Abstract
Gender Budgeting (GB) was introduced in Italy in 2001. Numerous GB initiatives have been carried out since at the local level, although in absence of any organised attempt to build a common methodology and coordinate the different experiences. Taking advantage of the diversity of the Italian experiences, in this chapter we assess the main methodological approaches that have been concretely tried out on the ground. We identify three main approaches, respectively account-based, policy-based and capability-based gender budgeting. Based on our experience, our exchanges with other experts involved in GB and the available records, we briefly illustrate the main advantages and limitations of each approach.
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Notes
- 1.
Law 150/2009 recommends GB as the (sole) instrument to assess the performance of all public administrations in terms of equal opportunities. However, the law provides no further indications about methodologies, timing and responsibilities. In 2016 another law (Law 163/2016) added a paragraph which invited public administrations to model their GB on past experiences at the local level.
- 2.
Other speakers included Rhonda Sharp and Haroon Akram Lhodi.
- 3.
The reports of these very first experiences are internal documents not available to general public. The authors have a copy which can be made available upon request.
- 4.
Regional Law 16/2009 of the Tuscany Region promotes GB in all the municipalities to assess the equal opportunity content of their policies. Piedmont has a similar law (Regional Law 8/2009).
- 5.
One exception is the 2011 GB in the Region Piedmont which is an ex-ante analysis (http://www.bilanciodigenere-rapportocondizionefemminilepiemonte.eu/, accessed on April 24, 2017).
- 6.
As evidenced by the fact that even a recent report commissioned by the Italian parliament (Ufficio Parlamentare del Bilancio 2016), allegedly presenting the state of the art of GB in Italy, actually shows many lacunae and inaccuracies. For example, it neglects some important cases (Marche Region, province of Siena).
- 7.
See Provincia di Trieste (2012, 77).
- 8.
The Capabilities Approach methodology as developed within Wellbeing Gender Budgets is discussed elsewhere in this volume. For applications to the Italian case, see below.
- 9.
The same exercise was also carried out elsewhere, in particular for the Pistoia province (See http://www.provincia.pistoia.it/FORMAZIONE_PROFESSIONALE/BILANCIODIGENERE/Seminario22_02_2012/Bilancio%20di%20genere_ProvinciadiPistoia.pdf; accessed on April 2, 2017).
- 10.
Modena is a medium-size city (around 180,000 inhabitants in the early 2000s) and provincial capital in the Emilia Region, serving a (once) rich manufacturing and food-processing district. Siena is a much smaller town (around 50,000 inhabitants) located in the Tuscany region.
- 11.
In 2001 the average Italian employment rate ranged from 58.2 per cent for women aged 30–34 to 42 per cent for those aged 50–54.
- 12.
The dimensions of well-being which make up the matrix come to nine: “being educated and trained”, “living in healthy, safe places”, “moving around in the territory”, “feeling safe”, “having access to resources”, “living a healthy life”, “caring”, “having leisure time, enjoying beauty” and “being informed”.
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Bettio, F., Rosselli, A. (2018). Gender Budgeting in Italy: A Laboratory for Alternative Methodologies?. In: O'Hagan, A., Klatzer, E. (eds) Gender Budgeting in Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-64891-0_10
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