CEDAW/C/PHI/4 English Page 10 operationalization of gender mainstreaming remains a foremost challenge to government considering the state of the art of the gender and development approach all over the world where principles and methods are still subject to further testing. Development agents and key implementors in government have continuously recognized the need to develop practical tools and methodologies for gender and development which are appropriate to Philippine conditions and setting. 38. Lack of a critical mass of women in top-level and decision-making positions. Empowerment for the greater majority of women must start with the sharing by women of decision-making and the political power that men have traditionally held. While Filipino women took an unprecedented active role in the political events of the past decade which toppled a dictatorship and catapulted into power the country's first woman president, their participation in politics and public governance continues to be limited. They remain largely unable to influence policy and decision-making as legislators, chief executives and top administrators at both the national and local levels. 39. Need to enhance the level of awareness and skills on women in development/gender and development concerns among government officials and staff. While significant strides have been taken to increase the level of awareness on such issues/concerns and skills in gender-responsive planning and policy-making among people in the bureaucracy, the majority of the people in government remain unappreciative of the importance of integrating the gender mainstreaming approach into their work. There is a need, therefore, for adequate and sustained gender and development sensitivity and skills training, not only among those who plan and implement development policies, programmes and projects but also among decision makers as well, to ensure that policies, plans and programmes are developed and designed taking into account the gender dimensions. 40. Absence of a comprehensive indicator system with clear standards for gender-responsiveness per sector. One formidable challenge that remains to be overcome is the need to develop and institute a gender-responsive monitoring and indicator system that sets the standards or criteria for gender-responsiveness of policies, programmes and projects that are being implemented by various line departments and agencies in government. This requires the establishment of a database system that will support planning and advocacy relating to women in development/gender and development at the national and local levels, and provide relevant inputs to track the impact of interventions relating to women in development/gender and development on the status of both women and men. Moreover, there is still a need to fully incorporate the gender perspective in the regular evaluation guidelines of the government. Sector and area-specific guidelines need to be developed for adaptation to the particular needs of each agency or instrumentality of government. 41. Absence of political will and lack of commitment by implementing agencies. Apart from technical problems and lack of gender sensitivity, it has been noted that another constraint to the advancement of women is the weak commitment and low priority accorded by departments and agencies to women's gender concerns. Among the issues raised by women in development/gender and development focal points in the various line agencies are the following: (a) difficulty in /...