Impacts of gender mainstreaming in environmental conservation initiatives in Lwemiyaga sub-county, Sembabule district:

Abstract

This study assessed the impact of gender mainstreaming in environmental conservation initiatives in Lwemiyaga sub-county, Sembabule district using a cross-sectional data collected from 60 (sixty) respondents in (4) four villages. Data was collected on the demographic information of the respondents, factors influencing gender mainstreaming in tree planting project, effects of gender mainstreaming in the community tree planting project, and strategies that can be employed to ensure effective gender mainstreaming in community tree planting project in Lwemiyaga Sub County Sembabule district. Simple random sampling using the lottery method was used to select respondents from the community. Descriptive analysis was used to come up with descriptive statistics inform of tables and (SPSS) version was used as the statistical package for analysis to determine the difference in the perspectives of men and women considering the chi-square test. The results from descriptive analysis showed that, 50% of the respondents were men, and 50% were women ensuring equal participation in the study, 60% of men and 40% of women knew the meaning of gender mainstreaming. The results further showed that 96.7 % of the men and 100% of women were aware of the tree planting project in the area and among these, 56.7% of the men and 53.3 of the women were involved in the project. It was found out that inadequate tools and equipment, inadequate experience and inadequate funds were the major challenges that affect both men and women in the pursue of equal participation in the community tree planting project. Furthermore, 93.3% of the men and 86.7% of the women believed that gender mainstreaming had positive effects in community tree planting projects, government and NGOs were the major providers of interventions that promote gender mainstreaming in the community tree project in the area. It is recommended that both men and women should be actively involved in decision-making processes, project planning, and implementation, prioritizing the inclusion and empowerment of vulnerable groups is crucial, and collaboration between government entities, NGOs, environmentalists, and community project leaders is essential for effective implementation of gender mainstreaming in community projects.