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HANDBOOK FOR NHRIs ON WOMEN’S RIGHTS AND GENDER EQUALITY
To conclude, NHRIs in the OSCE region are experiencing significant financial
and human-resources constraints, reported by 61 per cent and 67 per cent of
NHRIs, respectively, as the main challenge faced in addressing women’s rights
and gender equality. At the same time, the establishment of additional specialized institutions and the assignment of new responsibilities to NHRIs may be
having an impact on the institutional attention that can be given to women’s
rights and gender equality. On the other hand, if gender is fully mainstreamed,
it may also promote greater attention to gender aspects of particular areas,
such as the rights of women with disabilities.
The ODIHR survey points to several traditional tools, such as strategic planning
or knowledge management, that are significantly underutilized by NHRIs. The
limited resources of NHRIs can be maximised through co-operative arrangements with specialized institutions and civil society, and through synergies
with institutions with similar visions and missions.
NHRIs could improve their own accessibility by enhancing the internal use
of focal points and improving outreach to rural and remote areas, for example through mobile clinics that could include gender specialists. In countries
where there is reasonably widespread access to telephones and the Internet,
cost-free telephone lines and on-line forms can be used for filing complaints or
obtaining information, in order to facilitate women’s access to NHRI services.
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