal leadership and accountability for AGD.
 Integration of AGD in programming.
 Expanded capacity and knowledge for stronger AGD impact.
 AGD shortcomings addressed in resource allocation and expenditure.
 Enhanced leadership externally for AGD.
 Enhanced and expanded partnerships to strengthen AGD.
 Strengthened monitoring and evaluation of AGD and its impact.
All Divisions and Bureaux are accountable for developing and implementing actions that will
help us to achieve these outcomes.
One strategy to follow: Integration of AGD in programming

If you work in the field, you will be expected to:
 systematically conduct age, gender and diversity analysis as part of good work practice
 be a member of a rotating AGD multifunctional team, responsible for ensuring
implementation of the AGD approach
 develop relevant targeted actions that respond to specific protection gaps that individuals
may face.
2
Equality means respect for all. It includes the promotion of equal opportunities for individuals with different needs and
abilities and direct, measurable actions to combat inequality and discrimination.

Open the Forward Plan. Read through it, and then think about how what you are doing is
working towards achieving these outcomes.
Discuss it with colleagues, and write down your thoughts here.

3. Relationships and the protection environment
The world around us, such as our family, community and the wider societal, economic, political,
cultural and physical environment, has a big influence on our lives.
Some of these external influences can create protection risks for persons of concern. In order to
better target our protection responses so that they are inclusive and accessible to all, we need
to analyse carefully how these influences impact on individuals or groups in forced
displacement.
To explain what we mean, let’s look at Hashim, a young adolescent living with his family in a
community of displaced persons.
The family
Our family context influences our personality, knowledge, beliefs, norms and socio-economic
status. Changes in family relationships can have a positive or negative impact on the protection
environment.
Example: Hashim and his family depend on their father’s income to meet their basic needs.
They start to need extra support when Hashim’s father loses his livelihood opportunities
through displacement.

Reflect on your own experience. Can you think of any other examples of how family influences
people’s lives? Make a note of them here.
The community
Community influences have an important role to play in establishing age, gender and diversity
norms, standards and social networks. Being aware of these will help us to understand
protection risks and strategies for addressing these.
Example: UNHCR invites Hashim’s mother to join a planning committee. Community norms,
however, state that women should not be involved in community decision-making. Hashim’s
mother does not, therefore, attend UNHCR’s meetings.
Example: Hashim goes to school but his sister does not as community norms require that she
stays at home to help her mother.
Example: Hashim’s best friend John has a disability. In their community, shame surrounds
families that have a child with a disability. John is kept at home does not go to school.
Example: Hashim’s grandparents are old and ill. Community norms mean that families look
after and support older persons. This protects them.
Example: Hashim’s cousin Peter is an orphan. After the death of his mother, Peter came to live
with Hashim’s family. Peter does not go to school as Hashim’s family expect him to support the
family in daily tasks. This is considered to be normal in Hashim’s culture.
Reflect on your own experience. Can you think of any other examples of community influence?
Make a note of them here.
The wider society

A community exists in a wider societal, economic, political, cultural and environmental context.

Wider ideologies - political, religious and social - will have an impact on community and family
norms and behaviours. In times of economic hardship and environmental stress, gender and
age roles may become stronger, leading to additional discrimination and other protection risks.
Example: Environmental degradation means that Hashim’s mother and sister need to walk
further through conflict-affected areas in order to collect water and firewood. This puts them at
greater risk of SGBV.
Example: Increasing family poverty and lack of support networks mean that Hashim is pulled
out of school to work.
Example: Hashim’s mother is experiencing pressure from their community to marry her
daughter Elena, aged 13, to an older man in the village. The man has shown an interest in Elena
and would be able to support the family financially.
Example: A friend of one of Hashim’s sisters no longer leaves the family house. It is believed
that the teacher attacked her. Although everyone knows what happened, nobody is willing to
denounce him. The community elders suggest that the girl should marry the teacher.
Reflect on your own experience. Can you think of any other examples on how society influences
people’s lives? Make a note of them here.

4. How protection risks vary
As we have seen, family, community and wider societal issues influence individuals. This can
lead to specific protection risks for individuals and groups.
Here are some specific protection risks that individuals living in a camp area might face.
At home Some individuals will face sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV),
including domestic violence, forced marriage and exploitation.
Girls collecting Women and girls may be attacked as they look for firewood or water
firewood outside the camp.
Men under threat Men and boys may also experience sexual or other violence or be forced
to engage in sexual or other violence by armed groups.
Older persons Older women and men are less mobile; their mental capacities may
diminish; they may have chronic health problems and specific
nutritional needs. They may be at heightened risk of violence,
exploitation by family members, and discrimination. Older persons are
not always able to reach central locations to register with UNHCR or
access assistance.
There are other groups that can face specific protection risks.

Adolescent girls As families become poorer, adolescent girls are married off at
increasingly younger ages. For some women and girls, survival sex
becomes the only way to support themselves and their families.
Adolescent girls also at risk of exploitative labour (e.g. as domestic
workers) and being forcefully recruited and used by armed forces.
Adolescent boys Adolescents boys might be forcefully recruited and used by armed
forces or might need to engage in exploitative and hazardous labour.
They might also be at heightened risk of substance abuse or getting
involved in gangs.
Women in remote Internally displaced women and girls living in remote areas are more
areas likely to be attacked and are at heightened risk of abduction, rape and
sexual abuse. This may be because there is a smaller social network in
rural areas to protect them, and they may be forced to travel long
distances through dangerous areas, perhaps in the dark, in order to go
to school, work, collect firewood or water.

Lesbian, gay, LGBTI persons may be at risk of:
bisexual,  violence, including sexual abuse, torture and murder at the hands of
transgender and state actors or community and family members, often without police
intersex (LGBTI) protection
persons
 severe discrimination and a lack of access to health care, housing,
education, employment and other social services.
 arbitrary arrest, detention and extortion, especially in countries
criminalizing same-sex relations
 being driven away or isolated by their family or community and
excluded from any support mechanisms.
UNHCR has developed guidance on working with LGBTI persons in
forced displacement, and you should read this. Use the Resources
section in the e-learning course to access this.
Persons with Persons with disabilities share many of the same protection risks as
disabilities, older persons:
including physical  They may experience difficulty in moving, hearing, seeing,
and mental communicating or learning.
impairments  They are more likely to suffer from violence, including sexual and
domestic abuse, exploitation by family members, discrimination, and
exclusion from access to humanitarian assistance, education,
livelihoods, health care, nationality and other services.
Women, the elderly, children and LGBTI persons with disabilities may be
exposed to even higher risks.
Minorities (national, In conflict situations, national or ethnic, religious and linguistic

ethnic, religious or minorities and indigenous groups may face protection risks based on
linguistic) and their perceived or real affiliation to the ‘opposite side’.
indigenous groups Women from minority groups may be at particular risk of sexual
violence as an act of revenge. Men may be accused of being associated
with fighting parties.
Minorities can be at risk when services are not equally accessible to
everyone. For example, people from a minority group may not be able
to reach our offices, attend school or use health facilities due to their
physical location in an area with a majority group population.
In camp environments, services need to be available for all. For
example, if water taps are only available in an area where one ethnic
group lives, other groups may not be able to get access. This could

create tensions between groups.
We also need to make sure we involve minorities in leadership
structures, camp committees and participatory assessments.
You can see that different persons face different protection risks. It is therefore important to
use the AGD approach to find out about these risks instead of assuming that all persons within
a displaced population face the same risks.
Think about your own situation. What protection risks do you think specific groups around you
have?

5. Influences on the protection environment
Many different factors influence the protection environment, for example:

 cultural norms
 socio-economic conditions
 laws and policies
 informal rules and regulations.
These apply to all persons of concern but might affect them differently, depending on their age,
gender and diversity.
Let us look at each in more detail.
Cultural norms
Cultural norms are beliefs about patterns of behaviour that are acceptable and unacceptable.
Some of these cultural norms can affect individuals and groups negatively, for example:
 If the women’s place is considered to be inside the house only, this can result in women
being unable to participate in public life and decision-making structures.
 If the role of the man is to provide for and protect his family and he is not able to do so he
can lose status in the family and community, and might then engage in negative coping
mechanisms such as alcohol abuse and domestic violence.
 If women are expected to support and obey their husbands, they may not receive any
education, have no economic means of their own and be dependent on husbands.
 If female genital mutilation is carried out, health and psychological implications result.
 If LGBTI persons are not socially accepted, they may be ignored, excluded from society or
physically attacked.
Cultural norms also influence attitudes and behaviours at the family, community and societal
levels, for example with parents, teachers, political, community and religious leaders, and civil
servants. So it might be the norm that:
 parents find it more important that the boys go to school than the girls
 teachers discriminate against children from particular ethnic groups
 people discriminate against single mothers
 persons with disabilities are excluded from decision-making structures.

Socioeconomic conditions
Socioeconomic conditions have a heavy impact on the situation of each individual and each
family.
Lack of employment opportunities could lead to:
 older persons struggling to meet their basic needs
 men losing their self-esteem as they feel they cannot live up to what their society expects of
them, which in turn may lead to sexual and gender-based violence
 greater protection risks if women are not economically self-reliant.
Family poverty could lead to:
 children being withdrawn from school
 children engaging in exploitative livelihood activities
 women and girls engaging in survival sex
 men working in exploitative and hazardous conditions.
Laws and policies

Laws and policies create the framework within which persons of concern live. These can
increase or limit the protection environment. Here are some important areas of law and policy.
Education policies
 Can refugee children attend school?
 Is early childhood, primary and secondary education accessible?
 Is tertiary education available for adolescents?
Health policies
What is the level of access to healthcare?
Do policies take into account the increased health care needs of older persons?
Do they provide reproductive health care for women?
Criminal law
Is SGBV criminalized? Are SGBV survivors able to access justice in traditional and/or formal legal
systems?
Does the law penalise persons of concern without legal documents?
Does it protect groups who are left out of the society for some reason, or does it make their
situation worse?

Property laws
Are they useful for displaced populations?
Do they discriminate against women?
Laws relating to freedom of movement, expression, religion and identity

Do laws enable or limit individuals from exercising their rights? For example, in many countries
persons with disabilities are not allowed to vote.
Nationality Laws
Do nationality laws create a risk of statelessness by
- discriminating against women by preventing them from conferring, acquiring, retaining
or changing their nationality on an equal basis as men?
- discriminating against persons with disabilities?
Rules and regulations

These are the rules and regulations imposed by local and national leaders which together
support and promote the protection of persons of concern. They may be informal and not
written down. They therefore need to be considered separately to laws and policies.
Communities may have their own mechanisms for addressing situations of domestic violence
and cases may therefore not be referred to formal, legal structures.
Do these factors make you think about specific issues where you work? Make any relevant
observations here.

6. How age influences the protection environment
Age refers to the different stages in a person’s life cycle. It is important to be aware of where
individuals are in their life cycle for many reasons:
 An individual’s capacities and needs can change over time and this affects our
programming.
 Age can enhance or diminish a person’s capacity to exercise her or his rights and this may
mean that they need different support from UNHCR.
 Many cultures give older women and men high status, seeing them as wise and so giving
them respect. Older men in particular are titled elders with substantial power in the
community.
 In other societies, however, younger people hold the power and with old age a person may
lose her or his status and become dependent on the younger generation.
 Older persons may even be expected to go without food in times of extreme food
shortages.
People of different ages can experience different protection risks and we therefore need to
tailor our interventions appropriately. By 2050, older persons will outnumber children for the
first time in history and we need to be aware of this trend to ensure that our programming is
reflective of changing needs.

This table summarises some of the protection needs that are particularly important at different
stages in a person’s life.
Children Adolescents Adults Older persons
Birth registration for Secondary education Literacy Specific health care
new born babies needs
Reproductive health Income generation
Specific nutrition services and livelihoods Specific nutritional
needs for babies and needs
Life skill programmes Sanitary material for
infants girls and women of Access to livelihood
Child health care and reproductive age activities
immunisation Participation in Care for single older
Early childhood and decision-making persons
primary education structures
Care for Health care
unaccompanied and Higher education
separated children
What other needs do you see as being particularly important where you work? Make a note of
them here.
Children
Adolescents

Adults
Older persons

7. How gender influences the protection
environment
‘AGD’ uses the word ‘gender’, and it is important to understand what this word means and how
it is different from the word ‘sex’:
 ‘Sex’ is a biologically determined feature about an individual that usually cannot be
changed, in other words, a person is physically a ‘woman’ or a ‘man’.
 ‘Gender’ is about what a society expects or assumes men and women will do or not do.
Gender roles are acquired, they change over time and vary widely within and across
cultures.
In some societies, roles played by men and women are similar, but in others they are
dramatically different. Gender roles in a given community can also change over time: they can
become more or less discriminatory as time goes by.
‘Gender analysis’ examines the differences in the lives of women, men, girls and boys of
concern and applies this to policy development and service delivery. It allows us to:
 explore the different needs, priorities, constraints and opportunities faced by women, men,
girls and boys
 ensure that we do not base our practice on incorrect assumptions or stereotypes about
women and men, as well as boys and girls, which means that we do not unintentionally
contribute to gender-based discrimination3.
Gender analysis is therefore a critical tool in enabling us to better understand the protection
needs of individuals and groups and to improve our response.
Gender equality is an integral part of any AGD analysis: it should not be considered separately,
but should serve as the lens through which other aspects of age and diversity are analysed.
Gender-based assumptions
A person can experience discrimination, exploitation and violence solely by virtue of their given
gender role. Read this quotation from a Congolese refugee.
“I was tortured. I was raped. But they believe that rape is not done to men. That is what
I was able to observe…. There is not sufficient knowledge that this can be done to men
too.”
3
Gender-based discrimination is any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of socially constructed gender roles and norms
which prevents a person from enjoying full human rights.

“When you explain this problem people do not listen to you. They do not listen to you.
They are indifferent. I had the bad luck to be interviewed by female protection officers
who were unable to grasp that I was a victim of rape and that just creates further
trauma. One lives that every day.”
“When you say, ‘I was persecuted. I experienced that in my country’. They respond ‘but
you are a man, you can’t be raped’. So that’s where it stops.”
(With acknowledgements to the Refugee Law Project, http://www.refugeelawproject.org)
The refugee stated that men who had been raped feel unable to report the incident or seek
help as, in his culture, men must be strong and able to protect themselves and their family.
When he gave his testimony to UNHCR about what happened in prison he felt that he was not
taken seriously. More attention was paid to his daughter who had also been raped.
One study has shown that 24% of men in certain territories of the eastern Democratic Republic
of Congo have experienced sexual violence, challenging the gender stereotype that men do not
experience sexual violence.
Sexual violence against any person of concern is intolerable. In this case, each case of SGBV
should be viewed through an AGD lens as being equally unacceptable and equally in need of
appropriate responses that respect the survivor.
This example shows us dramatically how perceptions about gender influence our identification
of protection risks, and how these may affect our programming. We therefore need to question
our own assumptions about gender to make sure that:
 we understand the role that gender dynamics plays in a person of concern’s life
 we design programs that are inclusive of women, men, girls and boys
 we target actions to address specific protection gaps.
Below we will look at other examples of how gender norms have an impact on individuals’
protection needs and how we respond to them.
Sex, gender and protection/programming implications

Here are four statements describing some differences between men and women. We can use
each of these to show how sex or gender distinctions have both programming and protection
implications.

“Women are gentle, men are tough.”
Protection implications:
 Men who are facing unemployment or have experienced distressing experiences are not
supposed to express their pain. Instead, they may experience debilitating depression and
commit suicide or turn to alcohol or drug addiction, which in turn may increase the risk of
domestic violence or family abandonment.
 Women are expected to put up with their husband’s behaviour, which might violate their
rights.
 Women and girls are not likely to report experiences of sexual and other violence and suffer
silently. Boys and men are even less likely to report their experiences of violence.
Programming implications:
 We may need to provide domestic violence shelters.
 It may be appropriate to conduct assertiveness training with women (but depending on the
strength of gender norms it may not be).
 We may need to conduct masculinity workshops with men and boys to challenge
destructive perceptions about masculinity and the role of men and women.
 UNHCR operations must work with other relevant organizations to establish and apply
standard operating procedures for SGBV response and prevention effectively.
UNHCR has developed an e-learning on SGBV to help you work through the issues and
implications. You will find a link to this course in the Resources section of this e-learning.
Can you think of any other protection or programming implications? Make a note of them here.
“Women can breast-feed babies, men can bottle-feed babies.”

Protection consequences:
 Breast-feeding mothers may be particularly affected by the lack of food security.

 Women who are badly nourished during pregnancy and lactation are more likely to become
ill.
 Inadequate nutrition before birth and in the first years of life is likely to damage health,
mental development and future productivity of the affected children.
 Women with babies and small children may be at higher risk of SGBV due to their desperate
need to protect themselves and their children.
 Displaced women should be involved in food distribution: in the decision-making process; in
the distribution itself (whether by supervising or handing out commodities); in collecting
food (where it is distributed to women not men) and in monitoring.
 It is important to link with partners to ensure that awareness-raising on the benefits of
breastfeeding reaches displaced women.
 Safe access to cooking fuel could ensure that breast-feeding women are better able to
nourish themselves.
“Men should be the leaders in political representation and decision-making.”

 Women are underrepresented in decision-making and resource allocation at all levels. This
may mean that their needs are not prioritized and the protection risks that they face are
not addressed.
 Women’s participation in responsive and meaningful decision-making should be enhanced,
including in relation to the planning, implementation and evaluation of UNHCR’s projects
and programmes.

 UNHCR staff are expected to ensure that mechanisms are set up and maintained to ensure
that women of concern are equally and meaningfully represented in persons of concern’s
management and decision-making structures.
 Campaigns can be developed to influence cultural norms that currently prevent women
from being involved in decision-making.

“Women menstruate while men do not.”

 Menstruation and lack of access to sanitary materials may limit women and girls’ freedom
of movement. This may mean that girls are unable to attend school regularly or that women
cannot engage in livelihood activities.
 Women may resort to survival sex to increase their income so they can afford sanitary
materials.
 Women’s and girls’ health may suffer due to lack of sanitary materials and hygiene items.
 UNHCR is committed to ensuring that appropriate sanitary materials and personal hygiene
kits are provided to all women and girls of reproductive age.
 Budgets must be allocated to sanitary material provision according to the number of
women and girls of reproductive age.
 Sanitary materials should be procured and distributed regularly.
 Some urban based operations (for example, Eritrea, China and Jordan) give women a cash
allowance so that they can purchase their own sanitary materials.

8. Diversity and protection
Apart from their age and gender, persons vary in many other ways, of course. For example,
they may:
 hold different values, attitudes, cultural perspectives or spiritual beliefs
 come from different ethnic backgrounds or have other nationalities
 have a different sexual orientation or gender identity
 have different abilities or levels of health
 hold different social status
 be skilled in particular ways.
And there are many other specific personal characteristics, of course.
These diversity characteristics can have a profound effect on an individual’s status within their
community.
Think about the culture within which you work. Look at this list of individuals of diverse
backgrounds and decide what status they hold in this culture. Do this on the separate ladders
for male and female individuals to see what the differences are.
Write their names on the rungs of the ladder on the next page to show their relative positions in
society.
A. Babies and children
B. Babies and children with a disability
C. Adolescents and young adults
D. LGBTI adolescents and young adults
E. Middle aged adults from a dominant ethnic group
F. Middle aged adults from a non-dominant ethnic group
G. Older adults with a learning difficulty
H. Older persons

Females Males
High status High status
Low status Low status
In order to ensure protection for all persons of concern, we in UNHCR must be able to
recognize, understand and value these individual differences in each specific context and
operation.
Linking the risk of discrimination to specific characteristics helps us understand the root causes
of the challenges individuals face, and therefore helps us to strengthen our protection
interventions.
9. Using the AGD lens
It can sometimes be difficult to see something if we do not know how to look for it. Too often
our protection strategies risk failing because we have worked on the basis of our own attitudes
and beliefs which sometimes contain rigid perceptions or taught stereotypes.
Internalising age, gender and diversity means training our minds to be flexible when entering
into a new environment so that we notice how diverse persons are in a particular community
and what implications this may or may not have for their protection and the way in which we
deliver services.
We can then also analyse the communities that we work with and gain an understanding of
their internal structures and group dynamics so that these can be taken into consideration
when designing programmes.
The aim of this learning journal has been to show you how by looking at the world through age,
gender and diversity lenses you can see how individuals’ protection environments are at risk, so
that you can improve the quality of the service that you deliver.
We need to ask ourselves:

 What are the age, gender and diversity issues in this situation and how will they affect the
success of our work?
 What do we need to do to meet the specific needs of individuals or groups?
 How can we reduce unintended discrimination, caused by simply not looking properly?
To end this brief explanation of the AGD approach, let us just see how we might apply it to a
simple, everyday scene.

At first sight this looks like a normal group of people, but applying what we have learnt about
the AGD perspective, we put on the ‘Age’ lens. What do we see?
Age analysis shows us that young people might be at risk of:
 not attending school
 working in exploitative conditions
 forced recruitment by military groups
 sexual abuse and exploitation
 trafficking4.
The Gender equality lens would make us look more closely at these possibilities:
 Gender roles will determine the roles that different children will be expected to play in a
given context. Girls might be expected to do the housework and not attend school, boys
might have to engage in physical labour.
 Girls as well as boys might be at risk of forced recruitment.
 Girls and boys might be at risk of sexual abuse in forced recruitment.
 Girls might be at risk of childhood marriage and teenage pregnancy.
 Mothers with childcare responsibilities may find it harder to access services.
And thirdly, the Diversity lens makes us think about these:
4
Taking persons from their homes by force or deception to work in exploitative conditions.

 Girls and boys from an ethnic minority or another religion might be discriminated against by
other communities.
 Girls and boys with disabilities are likely not to attend school.
 Persons with disabilities may well find it difficult to access services.
 Persons of concern who are thought to be LGBTI may be subject to violence.
In order to target our programming appropriately we need to go beyond what is immediately
visible and understand the complex dynamics at play in the protection environment.
Our age, gender and diversity approach enables us to do exactly this.
Do this for where you work. Think about a particular setting and analyse it using the three
lenses. Summarise your thoughts here.
It would be particularly useful to do this with other colleagues so that you get the benefit of
different perspectives.
Age lens
Gender lens
Diversity lens

10. Key points
This is the end of the AGD Module 1 learning journal. If you have not already done so, you will
find it useful to work through the accompanying e-learning course. It has a number of questions
that you can try to answer to see how much you have learnt.
Before you move on, here are some of the key points that we have covered here:
 UNHCR has adopted an AGD approach in order to ensure that our work is inclusive of, and
accessible to, all persons of concern and their specific needs.
 All staff, whatever their function or grade, have a responsibility to ensure that UNHCR’s
AGD Policy is implemented.
 An individual’s protection environment is shaped by the combination of general factors and
their own age, gender and diversity characteristics.
 Using an AGD lens allows us to better analyse the different components of the protection
environment and be more responsive to our persons of concern.


AGD Elearning English - Learning Journal Module 1 Ver 12 - 04.02.2016

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UNHCR / P.

1. How to use this learning journal.............................................................................................. 3

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The value of working with others

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Equal access to and enjoyment of

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Bosnia and Herzegovina

The AGD lens

An AGD sensitive analysis enables us to:

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Who is responsible for implementing AGD?

One strategy to follow: Integration of AGD in programming

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The wider society

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Minorities (national, In conflict situations, national or ethnic, religious and linguistic

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Many different factors influence the protection environment, for example:

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Laws and policies

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Laws relating to freedom of movement, expression, religion and identity

Rules and regulations

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Sex, gender and protection/programming implications

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“Women can breast-feed babies, men can bottle-feed babies.”

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“Men should be the leaders in political representation and decision-making.”

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“Women menstruate while men do not.”

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Low status Low status

We need to ask ourselves:

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