2/22/23, 10:12 AM MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN THE DEVELOPMENT

Site: Murang'a University E-learning Portal Printed by: Mapenzi Ian

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Table of contents

1. MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

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1. MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN THE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Welcome to this session

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1.1. INTRODUCTION

This lesson is based on the argument that the development process should aim at improving the standards of living of all people regardless of “sex and
gender”. This means that, women, girls, boys and men should benefit from those development interventions meant to improve their social-economic status. Yet
our society out rightly discriminates against women in many ways. Worse still is that women and girls not only suffer the discrimination but also that their
suffering often goes unnoticed. This is a concern for the development process as the discrimination has imposed direct and indirect costs to local and national
economics.

This lesson examines issues of development process as it takes on board the needs and concerns of all members of the society: Women, girls, boys and men.
This in a nutshell is mainstreaming of gender in the development process. The issue of gender mainstreaming in the development process has been at the
center of debate in international forums such as the following:

· The World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna (1993)

· The World Population Conference in Cairo (1994)

· The Social Summit in Copenhagen (1995)

· The fourth and fifth World Women Conferences in Beijing and New York (1995 and 2000 respectively)

The common themes in all these conferences were based on the rationale that there cannot be sustainable development without mainstreaming gender in the
development process.

This lesson will give meanings of the key concepts: gender, sex and gender mainstreaming. It also highlights various approaches in mainstreaming gender and
areas where gender mainstreaming is critical in development process.

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1.2. Learning outcomes

By the end of this session, you will be able to;

i. Differentiate between sex and gender

ii. Define gender mainstreaming

iii. Identify critical areas for gender mainstreaming

iv. Describe the evolution of Gender Approaches in Development

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1.3. Gender and sex defined

Gender refers to the relationship between men and women, girls and boys as dictated by the society

This is reflected through;

· Division of labour-referred to as gender roles where boys and girls, men and women are allocated different roles. The society establishes their own
mechanism through socialization process to ensure that the roles are learnt and reinforced.

· Allocation of responsibilities– very clearly defined and reinforced through the socializing process e.g. men are breadwinners, women are homemakers
etc.

· Allocation of opportunities i.e.

· A boy goes to school in case of less family funds

· A man inherits

· Ownership of property

· Access and control of resources for men, as members of the family (sons) as heads (husbands). For girls and wives, no opportunities, worse in
inheritance and control of family resources.

Note

Social construction of gender is the way the society brings up its boys and girls with all the “dos” and “don’ts” to ensure that they are the perfect men and
women of tomorrow’s society.

The process of social construction of gender is responsible for all gender inequalities that exist today in the development arena. It explains the oppression and
discrimination to the public sectors (underpayment and undervalued jobs)

To understand issues of gender concern in the development process one needs to differentiate between the meanings of gender and sex.

Gender is as explained above so that it refers to the way a society sees its women, men, girls and boys in terms of allocation of roles, responsibilities and
opportunities.

It is therefore man made, varies from society to society and can change with time and situation.

Gender is best manifested in the way women and men relate with each other.

Sex defined

This refers to the biological make up of males and females.

It is therefore, expressed through physiological make up and the associated biological roles. It is God Given, Permanent and Universal. Sex is manifested
through the differences between male and female in terms of biological make up and sexual functions.

Understanding of gender has called for an examination of the relationship between women and men, girls and boys, raising issues of social justice especially
with regard to God’s creation of female and male to complement one another.

This explains the evolution of WID, WAD and GAD approaches to the development process in developing countries since 1970s.

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1.4. Taking Gender Perspective in Development

Taking Gender Perspective in Development

One major strategy to address issues of underdevelopment in Africa is for the government to redirect their planning to make them address priority needs of all
their targets regardless of gender.

Better targeting means that the government must look at different needs and concerns of their women, men and girls and boys. The difference in needs and
concerns is due to their biological and social relations. This is what is called taking gender perspective in the development process.

An understanding of gender will help us to appreciate and understand why gender perspective is important in addressing issues of development.

Gender Mainstreaming

Gender mainstreaming means making sure that the different needs and concerns for women, men, boys and girls are taken into account when formulating and
implementing various policies and programs that are meant to accelerate all forms of development in a country, may they be-social, economic or political.

This calls for taking a gender perspective in policy formulation, planning, programming, and implementation of all development programs.

Therefore:

· Gender mainstreaming seeks to address different life courses experienced and lived by men and women that lead to development policies that affect
them differently.

· Gender mainstreaming focus less on providing equal treatment for men and women (Since equal treatment does not necessarily result in equal
outcome) and more on taking whatever steps are necessary to ensure equal outcomes.

· It recognizes that improving the status of women cannot be understood as a separate, isolated issue and can only be achieved by taking into account the
status of both women and men.

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1.5. Evolution of Gender Approaches in Development

This approach is understood to mean the integration of women into global processes of economic, political and social growth. It is also integration of women
into existing development process but with a strong perception that:

· Men are the productive resources breadwinners-go out to work and support the family.

· Women are homemakers-stayed at home and cared for the children and took care of family welfare.

Note

The approach therefore was not to integrate women in the development process but rather to recognize them as beneficiaries of the process. Their benefits
were in the form of what trickled down from the men’s active participation in the development process. The approach is what is referred to as Women in
Development (WID)

This is the way that the colonial government perceived the roles of women and men as reflected in the development programs and projects initiated by the
colonial government in Africa e.g. education, training in science and technology, appointments in leadership positions e.t.c.

But1970s experienced a lot of analysis of the roles of women in development process and with the recognition that:

· Women are also producers in addition to their reproductive and maintenance roles.

· A need to provide women with more support in an integrated way.

Esther Boserup did one of the studies that influenced development thinking on “women’s role in Economic Development (1970)”. This study in particular argued
that:

· Economic changes impact differently on women and men

· Third world women are key contributors to the development process.

The study aroused a lot of concern by the U.N agencies and governments on how to include women in the development process. The result was a change
from WID to WAD approach in development.

The first step was the international Women’s Conference-Nairobi 1975 and the declaration of the International Women’s Year by the U.N. General Assembly.

Consequently, 1976-1985 was declared as the woman’s decade, which resulted in:

· Increased awareness of women’s concerns

· Recognition of the need to integrate women in development

· Many projects being initiated specifically for women

· Many women income-generating activities being established.

· Women’s machinery being established in the forms of desks, bureau, departments etc.

By the end of the decade the result was that the situation of women had not changed.

Why?

Women’s specific projects had increased the workload of women making them less productive.

Income generating projects did not benefit women because of the issue of power relations between women and men and the control of resources and the
accrued benefits by men.

By the late 1980s, it was clear that the solution lay in Gender and Development (GAD) approach that recognizes the need to bring women and men together to
address their needs and concerns. The GAD approach was built on awareness not only of the differences. The goal of GAD is therefore to bring out an
equitable, sustainable development with women and men as decision-makers, targets setters and implementers of development process.

The GAD approach is fair, human oriented, sustainable and empowering to women, men, girls and boys.

GAD is not (as many seem to think) concerned with women perception. Rather it is concerned with the social construction of gender and the assignment of
specific roles, responsibilities and expectations to women and men. The major concern is thus dictated by issues of equity (fair share) (not equal share) and
social justice.

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GAD also puts greater emphasis on the commitment and participation of the state in promoting women’s empowerment by making it a policy issue. There are
many ways of demonstrating this e.g. in the role of parliaments in supporting women’s specific Bills like the National Gender Policy. Affirmative Action, Gender
and Domestic Violence, Inheritance and Ownership of matrimonial property.

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1.6. Critical areas for Gender Mainstreaming:

· Access and control of resources

Women have had unequal access to and control of resources including finances. They are therefore totally disempowered and are unable to take charge of
even their own lives e.g.

· For various reasons, African women do not have the same or equal rights to access land as a productive asset. Modern legal systems combined with
misinterpreted customary laws and cultural practices inhibit equal access to land for women and men.

· Women have very limited access to capital/finance credit

In Kenya, women access less than 10% of the credit to small-scale farmers and less than 15% of the total agricultural credit. Gender specific barriers that
women face are lack of money and collateral facilities (often land) to give to the money lending institutions.

· Gender disparities exist at all levels of education with girls being fewer in enrolling, retention, participation and performance in the education systems.
Their performance is particularly poor in sciences making the women to be few in technical and science-oriented professions. This is also the same reason that
accounts for their absence in decision making structures and obviously in parliament

· In health, although women are the main health care givers, they are not adequately involved in planning and programming for health programs. Worse
still their health status needs a lot of consideration, as they are more vulnerable to diseases due to their reproductive and biological roles.

No wonder the maternal mortality rates in Sub-Saharan Africa remains the highest in the world.

· Labor

Men and women have different access to family and other paid labours. In most cases, all labours belong to the head of the house. Women only provide labour
and cannot control it even over the family land. As a result, women like children serve as unpaid servants. They do not access extra labor from outside even
when it may be needed.

· Participation in decision – making:

Women in Africa are consistently under-represented in institution of governance at the local and national level. As such they have little say in decision- making.

This means that their special needs and concerns often go unnoticed, worsening the already existing gender disparities.

All these must be addressed through mainstreaming gender in development process. The result will be sustainable development, equitable distribution of
resources and a fair and just society.

Task 6.1

Discuss the factors that may limit women from participating in development.

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