GENDER ISSUES
ACADEMIC YEAR 2014-2015
Prof. Enrica Chiappero Martinetti
Gender & Development
Course’s aims and contents
Aims
• to discuss the linkage between gender equality
and development issues in a globalized world
Contents
• Gender inequalities and gender progress around
the world
• Measuring gender inequalities
• The impact of globalization and development on
gender (in)equality
Lectures’ contents
Lecture #2, October 2ndt, Thursday 11-13
Course presentation: the roots of the gender debate in
development economics (E.Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
– Razavi, C. Miller, From WID to GAD: conceptual shifts in the
women and development discourse, UNRISD, February
1995 (downloadable at the UNRISD website)
– C. Okali, Searching for new pathways towards achieving
gender equity. Beyond Boserup and ‘Women’s role in
economic development’”, ESA Working paper no. 11-09,
2011 (downloadable at the FAO website)
Lectures’ contents (2)
Lecture #4, October 9th, Thursday 11-13
Gender inequalities and gender progress around the world: an
overview (E.Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
– World Bank, Gender Equality and Development, World Development
Report 2012, selected sections of Part I (full report downloadable at
the World Bank website)
Lecture #8, October 23th, Thursday 11-13
Measuring gender inequalities: the UNDP new gender inequality
index: Gender Inequality Index and Gender Development Index
(E.Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
– UNDP, Human Development Report 2014 – pp. 39-40; 74-75; statistical
tables pp. 172-179; technical notes pp. 5-8.
Lectures’ contents (3)
Lecture #10,October 30th, Thursday 11-13
Measuring gender inequalities: the global gender gap report
of the WEF (E. Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
-
World Economic Forum, The Global gender gap report 2013,
selected sections of Part 1-Measuring the global gap and
country profiles (full report downloadable at the World
Economic Forum website)
Lecture #14, November 13th Thursday, 11-13
Measuring gender inequality in Italy (E. Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
– Amici M., Stefani M.L. (2013), A gender equality index for the
Italian regions, Banca d’Italia, Occasional Paper n. 190, June.
Lectures’ contents (4)
Lecture #16, November 20th Thursday 11-13
The impact of globalization and development on gender equality
(E.Chiappero-Martinetti)
Readings:
– World Bank, Gender Equality and Development, World Development
Report 2012, selected sections of Part III (full report downloadable on
the World Bank website)
Lecture #18, November 27th ,Thursday 11-13,
Women empowerment and economic development (E. ChiapperoMartinetti)
Reading:
– Duflo E. (2012), Women empowerment and economic development,
Journal of Economic Literature, 50,4, pp. 1051-1079
Further info
Course readings
• Further readings might be provided during the
course in addition
Students’ assessment
• a 9-10 pages paper on a subject agreed with
one of the teachers
Gender and development
Several crucial steps for the international debate
• (CEDAW, Convention for the Elimination of All
Forms of Discrimination Against Women, 1979):
women rights to receive training, education,
services and credits
• World Conference on Human Rights, Wien, 1993
• UN decade for women (1976-1985)
– Mexico City (1975), Copenhagen (1980), Nairobi
(1985) UN conferences
• Bejing Conference (1995)
WID, WAD, GAD
• Changing paradigms, thinking and practice on women, gender and
development
– From ‘WID’ – women in development (early ’70s)and ‘WAD’ – women and
development
– to ‘GAD’ – gender and development (mid ‘90s)
• Some continuities in thinking on women/gender & development as
well as several remarkable differences in concepts and policies
• early 70s women as ‘passive’recipients of support and assistance
(and mainly as mothers and wives); from 1975 onwards strategies
to give women equal access to edu and empl opportunities,
political representation and participation; social welfare
‘WID’
• ‘Women in Development’ (E.Boserup’s book “Women’s role in
economic development”, 1970 )
– Rooted in modernisation theory and liberal feminist ideas on equality
•
•
•
•
Modernization has a different impact on M and W
Devl process appeared to deteriorate woman’s rights, position and status
Women subordination linked to their exclusion from the market-place
Resurgence of women’s movement in northern countries
•
•
•
•
•
Economic change = empowerment
Equal rights, employment, equity and citizenship
Improve education and employment opportunities
Equality in political and social participation
Increase in health and welfare services
– WID agenda:
– Emphasis on women’s productive role:
• Investing in human capital
• micro-credit policies
Nb: gender efficiency approach (even if combined by egualitarian
arguments)
‘WAD’
• ‘Women and Development’
– Rooted in dependency theory and Marxist
feminist ideas
– Economic change = empowerment
– Advocated no real policy change around involving
women in the development process
‘GAD’
– Rooted in post-development theory and post-structuralist
critiques in feminism
– UN Bejing Conference, 1995
– Economic change ≠ empowerment
– Gender ≠ women
– Refocus on ‘gender relations and roles’ above ‘women’ as
a category
– Effective poverty reduction is gender aware
Gender
• Gender recognises that women and men have different needs and
interests which need to be addressed differently
– knowing what they are is fundamental to deliberately ensure that our
interventions have a tangible impact in promoting equality between men and
women;
– addressing the constraints and barriers that prevent women from fully exercising
their rights, developing their potential and to exercise duties is fundamental to
achieve gender equality ;
• Therefore, gender equality is about enabling women and men to
choose => Human Development Approach
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Human development defined as:
being “ … about creating an environment in which people can develop
their full potential and lead productive, creative lives in accord with
their needs and interests.”
“ Development is thus about expanding the choices people have to
lead lives that they value.”
“ Fundamental to enlarging these choices is building human
capabilities —the range of things that people can do or be in life.
The most basic capabilities for human development are to lead long
and healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, to have access to the
resources needed for a decent standard of living and to be able to
participate in the life of the community. Without these, many
choices are simply not available, and many opportunities in life
remain inaccessible.” HDR 2005
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To sum up
° Origins
° Focus
° Problem
° Aims
° Solution
° Strategies
WID
- 1975/1985 U.N.decade
- women
GAD
- Bejin Conference, 1995
- Relationships between men and women
- Women exclusion from
development process
- more efficient development
process
- Need to integrate women in
development processes
- Promote development
projects for women
- Increase women productivity
and income
- Unequal power relationships that prevent
equal and participative development
- Fair and sustainable development with men
and women as decision-makers
- Change unequal relationships and give power
to women
- Support men and women to improve their
living condition
- Address women’s strategic interests
- Promote people-centered development
processes