ABSTRACT
Civil society activism has played an important role in the adoption and implementation of gender responsive budgeting (GRB) initiatives. Examples abound of the success of these endeavours. In South Africa and Tanzania the GRB initiatives were led primarily by women's organisations. The stakes can be high for women's activism. Peace often fails to deliver better outcomes for gender equality, fragmentation places collective action under strain and political instability undermines opportunities for policy engagement. This chapter investigates how these contradictory forces operate in Timor-Leste to constrain opportunities for women activists to influence economic policy from the outside. It reflects on the conditions under which women activists can influence economic policy, making the government accountable for their policy commitments and encouraging active citizenship on economic policy. The chapter argues that women's strategic mobilisation around an autonomous, well-organised and cooperative political platform has created opportunities to place gender equality in the context of Timor-Leste's development project.
