Despite significant progress, gender inequalities persist in all countries. These inequalities both negatefundamental human rights and present serious barriers to the achievement of national development objectives.Notwithstanding widespread commitment to gender equality by governments and development agencies, anddespite the compelling evidence on persistent gender inequalities, conventional M&E systems fail to addressgender differences. This note discusses the limitations of M&E systems in understanding gender inequalitiesand presents guidelines for developing a gender-responsive M&E system (GMES). It draws on internationalexperience of governments, donor agencies, and NGOs to outline the main steps in the design and implementationof such a GMES. The approach will vary depending on whether the GMES is part of a national gender policyor is intended to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of M&E systems at the agency or program level.