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Yolanda Ndlovu for ZWRCN—

The other children race across him on their way to school exuding a sense of excitement at the same time from their loud conversations. Unlike the other children, Tawanda* has to trod to school.How he wishes he could run like the other children, but because his other leg was amputated due to a staph infection that was resistant to penicillin, his movements are limited.

Tawanda* is raised by his single mother Nyasha* along with his four other siblings. Nyasha* is a small-scale crop farmer and struggles to raise her five children. She also practices garden farming and travels to the nearby town every fortnight to sell her vegetables.

Nyasha* wishes there were better transport systems for her son’s mobility in particular and also that it can create an easy link for her to the markets where she can sell her produce.

“I wish there were better transport systems, which would mean Tawanda doesn’t have to miss school often.

“He already does not like school as a result of that. His sibling’s assist him but they can’t help all the time particularly using the narrow bridge, they wouldn’t be able to carry him across because the bridge won’t accommodate many people,” she says.

“I also have to take him to the local clinic frequently for check- ups and it is a hassle.”

“It would also create favourable market systems for me and the other women because it will be easy to sell our produce,” she adds.

“At the moment, the road is not favourable and it takes us days to get to the market. By the time we make it there our vegetables are no longer fresh.”

Individual poverty prevalence of Zimbabwe is 84,3 percent in rural areas compared to 46,5 percent in urban areas, according to information gathered by the Zimbabwe Women’s Resource Centre and Network (ZWRCN).

Most of the population is located largely in the informal sector and yet the budget focus has mostly been on the formal sector, for example, cash crop production in agriculture as distinct from communal and small scale producers where women are mostly located.

Gender responsive budgeting initiatives provide an opportunity to evaluate not simply the nature and extent of the paid economy but also to evaluate the unpaid work, in particular the provision of care which individuals undertake, both in the community and in households.

The recognition of this interaction enables policy-makers to avoid “false economies” and the loss of output.

A budget that is planned, approved, executed, monitored and audited in a gender sensitive way helps prevent losses to local authorities’ expenditure and revenues because it addresses the specific needs and priorities of men, women, boys and girls. This means local authorities are able to provide quality service resulting in sustainable development for that community.

A gender sensitive budget is not to be seen as a women’s only budget, instead it incorporates affirmative action expenditure intended to uplift the status of marginalised groups like women, the elderly, the disabled and the poor.

Women and gender activist, Virginia Muwanigwa noted that there was need to have deeper analysis that would address the specific needs of the marginalized in each gender group.

“It’s not just in terms of women, men, boys and girls but within those groups how are we addressing the specific needs of people living with disabilities, how are we addressing the needs of children who are in marginalized communities, in remote rural areas or in distress,” noted Muwanigwa.

In the case of Tawanda* and Nyasha*, if the local district budget had allocations for provisions for the disabled and women, it would make it easy for them.

Particularly creating better transport systems would mean Tawanda* doesn’t have to miss exams every now and then and would translate to increased productivity for Nyasha*.

“Zimbabwe has been facing a lot of floods or people being displaced. Gender budgeting will be able to allocate resources to those people that are at a particular time facing difficulty,” she added.

According to UNDP Human development report, Zimbabwe’s Human Development Index value for 2014 was at 0,509 — which put the country in the low human development category — positioning it at 155 out of 188 countries and territories.

From the Human Development Index, the loss in human development due to inequality between male and female achievements was 0,504, ranking it 112 out of 155 countries in the 2014 index.

This position can be reversed through targeted resource allocation trough the national budget that closes gender gaps and promotes gender equity in terms of access to economic and other opportunities that promote development of all sectors of society, particularly the poor and marginalised.

*Not their real names.