Supplementary tool 7.a: Gender-responsive agreements (contracts or grant agreements) with project implementers

After the project selection process, guided by clearly defined criteria that take gender equality into account, it is important to define basic requirements for project implementers. These should be set out in project agreements or contracts.

Checklist for project agreements and contracts related to project financing

When drafting project agreements of contracts, managing authorities could ask the following questions.

  1. Does the agreement explain that the project’s implementation is obliged to comply with the horizontal principle of gender equality?
  2. Does the agreement specify specific steps that should be taken to comply with the gender equality requirement?
  3. Does it explicitly state that the project’s implementation is obliged to take women’s and men’s different situations and needs into account?
  4. Does the agreement explicitly mention that the project has an obligation to use resources to advance gender equality?
  5. Does the agreement set out specific targets and results that must be achieved with regard to gender equality? For example:
    • Do the targets and results clearly state that these must be achieved for both women and men?
  6. Do the procedures specified in the agreement mention specific expectations related to gender, such as:
    • references to gender equality in reports, especially sex-disaggregated statistics on beneficiaries;
    • the distribution and use of financial resources and results in reports;
    • gender-sensitive approaches to communication, among others?
  7. If a declaration on oath is required, does this include taking the gender dimension into account? That is, are the recipients of project resources required to declare that they have understood that gender equality as a horizontal principle must be taken into account when utilising resources?
  8. Does the agreement on allocated project resources or subsidies specify that gender equality must be considered, as a necessary precondition, in the use of resources?