Rhonda Sharp is a Professor in economics from Australia. Rhonda Sharp and Debbie Budlender are pioneers in research on the importance of gender issues in drawing up a budget. Her paper How to do a Gender-Sensitive Budget Analysis: Contemporary Research and Practice was written together with Debbie Budlender and Kerri Allen, and published by Australian Agency for International Development; Commonwealth Secretariat, Canberra, 1998.

Rhonda Sharp in collaboration with Diane Elson who is also a Professor in economics from Essex University, UK, is currently doing research on the issues of gender-sensitive budget. The result of this research is expected to become materials to formulate tools for gender-sensitive budget and training materials for LAPIS (Learning Assistance Program for Islamic Schools) as a support for educational as well as religious institutions like State Institutes for Islamic Education (IAIN), Ministry of Religious Affairs etc. The training concerned is to provide capacity building to press the implementation of gender-sensitive budget programs.

This research wants to see how far gender-sensitive budget programs have prevailed in Indonesia. Related to the research, she visited WRI’s office at 20 February 2009 in Jakarta. Rhonda Sharp chose WRI to get information concerning the issue, because WRI is one of the organizations that deals with the issues of gender perspectives in designing a budget. WRI shared its experience in programs being carried out in collaboration with Health Services Program and The Ford Foundation.***

Professor Rhonda Sharp 
Division of Education, Arts and Social Sciences
Hawke Research Institute for Sustainable Societies
University of South Australia