4 Approaches to Women’s Development

Sudeshna Mukherjee

Introduction

This module talks about the need for incorporating women in development discourse,
It gives fairly detailed description of various developmental and empowerment initiatives adopted for women world over.
Apart from description, the module also exposes students with drawbacks of these approaches and their proposed alternatives.
Finally with examples from around, the module sensitizes them to understand the need for maintaining balance between developmental needs, gender equity and environmental sustainability.
Since post Second World War Development has become a buzz word in the global political-economy. It has become a weapon in the hands of powerful and rays of hope for the powerless.
Since inception, till 1970’s development has been considered as gender neutral and like all other socio-political issues women were kept out of its ambit.
During the second half of the 20th century, Feminist movements questioned the notion that women’s contributions are limited only to the reproductive works of childbearing and caretaking.
The Economic or productive value of Women’s work, its invisibility and non recognition gained momentum during 1970, from the study on Women’s Role in Economic Development by Esther Boserup which gave path breaking inputs to the reports submitted to UN General Assembly on the “Role of Women in Development”.

This had inspired the First International Women’s World Conference held at Mexico City, in 1975 followed by declaration of 1976-1985 as the United Nations Decade for Women.

In India the concept of Women and Development was introduced for the first time during the Sixth Five Year Plan that is 1980-1985)

These all initiatives contributed in:

• Emphasis on women centered issues around the world;

• Improved educational and employment opportunities for women;

• Increasing gender equality in political and social participation;

• Increased access in health and welfare services ;

• Identification and recognition of gender based violence and acceptance of violation women rights as violation of human rights.

The Concept of Women’s Development requires understanding the shift in idea from Women as passive recipient of development to the Women as important economic contributors.

During 1950’s women were hardly regarded as important contributors to the development of the society.
The assumption was that the benefits of economic development would “trickle down” to families through the male bread winners.
Impact of development was gender-neutral and Women were regarded as passive recipients.
Hence initial priorities were accorded to maternal health, child health and nutritional needs of mother and child.
Feminist research exposed that the women were the world’s poorest of poor and most vulnerable and thus the focus began to shift from providing basic needs to improving the economic status of women.
The programs geared up in the direction of economic improvement mainly through education, vocational trainings, employment etc.
Economist Ester Boserup’s work, demonstrated that ignoring the economic contributions of women by governments were detrimental to the national development.
Her study also showed that development had different impacts on women and men. For example: Agricultural mechanization, industrialization, urbanization, assumed to benefits everyone but actually increased the workloads for women and made greater demands on them as producers and casual laborers.

Women in Development or WID Approach:

This approach mainly sought to integrate women into the development process. Esther Boserup’s work was a catalyst to Women in Development Movement. This approach incorporated Women specific projects into already existing development processes.

Strategies incorporated under WID approach are:

Adding women’s components in the existing one or creation of new women centric projects.
Increase of women’s income and productivity.
Improving women’s ability to look after the household

In spite of its initial funfair, WID had failed to provide necessary push in incorporating women within the doctrine of development due to following reasons:

WID failed to tackle the unequal gender relation and said little on women’s subordination and exclusion, and did not address gender discrimination – the root cause preventing women’s full participation in their societies.
WID approach seemed to associate women’s status with income/monetary contribution.
WID approach did not address the gender stereotypedexpectations of men.
WID approach downplayed the third world women’s contribution in household production, informal economy and in political activities.
The views of WID regarding women’s productive employment and emphasis on shifting from traditional sector to modern sector was also criticized as it viewed traditional role performed by women as regressive.

Women and Development or WAD Approach

The WAD approach was actually the result of ‘world plan of action’ from Mexico’s First World Conference on Women which took place on 1975. This approach suggested that involvement of women is the integral part of development rather than supplying development aid to women. This approach suggested women-only projects to counter patriarchal hegemony.

WAD argued that class structures were more oppressive than gender and that poor, marginalized women had more in common with men of their class than with women of another class.
WAD approach pointed out that development projects according to WID approach would increase the demands on women without increasing access to resources or decision making power and, thus increase women’s work load.

WAD approach also faced Criticisms from various corners. They are:

The main criticism was that WAD’s Women-only development project would be a failure in the long run due to the marginalized status of women.
WAD approach addressed women as a class, and failed to focus on diverse background (intersectionality) of women such as religion, ethnicity etc.
Similar to WID approach the WAD approach, did not fully consider the relation between patriarchy, modes of production and marginalization of women.
WAD, while concentrating on women’s productive role; has least considered the reproductive and cultural aspects of women’s lives.

Gender and Development or GAD Approach:

Dear Students, a revolutionary way of development was proposed through Gender and Development approach (GAD). GAD approach for the first time recognized development can impact women and men differently, hence it emphasizes that both men and women must be involved in identifying problems as well as in finding appropriate solutions respectively.
With WID, the dominant rationale for women’s development programs was
increased efficiency, mostly what women can do to accelerate development. But GAD emphasized on what development can do for women.
This approach pointed out that women have been systematically subordinated and assigned secondary or inferior roles to men and their needs have been considered in isolation from the larger contexts.

Strategies incorporated under GAD approach are:

GAD refocused attention on ‘gender’ from women. The new focus on gender grew out of observations that women’s development projects had not been successful in improving women’s conditions mainly due to social and cultural constraints.
They sought to make women an integral part of every development strategy.
It was thought that development projects would become more efficient by decreasing women’s reproductive workload i.e. lightening household responsibilities through better access to water, fuel etc. and by increasing their productive efficiency i.e. through income-generation, access to training, creditworthiness and so on.
With GAD, the rationale for conducting women’s development programs began to shift from efficiency to equity and empowerment.
Development started addressing Strategic Gender Needs rather than mere Practical Needs. What is practical gender need? PGNs are a response to immediate perceived necessity, identified within a specific context. They are practical in nature and often address inadequacies in living conditions such as water provision, health care and employment. They are needs shared by all household members yet identified as PGNS of women who assume responsibility for meeting these needs.While Strategic gender needs are the needs women identify because of their subordinate position in society. They vary according to particular contexts, related to gender divisions of labour, power and control; may include such issues as legal rights, domestic violence, equal wages, and women’s control over their bodies. MeetingSGNs assists women to achieve greater equality and change in existing roles, thereby challenging women’s subordinate position.

However, GAD approach was not free from criticisms. Critics claimed:

GAD has been emphasizing the social differences between men and women while neglecting the bonds between them and also the potential for changes in the existing roles.
Although GAD perspective is theoretically distinct from WID and WAD, but in practice the program seem to have the element of the two.
GAD fails to look carefully into the social relation aspect and as a result this approach lacks explanation on how social relations undermine the programs directed at women(e.g.control of husband over wife’s decision)
GAD approach does not provide clarity on the types of trade off women might be prepared to take so as to achieve their ideals of balancing productive – economic activities with marriage and motherhood.
Gender mainstreaming is often based on a single normative perspective as synonymous to Women ignoring others(eg. transgender )

Following table will give you a snapshot of major projects initiated for women’s development, nature of the problems they’ve addressed, solutions they’ve initiated, and developmental intervention they have proposed. Here we’ve dealt with concept like Welfare approach of 1950’s, followed by Economic Self-Reliance approach of 1960’s, Efficiency approach of 1970’s, Equality approach and Empowerment approach of 1980’s.

1990’s saw the emergence of various alternative approaches which were mainly arising out of the third world developing countries. Alternative approaches propose:

An alternative way of viewing how development has evolved out of grassroots experience.
This alternative view is based on interactions at the local level.
It believes, ideas and policies are shaped by everyday practices rather than by the dominant development theory.
There are many examples like Bangladesh Grameen Bank, self help women’s Association or SEWA in India swhich clearly show that these grass root movements result in empowerment of poor women.
Women should be the agents of development.

The next table will show you the comparative parameters of top down (i.e. mainstream development) and bottom up (that mainly represent participatory alternative approaches).

Different developmental goals are synthesized under The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).MDGs are eight international development goals that were established following the Millennium Summit of the UN in 2000,to mitigate gender imbalance and to usher in a just world order by 2015. These are again rephrased under 17 sustainable development goals. They are

To eradicate extreme poverty and hunger ;
To achieve universal primary education ;
To promote gender equality;
To reduce child mortality;
To improve maternal health;
To combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases;
To ensure environmental sustainability;
To develop a global partnership for development

Sustainable development: Another alternative mode of Development.

The term Sustainable development was brought into common use by the World Commission on Environment and Development (popularly known as The Brundtland Commission) in its seminal report (1987) called “Our Common Future”. According to the Brundtland Commission: “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
In India sustainable development is both a challenge and an opportunity. Successful development will inevitably involve some amount of depletion of natural resource , resulting in environmental damage. We have to maintain the much needed balance.

Salient features of Sustainable Development include:

It is an alternative design for development, which, by definition should be environmentally benign and eco-friendly.
To ensure that the productive assets available to future generations are not unfairly diminished.
Those who enjoy the fruits of economic development today must not make future generations worse off by excessively degrading the earth’s exhaustible resources and polluting the earth’s ecology and environment.
There is a symbolic relationship between consumerist human race and producer – the natural systems.
Environment and development is not mutually exclusive but essential to sustainable development and healthy economy.
Sustainable development has two major aspects- internally sustainable development and externally sustainable development-without both, no real sustainable development would exist.
Sustainable development is accountable to the poor, and hence, it should ensure that the poor should have adequate access to sustainable and secure livelihoods. Environmental degradation affects women more than men as they are the primary providers for the family,
Like all over the world, women of India took leading role in Environmental sustainability movements. Following pictures of Narmada and chipko movementare self explanatory. Our next issue is Women’s Empowerment and its inalienable relationship with

Development:

The chronology of development discourse depicts that by mid-1980 the term “empowerment” becoming popular in the field of development especially with reference to women. Women’s empowerment includes both a personal strengthening, enhancement of the life chances and collective participation. It helps to achieve equality of opportunity and equity between genders, ethnic groups, social classes and age groups.

It enhances human potential at individual and social levels of expressions. Empowerment is an essential starting point and continuing process for realizing the ideals of human liberation and freedom for all.

According to KamlaBhasin Empowerment of Women means many things. They are:

Ø Recognition of women’s contributions and women’s knowledge.

Ø Helping women to fight their own fears, feelings of inadequacy and inferiority.

Ø Enhancing their self respect and self dignity.

Ø Controlling their own bodies.

Ø Becoming economically independent and self reliant.

Ø Controlling resources like land and property.

Ø Reducing burden of work, especially within the home.

Creating and strengthening women’s groups and organizations.

The following diagram will explain the process of Empowerment

This step arises out of Awareness building about the situation such as inequality, discrimination, rights, and oppressions. Further Collective awareness is required for building a sense of group solidarity
Next step is Capacity building or skills development, to plan, organize, take group decisions, manage and carry out the action plan by utilizing the available resources and opportunities. Capacity building also includes leadership training for potential members.
This step will be followed by Participation. Participation is the major aspect in the process of empowerment. A great amount of exposure to the various events and causes are made available only when there is participation. This will enhance the decision making power of the group and also to strengthen the groups identity for a particular cause.
Final stage is the Action for changewhich is the result of all the above mentioned processes. The change ultimately is the stepping stone of any empowered group.

Now we will discuss various approaches to Women’s Empowerment.SrilataBatliwala has summarised major approaches to women’s empowerment as:

Integrated Development Approach:

This women’s empowerment approach basically tries to tackle issues like abject poverty, lack of access to education, employment, health-care and resources that are considered to make women powerless.
This approach employs integration of factors that would raise women from a powerless position towards a path of development.
Hence identifying the cause of women’s powerlessness becomes the first step before applying this approach
Integrated Development Approach provides a package to alleviate poverty, meet basic survival needs, reduce gender discrimination and help women to gain self esteem.
The package could be in the form of literacy program, health programs, legal programs etc where women participate through their collectives, they further build their capacity in tackling social issues such as dowry harassment, alcoholism etc which finally brings social change. Proshikaof Bangladesh; SEWA in India are good examples of this type of empowerment.

Economic Development Approach:

This approach focuses on economic development of women.
This approach considers that economic power in the hands of women can bring equality. The control of material resources can help in tackling the issue of subordination and further would lead to strengthening the economic security.
In this approach women form groups around savings, credit etc. Income generation activities through skill training are the popular strategy adopted under this approach. Thus such strategy also sustains the group’s strength E.g. Bangladesh Grameen Bank, LijjatPapaad in India.
These groups also provide ancillary supports like child care, health services, literacy programs, legal education and aid

Consciousness raising and organizing approach:

This approach tries to focus on women’s awareness. It is perceived that women’s lack of awareness regarding the dominant attitudes of male has led to their subordination.
Under this approach Women’s collectives consciously struggle for greater access toresources.
This approach does not meet the immediate practical needs; as it does not provide the schemes and services instead the women are strategically empowered to strive and address their positions. These positions will ultimately give them the ultimate decision making at higher levels. e.g. Reservation in local governance, MahilaSamakhya etc.

Change Approach:

§ This approach considers, women’s empowerment is also a process of establishing control over resources.

§ But the degree of control will depend on some factors like, income level, poverty, education, social norms, values etc. where patriarchy is predominant.

§ Customary male dominance towards women is the major hindrance in the pathway of women’s empowerment.

§ For this reason, a comprehensive and coordinated approach comprising the existing three approaches of women empowerment would be needed to empower women where special focus would be given on changing the attitudes of males towards women.

• Following diagram will show the two different empowerment approach and their thrust areas namelyHuman Development Approach developed by Amartya Sen and mainstream structural approach.

Now screen will show two case studies one is based on political empowerment of rural Indian women. The second one is based on economic success of Shri MahilaGrihaUdyog popularly known asLijjatPapad.’LijjatPapad’ is creation of a group of uneducated women.Membership has also expanded from an initial number of 7 sisters from one building to over 43,000 sisters throughout India.

These success stories prove nothing is impossible for women when right kinds of intervention and initiatives are made available to them.

Thus at the end of this module we can summarize that since inception development is a gendered activity. onlyWith conscious efforts, it has transformed from gender blindness to gender inclusisivity.
We have also learned that any one approach to development or empowerment is not sufficient to resolve these complex issues. With differential needs based on gender, class, religion, culture and many more variables our developmental priorities change. Development policies must recognize these differential needs.
Since the issues are rooted in the social structure, aholistic, intersectional strategy is required to do away with gender bias developmental paradigm.
Real challenge for a developing country like India lies in balancing development, environmental sustainability and gender justice.

you can view video on Approaches to Women’s Development

Books

Amartya Sen, 2000, Book Title “development as freedom”, Publisher: Anchor; Reprint edition (15 August 2000), ISBN-10: 0385720270
Vandanashiva, 1998, Staying Alive: Women, Ecology and Development”, publisher Zed Books, ISBN 0862-328233
Vandana shiva,1988,Book Title “Nature Ethics: An Ecofeminist Perspective”, publisher Zed Books
Esther Boserup, 2007,Book Title “Woman’s Role in Economic Development Paperback”, Publisher: Routledge;
Book Title “Following Boserup’s Traces: From Invisibility to Informalisation of Women’s Economy to Engendering Development in Translocal Spaces”, Publisher Name Springer, Dordrecht, ISBN978-94-017-8677-5(https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-94-017-8678-2_9/fulltext.html)

UN Reports Links

http://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/annual-report
www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2014/10/world-survey-2014 III. annualreport.unwomen.org/
http://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2011/8/annual-report-2010-2011#view
https://www.usaid.gov/…/WomensLivesandChallengesEqualityandEmpowerment.pdf VI. www.cpahq.org/…/2322UN%20Women%20Analysis%20on%20Women%20and%20
https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/…/9783ESCWA_2030%20Agenda%20for%20