Conceptual Issues in Gender and Development PDF

CONCEPTUAL ISSUES IN GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT WID, WAD, AND GAD  WID, WAD, and GAD are approaches to gender development.  WID (Women in Development), which emerged in 1970s, is an approach that aims to address gender disparities in development by emphasizing women's participation and integrati...

CONCEPTUAL ISSUES IN GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT WID, WAD, AND GAD  WID, WAD, and GAD are approaches to gender development.  WID (Women in Development), which emerged in 1970s, is an approach that aims to address gender disparities in development by emphasizing women's participation and integration into economic and social development.  The WID approach recognized that women's lack of access to education and formal employment was a key barrier to their participation in development processes.  However, the WID approach tended to view women's productive work in isolation from their reproductive roles and responsibilities, and did not always recognize the unpaid care and household work that women perform. WID, WAD, AND GAD  The WAD approach, which emerged in the 1980s, took a broader perspective on women's roles and contributions in development, and aims to challenge gender inequalities in development by recognizing the role of power relations in shaping women's lives.  It emphasizes women's empowerment by focusing on the need to challenge gender norms and stereotypes and promote gender equality.  The WAD approach recognized that women's productive work was often constrained by social and cultural norms, and emphasized the need to integrate women's reproductive concerns into development planning and to promote policies and programs that support women's reproductive health and rights.  However, the WAD approach tended to view women as a homogeneous group with common interests and experiences, and did not always account for the diversity of women's experiences and identities. WID, WAD, AND GAD  The GAD approach, which emerged in the 1990s, takes an intersectional and transformative approach to gender and development. It recognizes that gender relations are not only about women but about the power dynamics between men and women.  The GAD approach recognizes that gender relations are shaped by multiple and intersecting factors, including class, race, ethnicity, sexuality, and age, and that gender inequality is rooted in social, economic, and political power relations.  The GAD approach aims to challenge gender inequalities by promoting gender equality and empowering both men and women to challenge and change gender norms and stereotypes, and emphasizes the need to address structural barriers to gender equality, and to promote women's agency, voice, and participation in decision-making processes. SHIFT IN POLICY APPROACH TOWARD WOMEN WID WAD GAD Influential Liberal feminism Radical feminism Postmodernism ideas Neoliberalism Marxism Postcolonialism Problem to Prejudice against Capitalist development Gender relations restricting be women; processes that women’s access to tackled women’s lack of access generated resources to gender inequalities resources Role of Productive members of Integration of women’s Gender-based divisions in women society reproductive work productive and reproductive emphasized work Solution for Removal of legal and Structural change and Understanding the gender institutional barriers to transformation of the importance inequality women’s education, development system of power differentials training, through between employment; redistribution of wealth men and women; Integrate women in the and Intersections INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS FOR GENDER EQUALITY  International Women’s Year (1975) and UN Decade for Women (1976-1985) Conferences Outcomes Mexico City, 1975 Establishments of UNIFEM, INSTRAW (UN Women 2010) Adoption of CEDAW (1979) Copenhagen, 1980 Call for developing disaggregated statistics about women Nairobi, 1985 Nairobi Forward-Looking Strategies to the Year 2000 Vienna, 1993 (World Conference Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (gender- on based Human Rights) violence; violence against women) Cairo, 1994 (International Programme of Action on women’s reproductive health Conference and rights on Population and Development, ICPD) CEDAW  Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women 1979  Referred to as ‘women’s bill of rights’  “… “discrimination against women” shall mean any distinction, exclusion or restriction made on the basis of sex which has the effect or purpose of impairing or nullifying the recognition, enjoyment or exercise by women, irrespective of their marital status, on a basis of equality of men and women, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field.” (Article 1)  A three-dimensional view of equality (‘substantive equality’): Equality in formal and legalistic terms as well as equality of results  Ratified by 187 countries (about 90% of the UN membership)  States that are parties to CEDAW must submit regular reports to the CEDAW Committee BEIJING PLATFORM FOR ACTION  Beijing Conference in 1995  Attended by 189 state representatives, NGOs, international organizations, media (approx. 17,000)  Comprehensive topics (12 critical areas: poverty, health, education and training, VAW, armed conflict, economy, power and decision-making, insufficient mechanisms for the advancement, human rights, media, environment, the girl child)  Officially adopted gender mainstreaming strategies  Importance of various tools in order to realize gender mainstreaming (Gender-disaggregated statistics, gender assessment, gender-responsive budgeting, gender training)  Monitored every 5 year (25th anniversary in 2020)  Remains an important mechanism amid changing global agenda from MDGs to SDGs ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK (1) ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK (2)  Socio-ecological Model