An important instrument for ensuring the implementation of gender mainstreaming throughout the United Nations is competence development, i.e. the development of awareness, knowledge, commitment and capacity necessary to incorporate gender perspectives into substantive work among professional staff. Competence development can be achieved through many means, not only through training programmes. Provision of materials such as fact-sheets and briefing notes, briefings by experts, brown-bag lunches, participatory development of materials on gender in different sector areas are all ways by which awareness, knowledge, commitment and capacity for gender mainstreaming can be developed.

OSAGI has developed a close collaboration with OHRM to ensure competence development programmes on gender mainstreaming are made available to all departments in the Secretariat, the regional commissions and the United Nations offices in Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi. A framework has been developed and tested in DESA, UNOV and ESCAP. See Summary Framework 

Also available is a Facilitator's Manual based on the framework.