The Gender and Development Agenda (GAD) supports Batangas State University’s vision, mission and strategic goals, as embodied in its Strategic Plan. The GAD Agenda recognizes the various GAD commitments of the University under various gender-related laws and policies, which include, but not limited to, the Philippine Plan for Gender-Responsive Development Plan (1995-2025), Women in Development and Nation Building Act (Republic Act No. 7192), Anti Sexual Harassment Act of 1995 (Republic Act No. 7877), Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004 (Republic Act No. 9262) and the Magna Carta of Women (Republic Act No. 9710), Gender and Development Accord of Philippine Higher Education Institutions, CHED Memorandum Order No. 1, Series of 2015 (Establishing the Policies and Guidelines on Gender and Development in the Commission on Higher Education and Higher Education Institutions).

The primary thrust of Gender and Development is to develop Batangas State University into a leading gender-responsive higher education institution.

This will be attained by:

1. Integrating and advocating gender perspectives in the four-fold functions of higher education, i.e., instruction, research, extension and production, and other University operations through gender-responsive policies, programs and mechanisms; and,
2. ensuring that every member of the academic community and its stakeholders are gender-responsive through the enhancement of their capacity to use gender lens in the performance of their functions and champion GAD efforts of the University.

GOAL 1: To mainstream gender and development in the curriculum, research and extension

GOAL 2: To institutionalize gender-responsive mechanisms in the University

GOAL 3: To develop and recognize gender responsive members of the academic community and external stakeholders

GOAL 4: To establish sustainable partnerships with external stakeholders and technical experts and foster cooperation in the planning, development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of GAD PAPs

GOAL 5: To construct/upgrade facilities which would address gender concerns of stakeholders

CREATION, STRENGTHENING, AND INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT (GAD) FOCAL POINT SYSTEM

Pursuant to Section 36 of Republic Act No. 9710, otherwise known as the Magna Carta of Women (MCW), all government departments, including their attached agencies , offices, bureaus, state universities and colleges , government- owned and controlled corporations, local government units and all other government instrumentalities shall adopt gender mainstreaming as a strategy to promote women’s human rights and eliminate gender discrimination in their systems, structures, policies, programs, process and procedures.

Section 37- C of the implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the MCW provides that all concerned government agencies and instrumentalities mentioned above shall establish or strengthen their GFPS or a similar GAD mechanism to catalyze and accelerate gender mainstreaming within the agency.

GAD Focal Point System – is an interesting and interdependent group of people in all government instrumentalities tasked to catalyze and accelerate gender mainstreaming. It is a mechanism established to ensure and advocate for, guide, coordinate, and monitor the development, implementation , review and updating of their GAD plans and GAD-related programs , activities and project (PAPs);