Evaluation Report of the UNIFEM Programme Facilitating CEDAW Implementation in Southeast Asia (CEDAW SEAP)

In 2004 UNIFEM with the support of the Canadian International Development Agency implemented the regional programme “Facilitating the Implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women in Southeast Asia.” (CEDAW SEAP) The programme’s overall objective was to support the realization of women’s human rights in seven Southeast Asian countries — Cambodia, Indonesia, the Lao People Democratic Republic, the Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Viet Nam — through more effective implementation of CEDAW, acknowledged as the international ‘Bill of Rights’ for women.

The CEDAW SEAP programme evaluation, which was conducted in 2008, represents the first corporate evaluation completed by UNIFEM within the framework of the organization’s Strategic Plan 2008–2011. Its importance is closely linked with the mandate of UNIFEM to provide financial and technical assistance to innovative programmes and strategies that promote women's human rights. Strengthening country capacities to implement CEDAW as a key driving force to achieve gender equality in line with national priorities is a pillar of UNIFEM support.

The report closely examines the effectiveness of the overall strategy and approaches to women's human rights, details the programme’s most significant findings and results, and identifies lessons learned. The programme’s challenges and shortcomings are also taken into consideration, pointing to issues that are also relevant at the corporate level. In conclusion, the evaluation provides five recommendations, so that in its next phase it can effectively build on partnerships, experiences and achievements, provide support for ongoing learning, make key assumptions and concepts explicit, and enhance the use of results-based management.