Gender Equality: Striving for INSIDE Justice in an Unequal ...FILE/27e.pdfgious-identity politics being played out from the global to the local level. Women’s ambitions for social

INSIDEESSENTIAL MATTER

Women’s Influence on PublicPolicy and Governance • Women,Work and Social Policy • The Civicand Political Participation of Women

in Central and Eastern Europe

REQUIRED READING

INSIDE COVERAGEConsultation Meeting on Future

UNRISD Research • Global CivilSociety Movements: Dynamics

in International Campaignsand National Implementation• Community Responses toHIV/AIDS • UNRISD Events

in 2004 • Inequality, Growth andPoverty • New Approaches toPoverty: Measurements and

Concepts • Commercialization,Privatization and Universal Accessto Water • Macroeconomics andSocial Policy • Democratization

and Social Policy

GLOBAL RESOURCES

THE LAST WORDThe Challenges of Equality andDifference, by Elizabeth Jelin

T en years on from the Fourth World

Conference on Women in Beijing,many women’s organizations workingfor gender equality around the worldare asking how much has really beenachieved. This is an important ques-tion to ask, but by no means an easyone to answer.

Evaluating progress in gender equal-ity poses many challenges. Standardindicators of income and well-beingoffer some guidance, but a proper as-sessment demands much more thanwhat they alone can provide. The chal-lenges lie not only in developing anadequate analytical approach, but alsoin understanding that what counts asprogress is often a contested field, withcompeting visions of “the good soci-ety” and of women’s place within it.

Nevertheless, there can be little doubtthat the past decade has witnessedsignificant changes, many of thempositive, in women’s social and eco-nomic status. Girls’ enrolment in pri-mary and secondary education hasincreased the world over. The decline

in fertility in many developing coun-tries has both reduced the risk of ma-ternal mortality and eased the burdenof unpaid care work, which invariablyfalls to women and girls. The pres-ence of women in public life has alsogrown, whether in politics, in theworkforce or in the migrant streamsthat cross international borders.

Such changes in women’s lives areassociated with the social transfor-mations that attend economic devel-opment, but they are not simply by-products of economic growth. Inmany instances, change in women’ssocial position has been instigated oraccelerated by state reforms and so-cial movements. The last decade ofthe twentieth century was particularlysignificant, as it was marked by po-litical transformations that includedthe transition from authoritarian ruleto democracy in many parts of theworld. National and transnationalwomen’s movements took advantageof the changed political context, towhich they had contributed, to ad-vance women’s rights. PAGE 2

Gender Equality: Striving forJustice in an Unequal World

Read this issue of UNRISD News online at www.unrisd.org/publications/news27e.

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March 2005 Number 27

March 20052UNRISD News No. 27

ESSENTIAL MATTER

Persistent gender inequalitiesYet the positive outcomes of the 1990smust be qualified in the light of con-tinuing gender inequalities, and a lessthan favourable economic and politi-cal environment. In many countries,both developed and developing, thegap between rich and poor householdshas been growing, while values suchas equality and redistribution havebeen sidelined. Despite the greaternumerical presence of women in theworld of work and in the domain ofpolitics, gender hierarchies remainfirmly in place, imposing limits onwomen’s overall access to income,status and power. Declining fertilitycontinues to improve women’s lifechances in their reproductive years,but in some instances it has been as-sociated with an increase in artificiallyhigh ratios of males to females in thepopulation, as infant daughters aresubjected to maltreatment, neglectand abandonment, and new tech-nologies allow sex-selective biasesagainst females. The ambivalent na-ture of women’s achievements is alsoevident in the “feminization” of thelabour force; women’s access to paidwork has increased in most countries,but the terms and conditions of muchof the work on offer have deteriorated.

These various outcomes cannot be at-tributed to a single cause. Gender in-equalities are deeply entrenched in allsocieties and are perpetuated througha variety of practices and institutions,including policy interventions. Yetmainstream international policy de-bates on some of the most pressingand contested issues of our time—economic liberalization, democratiza-tion and governance reforms, andidentity and conflict—are not system-atically informed by the knowledgegenerated through gender researchand scholarship.

UNRISD has prepared a research-based policy report on gender and de-velopment that aims to fill some of this

lacuna. The report, Gender Equality:Striving for Justice in an UnequalWorld, addresses both directly and in-directly eight of the 12 key areas ofconcern articulated in the Beijing Plat-form for Action. The report presents theresults of specially commissioned re-search and analysis under four broadthemes: macroeconomics, well-beingand gender equality; women, workand social policy; women in politicsand public life; and gender, armedconflict and the search for peace. Thearticles on pages 4–5 and 6–7 of thisissue of UNRISD News take up the sec-ond and third themes.

Women’s agency is today increasinglyvisible and impressive in women’smovements around the world, in civilsociety organizations, and in the stateand political society. Women legislatorshave worked hard to make national

Gender inequalities are deeply

entrenched in all societies and

are perpetuated through a

variety of practices and

institutions, including policy

interventions. Yet mainstream

international policy debates

on some of the most pressing

and contested issues of our

time are not systematically

informed by the knowledge

generated through gender

research and scholarship.

laws responsive to women’s reproduc-tive health and rights, and to prohibitviolence and discrimination againstwomen, no matter where these viola-tions occur and who their perpetratorsare. Landmark international prosecu-

tions of sexual assault during war as acrime against humanity now meanthat public actors responsible for sexualviolence are beginning to be held ac-countable not just to the citizens of theirown countries, but to global society. Adecade on from Beijing, there is indeedmuch to celebrate.

But there is also much at risk. On thetenth anniversary of the conference,women’s movements are consideringnot only the continued dominance ofneoliberalism in some important are-nas of policy making, but also thechallenges thrown up by recent shiftsin geopolitics and new forms of reli-gious-identity politics being playedout from the global to the local level.Women’s ambitions for social changerisk taking a back seat to concernswith security. Unilateralism is erod-ing the multilateral framework withinwhich transnational feminist networkshave nurtured a global women’s rightsregime. In a polarized ideological cli-mate where security concerns loomlarge and internal dissent is discour-aged, sustaining autonomous spaceswhere women’s groups and move-ments can address critical and con-troversial issues of gender equality andliberal freedoms requires politicalagility and alliance building withother social movements, political par-ties and states.

Economic liberalization has never beensmooth or uncontested, and there havealways been spaces for policy experi-mentation and heterodoxy. Wherepolicy makers have followed orthodoxprescriptions—whether under con-straint or of their own volition—theoutcomes have been disappointing.Livelihoods have become more inse-cure and inequalities have deepened.Where public health and welfare pro-grammes, infrastructure and socialprotection mechanisms have not de-veloped or have been weakened, theprovision of unpaid care by women andgirls has intensified.

March 2005UNRISD News No. 27 3

ESSENTIAL MATTER

In response to widespread discontentwith the liberalization agenda, moreattention is now being given to so-cial policies and governance issues.But the social distress unleashed byneoliberal economic policies is farmore extensive than the remediesthat are prescribed. In the context ofliberalized trade and mobile capital,it is difficult for governments to raisethe kind of revenues needed to fi-nance public services and transfersthat can treat the casualties of eco-nomic policies. It is also increasinglyclear that governance reforms basedon standardized blueprints—leanand clean bureaucracies, unfetteredmarket competition, inviolable andindividual property rights—do notnecessarily promote vibrant privatesectors, at least if history is to betaken as the guide. In this abstractmodel of the “ideal” state and mar-ket, gender equality hardly figures.Women have dependents and careburdens; and their political “voice”can be muffled by gender-biased in-stitutions and the restricted notionsof participation that some govern-ance reforms entail.

Toward a gender-equitablepolicy agendaCharting gender-equitable macro-economic policy is in a sense an art,for which there is no simple recipe.There are certain guiding principles,however: avoid deflationary policiesthat sacrifice growth and employ-ment creation; place equality along-side macroeconomic stability as acentral objective of policy making;and ensure affinities and complemen-tarities between sectoral and macro-economic policies.

While economic growth is a necessarycondition for escaping poverty, im-proving standards of living and gener-ating resources for redistributivepolicies, it is not sufficient for genderequality. High rates of economicgrowth, for example, may draw more

women into the labour force, but thiscan coincide with persistent gendersegmentation in labour markets. Thusmore specific policies are needed tomake growth and gender equalitycompatible: regulation of all labour

Charting gender-equitable

macroeconomic policy is in

a sense an art, for which there

is no simple recipe. There are

certain guiding principles,

however: avoid deflationary

policies that sacrifice growth

and employment creation;

place equality alongside

macroeconomic stability as

a central objective of policy

making; and ensure affinities

and complementarities

between sectoral and

macroeconomic policies.

markets to erode gender-biased socialnorms and remove discriminationsthat account for the persistence ofgender segmentation; and removal ofthe structural constraints that preventwomen from taking up widening la-bour market opportunities.

Similarly, higher rates of growth to-gether with taxation policies thatgenerate higher levels of governmentincome do not necessarily lead to amore gender-equitable use of theseresources. Thus gender policy objec-tives have to be set and mechanismsput in place to guarantee that publicresources actually reach women andgirls equitably, to provide infrastruc-ture and services that reduce wom-en’s unpaid labour time, and to

ensure that women benefit frommechanisms of social protection.

The responsiveness of women inpublic office to the cause of genderequality depends on a number of fac-tors, including whether they are heldaccountable to a female constituency,and whether they have the capacityto ensure that political parties placegender equality on their platforms.The effectiveness of women politi-cians as gender equality advocatesalso depends on whether the institu-tions of governance—judiciary, leg-islature, public administration—arereformed to make social justice andgender equality measures of excel-lence in public service.

Democratic governance and equalityprojects are costly because they re-quire strong states; but they are es-sential for building secure states andsocieties capable of tolerating diver-sity and difference. In the short term,inequality, including gender-basedinequality, may facil itate rapidgrowth; but in the long term, it deeplyundercuts the contribution of growthto poverty reduction, erodes socialcohesion, and can foster extremistpolitical activity and instability.

UNRISD will launch Gender Equality:Striving for Justice in an Unequal Worldduring a conference held in parallel

with the 49th session of the Commissionon the Status of Women (28 February to

11 March 2005 in New York). Preparation

of the report was generously funded bythe European Union, the Department

for Research Co-operation of the

Swedish International DevelopmentAgency (Sida/SAREC), the International

Development Research Centre (IDRC)

and the government of the Netherlands.

More information about the report,and the research on which it is based,

is available at www.unrisd.org/research/

gender/report.


ESSENTIAL MATTER

In the past decade, women’s visi-bility in and impact on public life

has grown. Although the average pro-portion of women in national assem-blies has only increased from 9 percent to almost 16 per cent, in 16 coun-tries the proportion has reached 30per cent or more. What factors pro-mote women’s access to representa-tive politics? Do women in publicoffice really promote women’s inter-ests in public decisionmaking? Under whatconditions can they andtheir male allies be ef-fective in producinggender- sensitive pub-lic policy?

During the last 10 years,there has been consid-erable experimentationwith the use of affirma-tive action in order tomeet the goal of genderparity in representativepolitics. Quotas on partyelectoral lists are nowin use in over 80 countries using pro-portional representation. They aremost effective where there are largeelectoral districts and requirementsthat women are spaced evenly onlists. In simple plurality systems,measures to reserve seats for womenhave been preferred over quotas ofwomen candidates. Parties on theideological left, or willing to committhe public sector to compensating forinequalities in the private sphere,have in general been more respon-sive to gender equality concerns andsupportive of women in politics.

Despite women’s greater prominencein political life, women in public of-fice have in many cases yet to parlay

their visibility into leadership posi-tions and influence over the decision-making process: there are still manyinstances where they are simply usedas an extension of male power struc-tures. The transition from a height-ened presence of women in politicsto advance for gender equality issuesand women-friendly policies dependson the effectiveness of women’smovements in holding governments

accountable, and on the capacity ofpublic sector agencies to translateambitious gender-equity policyagendas into effective implementa-tion—a matter of gender-sensitivegood governance.

Women mobilizingto reshape democracyA notable feature of women’s associa-tional activity in the past decade hasbeen the central role women haveplayed in many democratizationstruggles. Transitions to democraticforms of government in Latin Americaand South Africa have enabled womento claim space for gender equality innewly emerging or reformed institu-tions. Though women’s movements

diverge on many issues, there hasbeen a patch of common ground onwhich many converge: the demandfor gender parity in public office.Since the late 1990s, civil societycampaigns for equal representationwith men have gathered momentum,backing reforms to electoral systemsthat support women’s ability to runfor office.

While political liberal-ization has enabledsome women’s move-ments to flourish, insome contexts it hasbeen accompanied byloss of momentum infeminist politics. InEastern Europe, for ex-ample, it has takenmost of the time sincethe transitions to de-mocracy for women’smovements to recoverfrom their earlier asso-ciations with repressiveregimes. In other con-

texts, where political liberalization hasbeen only partial, disillusionment withstates that fail to deliver either devel-opment or democracy appears to havecontributed to women’s deepening en-gagement with conservative ethnicand religious movements.

Some of these identity-based formsof mobilization assert the superior-ity of “traditional” gender roles alongwith systems of patriarchal author-ity, particularly where “women’s lib-eration” is seen as part of unwelcomemodernization. Women’s deport-ment, mobility, dress and roles withinthe family are often central to thecultural revival or pious society thesegroups proclaim. Although women

Women’s Influence onPublic Policy and Governance

Anne Marie Goetz

The transition from a heightened presence of

women in politics to advance for gender equality

issues and women-friendly policies depends on the

effectiveness of women’s movements in holding

governments accountable, and on the capacity of

public sector agencies to translate ambitious gender-

equity policy agendas into effective implementation

—a matter of gender-sensitive good governance.


ESSENTIAL MATTER

are rarely given access to institu-tional power within these groups,they are encouraged to engage inmobilizational activity, and even tobecome highly militant and visibleactivists because of their great sym-bolic impact.

Gender and “good” governanceProgrammes of governance reformhave recently attracted considerableinternational and national attention.Good governance is seen as the es-sential condition enabling economicreforms to unfold effectively, and isat the core of the emerging “post-Washington consensus”. Although thereform packages of the internationalfinancial institutions address issues ofgovernment legitimacy and the pub-lic participation of socially excludedgroups, critics believe they are domi-nated by a narrower preoccupation:the use of “governance” reforms to ex-pand market activity and its support-ing institutions, especially private

Though women’s movements

diverge on many issues,

there has been a patch

of common ground on which

many converge: the demand

for gender parity in public

office. Since the late 1990s,

civil society campaigns for

equal representation with men

have gathered momentum,

backing reforms to electoral

systems that support women’s

ability to run for office.

property rights. This focus oftenleaves out consideration of the effectsof public institutional reform onwomen’s rights.

Women’s associations across theworld have prioritized several areasfor gender-sensitive public sector re-form. These include recruitmentquotas to ensure a greater presenceof women in the bureaucracy; theintroduction of gender equity con-cerns in performance measurement;consultation with women clients ofpublic services; measures to respondto their complaints; and reforms tolegal frameworks and judicial sys-tems to improve women’s access tojustice.

Decentralizationand gender equalityWomen are expected to benefit fromthe improvements in accountabilityand service delivery that decentrali-zation reforms should provide. In-deed, local government positions areexpected to be particularly open towomen because the latter do not facethe mobility and financial constraintsthat they do in seeking national pub-lic office. A comparison of availablestatistics on women’s engagement atnational and local levels, however,shows that this is not consistently thecase—sometimes there are morewomen in national than in local poli-tics. This alerts us to the significanceof resistance to women from tradi-tional patriarchal systems at locallevels, and also to the importance ofgender-sensitive institutional designthat improves women’s access to lo-cal government forums and services.

Systems of affirmative action thathave been tried include the reserva-tion of a proportion of seats on localcouncils for women, as in India, andthe creation of special electoral wardsfor women, as in Uganda. Althoughexperience is mixed, there are signsthat women in local government arehaving a tangible impact on localspending patterns and building so-cial acceptance of women’s politicalauthority. In some settings, spendingpatterns have shifted toward the pro-

vision of services and amenitiesfavored by women, such as watersupplies and public health. Localgovernment remains a key arena to

Although the reform packages

of the international financial

institutions address issues

of government legitimacy and

the public participation

of socially excluded

groups, critics believe they

are dominated by a

narrower preoccupation:

the use of ‘governance’

reforms to expand market

activity and its supporting

institutions, especially private

property rights.

watch over the next decade, as moreand more women assert their lead-ership ambitions and challenge pa-triarchal systems at this level.

Anne Marie Goetz is a Fellow at theInstitute of Development Studies,

University of Sussex, United Kingdom.

She coordinated the background researchfor and wrote “Women in politics and

public life”, section three of GenderEquality: Striving for Justice in anUnequal World.


ESSENTIAL MATTER

The feminization andinformalization of labour

Over the past three decades, women’seconomic activity rates have been ris-ing in most parts of the world, yet la-bour markets continue to be segmentedby gender. The intensification of wom-en’s paid work during these decadeshas been paralleled by a deteriorationin the terms and conditions of work;some employment arrangements, forexample, avoid labour legislation anddeny social benefits. Rural impoverish-ment continues to fuel migration intourban areas. Many young rural mi-grant women are found on the lowest,least visible, rung of the informal em-ployment ladder. They typically workin small-scale domestic production,under increasingly competitive pres-sure from cheaper imported goods, andin a variety of service occupations andpetty trading.

Patterns of informalization differ fromregion to region, but the overall trendis discouraging in terms of realizingwomen’s rights and well-being. How-ever, new forms of organizing amongwomen workers in the informal econ-omy, both domestically and interna-tionally, emerged in the 1990s. Yetmany of the new trade unions and non-governmental and community-basedorganizations responding to womenworkers’ rights face difficulties in ex-panding their reach and becoming sus-tainable. They also face challenges inalliance building to broaden the scopeof their efforts beyond the more visible“traded” sectors.

The changing termsof rural livingDuring the 1980s, many African andLatin American countries suffered eco-nomic crisis, which was diagnosed bythe international financial institutionsas stemming directly from heavy state

involvement in the economy. The ag-ricultural sector was seen as the mainvictim of state intervention. Evidenceshows that rural livelihoods have be-come more insecure, as well as morediversified, in contexts where cutbacksin state support to domestic agricul-ture have coincided with increasingexposure to competition from large sub-sidized producers. Volatile and de-pressed commodity prices have trappedlarge numbers of rural people in pov-erty, hunger and even famine.

Where they can, smallholders havemoved from producing traditional cashcrops to more lucrative crops. In the1990s, it was assumed that Africanagricultural outputs did not respond toliberalization because gender roleswithin households were inflexible andwomen unwilling to contribute unpaid

Over the past three decades,

women’s economic activity

rates have been rising in most

parts of the world, yet labour

markets continue to be

segmented by gender. The

intensification of women’s

paid work during these

decades has been paralleled

by a deterioration in the

terms and conditions of work.

labour to cash crops controlled by theirhusbands. But these intrahouseholdgender constraints and conflicts of in-terest have been exaggerated, andthere is considerable evidence of flex-ibility in gender roles in agriculture. If

liberalization has failed to increase ag-ricultural production, it has much moreto do with the broader constraints onsmallholders that are exacerbated byliberalization itself.

Besides the changes in smallholderfarming, two other important trendshave emerged as companions to liber-alization. The first is the growth oflarge-scale corporate export farming,which is a significant new source ofemployment for rural women in manyparts of the world, even though theyare overwhelmingly employed in moreinsecure, less well-paid and lower-skilled activities, with few opportuni-ties for advancement. The second is themore general diversification of small-holder livelihoods, with men, womenand children increasingly propelledinto off-farm activities to avert pov-erty. In some cases, incomes earned areso low that diversification in fact con-tributes to a cycle of impoverishment.

One of the major lessons of the expe-rience of economic reform and liber-alization is that the resource povertyof farmers prevents them from tak-ing up new opportunities. Land re-mains a critical asset in the ruraleconomy. In many countries, women’srights activists and other civil societygroups have been closely involved inpolicy debates on land tenure. Whilethis resulted in more gender-equita-ble land tenure laws during the 1990s,there is still a substantial gap betweenthe legal recognition of women’s rightto own or hold land, and their effec-tive access to land.

Cross-border migrationof workersMovement from countryside to town oracross international borders has becomean established feature of many people’slivelihoods, entailing both opportunities

Women, Work and Social PolicyShahra Razavi


ESSENTIAL MATTER

and negative effects for the countries andindividuals involved. Contemporarycross-border flows are characterized bythree broad trends: an increasing shifttoward temporary migration; risingnumbers of undocumented migrants;and the feminization of migration.

Despite continuing differences in mi-gration regimes between countries,there is convergence toward “selective”migration. That is, highly skilled work-ers are encouraged to migrate, becausethey are believed to integrate moreeasily and contribute more to theeconomy, whereas low-skilled immi-grants, who are regarded as hard onthe public purse, are discouraged. Suchstratifications are also gendered, givenmen’s preponderance among thehighly skilled strata.

Women’s position on the bottom rungof the labour market, the low value ac-corded to domestic and care work car-ried out by many migrant women inindustrialized societies, and the lack ofsocial protection in irregular occupa-tions, especially in the “entertainmentand hospitality” industries, mean thatmany women are vulnerable to exploi-tation. The fact that many highly edu-cated women from developing countriesundertake unskilled or semi-skilled jobsraises the issue of de-skilling, which israrely addressed in policy.

The positive side of the picture is thatsome women are getting upwardlymobile employment, such as in the in-formation technology sector. Thedownside is the overwhelming pres-ence of women as sex workers and do-mestic helpers, two areas of employ-ment not covered by labour laws andthus prone to high levels of abuse.

Discrimination against immigrants,combined with racial and gender in-equalities, makes migrant women “tri-ply disadvantaged”. At the same time,the experience of migration—whetherby women on their own or jointly with

men—has the potential to reconfiguregender relations and power inequalities.

A new social policy agendaLivelihoods in today’s world are sub-ject to a range of insecurities. Manydeveloping countries do not have for-mal social protection mechanisms for

New forms of organizing

among women workers in the

informal economy emerged in

the 1990s. Yet many of the new

trade unions and non-govern-

mental and community-based

organizations responding to

women workers’ rights face

difficulties in expanding their

reach and becoming sustainable.

the millions of women and men whowork in the informal economy (andeven for some in the formal economy).Ill-health, childbirth and old age mayalso lead to impoverishment, as earn-ings fall and assets are depleted to pur-chase health care in increasinglycommercialized contexts.

While the 1990s saw a shift in globalpolicy pronouncements, acknowledg-ing the vital role of social policy in thedevelopment process, considerabletensions remain between different ap-proaches regarding the scope and in-stitutional mechanisms of social policy.

Both the process of social policy reformand its outcomes are inescapablygendered. Early efforts to provide for-mal social protection in many develop-ing countries were biased toward men,who were overrepresented in the formalsector. And while efforts could have beenmade to cover a much wider range ofpeople, there has in fact been a reversal

over the past two decades. In many re-gions there has been strong pressure tocommoditize social services and socialprotection by imposing user fees for pub-lic services and expanding market-basedprovision. It is ironic that the earlier biastoward men is being eroded not by gen-der-equitable reform of state-based en-titlements, but by their drastic reduction.

The impacts of commodification arelikely to be felt most strongly by womendue to gender inequalities and stratifi-cations that cut across both private andpublic institutions. These includehouseholds (where girls are likely toreceive a smaller proportion of house-hold investments in health and educa-tion than boys); markets (wherewomen tend to be more cash-con-strained than men, given their disad-vantages in labour and credit markets);the unpaid care economy (where a dis-proportionate share of unpaid care isprovided by women and girls when for-mal social provision remains out ofreach); and the public social care sec-tor (where the effects of public sectorreforms are likely to fall most heavilyon women workers, who are predomi-nantly located at the lowest rungs ofskill, authority and remuneration).

By extending the coverage of social pro-tection programmes to new groups ofinformal workers, and by facilitatingcross-subsidies, some important effortsare being made in several countries toextend the reach of existing social pro-tection mechanisms. These more inclu-sive social systems are being forged incontexts where there has been a greatdeal of debate concerning social respon-sibility, and where there is an ideologi-cal commitment to social equality.

Shahra Razavi, Research Coordinator atUNRISD, was responsible for the overall

coordination of research for Gender Equality:Striving for Justice in an Unequal World. Shealso coordinated the background research for

and wrote “Women, work and social policy”,

section two of the report.


ESSENTIAL MATTER

While the enlargement process ofthe European Union (EU) has

not explicitly emphasized equal op-portunities for women and men, thenew member states have imple-mented equality legislation, and nowhave statutes to deal with gender is-sues and non-discrimination clausesin their constitutions. They are alsopaying more attention to the chal-lenge of increasing women’s parlia-mentary representation. These areamong the issues being considered inan EU-funded research project: En-largement, Gender and Governance(EGG): The Civic and Political Par-ticipation of Women in Central andEastern Europe. This project is man-aged by Amanda Sloat (Institute ofGovernance, Public Policy and So-cial Research) and Yvonne Galligan(Centre for the Advancement ofWomen in Politics) of Queen’s Uni-versity Belfast. Sloat was a visitingresearch fellow at UNRISD fromFebruary through April 2004.

The EGG project analyses the extentto which representative institutionsand other organizations—such as po-litical parties, trade unions, non-gov-ernmental organizations (NGOs) andsocial movements—enable women’sparticipation and representation inpolitical decision making and govern-ance in the new EU member states.By looking at how the history of com-munist rule has affected the currentpolitical position of women, theproject is providing recommendationsto the European Commission andcountry governments in order to un-derpin effective future policy making.EGG is unique in that it is the firstsystematic attempt to analyse genderand enlargement, the civic and po-litical participation of women in new

member states, and the effectivenessof attempts by the commission andnew member-state governments tolegislate on gender equality.

The research focuses on three ques-tions. How have the twin forces ofdemocratization and preparation forEU accession influenced women’scivic and political participation incandidate countries? How are wom-en’s civic associations embedded inthe equality policy framework incandidate countries? Are there spe-cific strategies that could be adoptedto enhance women’s contribution togovernance?

The first phase of the work developeda theoretical foundation, establishinga common vocabulary among par-ticipants and a historical framework

By looking at how

the history of communist

rule has affected the

current political position

of women, the project is

providing recommendations

to the European Commission

and country governments in

order to underpin effective

future policy making.

within which to consider women’spresent civic and political participa-tion; a final six-month disseminationphase will ensure that research re-sults are distributed locally, as indi-vidual country repor ts , and at

European level, as comparative re-ports.

The project is divided into five sub-stantive “work packages”.

• Analysing Female Visibility,which collected data onwomen’s representation inpolitical and civic decision-making bodies, comparingand contrasting the situationpre- and post-1989.

• Mapping Women’s Campaignfor Change, which assessedthe state of the women’smovement in the post-1989 period and mappedthe issues on which women’sNGOs are lobbying for change.

• Implementing the Equality“Acquis”, which assessed theextent to which the EU bodyof legislation on equalityissues has been transposed,implemented and enforced.

• Identifying Barriers toWomen’s Participation,which built on previouswork packages that identifiedthe sites of women’s under-representation, soughtto understand why this hasoccurred and provided policyrecommendations.

• Gender Mainstreaming, whichconducted a full review of themainstreaming infrastructureacross all government depart-ments and examined twospecific policy issues (equalopportunities and trafficking)in order to assess the extentto which women’s perspec-tives are incorporated inpolicy making.

The Civic and Political Participation of Womenin Central and Eastern Europe

Amanda Sloat


ESSENTIAL MATTER

Prior to 1989, women comprised atleast 20 per cent of parliamentariansin all 10 Central and Eastern Euro-pean countries. In 1980 Lithuaniaand Latvia had the most women rep-resentatives, with 36 per cent and 35per cent respectively. On the lowerend of the spectrum were Poland (23per cent in 1980), Bulgaria (22 percent in 1981), and Estonia (21 percent in 1985). However, this appar-ent equality was a myth: the Com-munist Party selected candidates, andweak national parliaments rubber-stamped party proposals. As politicalinstitutions regained power and legiti-macy following the 1989 transition todemocracy, men grabbed positionsand pushed women aside. For exam-ple, the proportion of women repre-sentatives after Hungary’s first freeelections in 1990 dropped to 7 percent (from 30 per cent in 1980);Lithuania’s f irst democraticallyelected parliament post-1989 counted8 per cent women (down from 36 percent in 1980). Women began to in-crease their share of parliamentaryrepresentation during the 1990s, withBulgaria, Latvia and Poland break-ing 20 per cent and Slovakia closebehind. However, women in Hungary,Lithuania and Romania are still find-ing it more difficult to make a notice-able advance.

The development of a vibrant non-governmental sector is also vital toyoung democracies. Women took par-ticular advantage of new civic oppor-tunities post-1989, working on areassuch as political concerns and rights(increasing parliamentary represen-tation, fighting discrimination), thepromotion of business and profes-sional activities, social services (healthcare, education), and activism to pre-vent violence against women and do-mestic abuse. But because women’sNGOs are poorly funded and relianton foreign donors, many are unableto initiate large-scale projects andconcentrate instead on delivering so-

cial services formerly provided by thestate. A confused understanding offeminism, which is often interpretedas anti-family, anti-children, anti-men and anti-feminine, also handi-caps women’s work in the politicaland civic arenas.

Consequently, gender equality is notseen as a problem in many Centraland Eastern European countries.

Prior to 1989, women

comprised at least

20 per cent of

parliamentarians in all

10 Central and Eastern

European countries.

As political institutions

regained power and

legitimacy following the

1989 transition to

democracy, men grabbed

positions and pushed

women aside.

Reinvigorated conservatism post-1989 abolished many social meas-ures that had previously protectedand promoted women, and cam-paigns for gender equality had cometo be seen as unnecessary as a resultof communist-era propaganda thatemphasized women’s (supposed) lib-eration. The idea that women shouldsupport women to achieve commonobjectives is still not widely held,which may also partly explain thelow percentage of women in electedpolitical positions.

The EGG project will hold a confer-ence on 20 June 2005 in Prague,Czech Republic, in order to dissemi-

nate the project’s final results andobtain feedback from participants.The meeting is open to all civic andpolitical actors, including politicians,civil servants, NGOs, academics andthe general public. For details aboutthe conference, please contact thelocal organizer at [email protected]. More informationabout the EGG project—includingexecutive summaries of each workpackage—will be found at www.qub.ac.uk/egg.

During her three-month stay at UNRISD,

Amanda Sloat took advantage of the

Institute’s intellectual resources,including staff expertise and

publications; presented some of the

initial findings of the EGG researchand obtained valuable feedback;

acted as a peer referee for several

of the papers on Central and EasternEurope commissioned for GenderEquality: Striving for Justice in anUnequal World; and developedinstitutional links, providing

evidence of wider collaboration

between UNRISD and universities.


REQUIRED READING

From Unsustainable to Inclusive Citiesedited by David WestendorffContents § Introduction: Sustainable Cities: Views of Southern Practitioners—David Westendorff § Part 1–Case StudiesPromoting Environmentalism, Participation and Sustainable Human Development in Cities of Southeast Asia—AdrianAtkinson • Sustainable Urban Development in India: An Inclusive Perspective—Darshini Mahadevia • Metropolizationand the Ecological Crisis: Precarious Settlements in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam—Sebastian Wust, Jean-Claude Bolayand Thai Thi Ngoc Du • Sustainable Development in an Urban Tanzanian Context—Batilda Burian and Alphonce T.Kyariga • Unsustainable Development: The Philippine Experience—Karina Constantino-David • Sustainable Develop-ment and Democracy in the Megacities—Jaime Joseph § Part 2–International Trends and Actors Affecting Sustainabil-ity Alliances in International Co-operation: A Change of Paradigm in Urban Governance?—Isabelle Milbert • SustainableDevelopment for the Urban Poor: Applying a Human Rights Approach to the Problem—David Westendorff

David Westendorff is a researcher and consultant on urban governance issues based at the Centre for the Study of Modern China at TsinghuaUniversity in Beijing, China. He was formerly Research Coordinator at UNRISD.

Order from UNRISD; paperback, ISBN 92-9085-048-5, 256 pages, 2004, $30.

Au coeur des crises nationales au Rwanda etau Burundi: La lutte pour les ressourcesMarc RwabahunguContents § Haine, violence et lutte pour les ressources § L’évolution de la crise § Lien entre le pouvoir et lesressources § Débordement dans la région § Ailleurs en Afrique

Marc Rwabahungu is an agronomist and development expert. He was formerly Research Assistant at UNRISD.

Au cœur des crises nationales au Rwanda et au Burundi is co-published with Editions L’Harmattan; paperback, ISBN2-7475-6530-0, 215 pages, 2004, 19.50 euros. Order from Editions L’Harmattan, 5–7, rue de l’Ecole-Polytechnique,75005 Paris, France; phone 33 (0)140 467920, fax 33 (0)143 258203, [email protected].

Living Longer: Ageing, Development and Social Protectionedited by Peter Lloyd-SherlockContents § Ageing, Development and Social Protection: Generalizations, Myths and Stereotypes—Peter Lloyd-Sherlock § Part I–Development Trajectories, Social Change and Wellbeing in Later Life Long-Term Historical Changesin the Status of Elders: The United Kingdom as an Exemplar of Advanced Industrial Economies—Paul Johnson • SocialPolicy and the Wellbeing of Older People at a Time of Economic Slowdown: The Case of Brazil—Ana Amélia Camarano• The Impact of Transition on Older People in Ukraine: Looking to the Future with Hope—Vladislav V. Bezrukov andNatalia A. Foigt • Potential Consequences of Population Ageing for Social Development in China—Du Peng and David R.Phillips § Part II–Formal Social Protection and Older People Comparing Pension Schemes in Chile, Singapore, Braziland South Africa—Armando Barrientos • Ageing in Japan: An Issue of Social Contract in Welfare Transfer or GenerationalConflict?—Tetsuo Ogawa • Health Policy and Older People in Africa—Di McIntyre • Social Health Insurance for Older

People: A Comparison of Argentina and the United States—Nélida Redondo § Part III–Older People and the Care Economy IntergenerationalFamily Support and Older Age Economic Security in Ghana—Isabella Aboderin • Ageing in Mexico: Families, Informal Care and Reciprocity—Cristina Gomes da Conceição and Veronica Montes de Oca Zavala • AIDS and Older Persons: The View from Thailand—John Knodel andChanpen Saengtienchai • Care, Dependency, and Social Justice: A Challenge to Conventional Ideas of the Social Contract—Martha C. Nussbaum

Peter Lloyd-Sherlock is Lecturer in Social Development at the School of Development Studies, University of East Anglia. He was ExternalResearch Coordinator for the UNRISD Project on Ageing, Development and Social Protection.

Living Longer is co-published with Zed Books; paperback, ISBN 1-84277-357-7, 308 pages, 2004, £19.95; hardback, ISBN 1-84277-356-9,308 pages, 2004, £55. Order from Zed Books, 7 Cynthia Street, London N1 9JF, United Kingdom; phone 44 (0)20 7837 4014, fax 44 (0)20 78333960, [email protected].

Globalization, Export-Oriented Employment andSocial Policy: Gendered Connectionsedited by Shahra Razavi, Ruth Pearson and Caroline DanloyContents § Globalization, Export-Oriented Employment and Social Policy: Gendered Connections—Shahra Razaviand Ruth Pearson § Korea’s Miracle and Crisis: What Was in It for Women?—Hyoung Cho, Ann Zammit, JinjooChung and Insoon Kang § The Impact of Export-Oriented Manufacturing on the Welfare Entitlements of ChineseWomen Workers—Delia Davin § Globalization, Export-Oriented Employment for Women and Social Policy: A CaseStudy of India—Jayati Ghosh § Gendering the Debate on the Welfare State in Mexico: Women’s Employment andWelfare Entitlements in the Globalized Economy—Viviane Brachet-Márquez and Orlandina de Oliveira § Globalization,Export-Oriented Employment and Social Policy: The Case of Mauritius—Sheila Bunwaree § Reworking ApartheidLegacies: Global Competition, Gender and Social Wages in South Africa, 1980–2000—Gillian Hart

Shahra Razavi is Research Coordinator at UNRISD, working in the area of gender and development; Ruth Pearson is Professor of DevelopmentStudies and Director of the Centre for Development Studies, Institute for Politics and International Studies, University of Leeds, United Kingdom;Caroline Danloy is Associate Information Officer at UNRISD and was, formerly, Research Assistant working in the field of gender at the Institute.

Globalization, Export-Oriented Employment and Social Policy is co-published with Palgrave-Macmillan; hardback, ISBN 1-4039-3485-1,242 pages, 2004, £50. Order from Palgrave Macmillan, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, United Kingdom; phone 44 (0)1256329242, fax 44 (0)1256 479476, [email protected].


REQUIRED READING

Social Policy in a Development Contextedited by Thandika MkandawireContents § Introduction—Thandika Mkandawire § Part I–Conceptual Issues From Universalism to Safety Nets: TheRise and Fall of Keynesian Influence on Social Development—Peter Townsend • Social Policy and MacroeconomicPerformance: Integrating “the Economic” and “the Social”—Diane Elson • Social Policy and Development: Social Capi-tal as Point of Departure—Ben Fine • Democratization and Social Policy—Laurence Whitehead § Part II–Micro- andMeso-Level Issues Why Social Policy is Condemned to a Residual Category of Safety Nets and What to Do about it—Judith Tendler • Inequality and Redistribution in Health Care: Analytical Issues for Developmental Social Policy—MaureenMackintosh and Paula Tibandebage • Models of Development, Social Policy and Reform in Latin America—CarmeloMesa-Lago § Part III–Historical Experiences European “Late Industrializers”: The Finnish Experience—JuhanaVartiainen • “Late Industrializers” and the Development of the Welfare State—Chris Pierson • The Role of Social Policy

in Economic Development: Some Theoretical Reflections and Lessons From East Asia—Ha-joon Chang • The Economic Crisis and the Politicsof Welfare Reform in Korea—Huck-ju Kwon • Social Policy in Indian Development—Jayati Ghosh • Historical Trajectories of Social Policy in Post-Colonial Africa: The Case of Zambia—Guy Mhone

Thandika Mkandawire is Director of UNRISD.

Social Policy in a Development Context is co-published with Palgrave-Macmillan; paperback, ISBN 1-4039-3661-7, 354 pages, 2004, £19.95;hardback, ISBN 1-4039-3660-9, 354 pages, 2004, £60. Order from Palgrave Macmillan, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS,United Kingdom; phone 44 (0)1256 329242, fax 44 (0)1256 479476, [email protected].

Transforming the Developmental Welfare State in East Asiaedited by Huck-ju KwonContents § An Overview of the Study: The Developmental Welfare State and Policy Reforms in East Asia—Huck-ju Kwon § Part I–The Politics of Welfare Developmentalism The Reform of the Developmental WelfareState in Korea: Advocacy Coalitions and Health Politics—Huck-ju Kwon • Democracy, Development and HealthPolicy in Taiwan—Joseph Wong • The New Politics of Welfare State in Developmental Context: Explaining the1990s Social Care Expansion in Japan—Ito Peng • Welfare Developmentalism in Singapore and Malaysia—ChuaBeng Huat • The Politics of Welfare Developmentalism in Hong Kong—Eliza W.Y. Lee § Part II–The InstitutionalDynamics of Welfare Developmentalism Development Strategies and the Unemployment Policies in Korea—IlcheongYi and Byung-hee Lee • Unemployment and Policy Responses in Taiwan: Gender and Family Implications—Fen-ling Chen • One and a Half Cheers for Provident Funds in Malaysia and Singapore—M. Ramesh • Social Care in

Hong Kong: The Dynamics of the Welfare Mix—Veronica Pearson § Part III–Welfare Developmentalism in Formation China’s SocialPolicy: Reform in the Context of Marketization and Globalization—Xinping Guan • Challenges of Implementing Universal Health Care inThailand—Viroj Tangcharoensathien, Waranya Teokul and Lalita Chanwongpaisarn

Huck-ju Kwon is Research Coordinator at UNRISD and works on social policy and development.

Transforming the Developmental Welfare State in East Asia is co-published with Palgrave-Macmillan; hardback, ISBN 1-4039-4166-1,312 pages, 2004, £65. Order from Palgrave Macmillan, Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS, United Kingdom; phone 44(0)1256 329242, fax 44 (0)1256 479476, [email protected].

Recherches pour le changement social: Rapport du40ème anniversaire de l’UNRISDFrench translation of Research for Social Change: UNRISD FortiethAnniversary Report, UNRISD, 2003

Contents

§ Avant-propos—Kofi Annan § Préface—Thandika Mkandawire § Bref historique des recherches de l’UNRISD§ Politique sociale et bien-être § Cohésion sociale et conflits § Développement durable § Démocratisation,société civile et gouvernance § Genre et développement § Marchés, entreprises et réglementation

Order from UNRISD; paperback, ISBN 92-9085-046-9, 141 pages, 2004, free of charge.

Investigación para el desarrollo social: Informe del40° aniversario de UNRISDSpanish translation of Research for Social Change: UNRISD FortiethAnniversary Report, UNRISD, 2003

Contents

§ Prefacio—Kofi Annan § Prólogo—Thandika Mkandawire § Breve historia de la investigación en UNRISD§ Política social y bienestar § Cohesión social y conflicto § Desarrollo sostenible § Democratización, sociedadcivil y gobernabilidad § Distinción por género y desarrollo § Mercados, empresas y regulación

Order from UNRISD; paperback, ISBN 92-9085-047-7, 145 pages, 2004, free of charge.


REQUIRED READING

Programme Papers on CivilSociety and Social Movements

• PP CSSM 7 Understanding the EvolvingDiversities and Originalities in Rural SocialMovements in the Age of Globalization,Neil Webster, February 2004

• PP CSSM 8 Peasant Associations in Theoryand Practice, Nora McKeon, Michael Wattsand Wendy Wolford, May 2004

• PP CSSM 9 Civil Society and the UncivilState: Land Tenure Reform in Egypt andthe Crisis of Rural Livelihoods, Ray Bush,May 2004

• PP CSSM 10 Civil Society and SocialMovements: The Dynamics of IntersectoralAlliances and Urban-Rural Linkages in LatinAmerica, Henry Veltmeyer, October 2004

• PP CSSM 11 Post-Soviet InstitutionalDesign and Rural Livelihoods in Uzbekistan,Deniz Kandiyoti, November 2004

• PP CSSM 12 Agrarian Research Institutes andCivil Society in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan:In Search of Linkages, Malcolm D. Childress,November 2004

• PP CSSM 13 Agricultural Restructuring andTrends in Rural Inequalities in Central Asia:A Socio-Statistical Survey, Max Spoor,November 2004

• PP CSSM 14 Islamisme et pauvreté dansle monde rural de l’Asie centrale post-soviétique: Vers un espace de solidaritéislamique?, Habiba Fathi, November 2004

Programme Papers on Democracy,Governance and Human Rights

• PP DGHR 11 Economic Policy Makingand Parliamentary Accountability in Chile,Verónica Montecinos, December 2003

• PP DGHR 12 Lecciones de la participaciónpolítica de las mujeres, Cecilia Blondet,June 2004

• PP DGHR 13 Technocratic Policy Makingand Parliamentary Accountability inArgentina, 1983–2002, Javier Corrales,September 2004

• PP DGHR 14 Communities and LocalGovernment: Three Case Studies inSão Paulo, Brazil, Raquel Rolnik andRenato Cymbalista, November 2004

• PP DGHR 15 Chicago’s Near SouthSide: Revisiting the South Loop andSouth Armour Square, 2001, David C.Ranney and Patricia A. Wright,November 2004

• PP DGHR 16 Living for the Sake ofLiving: Partnerships between the Poorand Local Government in Johannesburg,David Everatt, Graeme Gotz and RossJennings, December 2004

UNRISD Research and Policy BriefsThis new series aims to improve the quality of development dialogue. UNRISD Research andPolicy Briefs situate the Institute’s research within wider social development debates, synthe-size its findings and draw out issues for consideration in decision-making processes. Theyprovide this information in a concise format that should be of use to policy makers, scholars,activists, journalists and others.

• RPB 1 Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Regulation, March 2004

• RPB 2 Social Development and the “Information Revolution”: Lessons fromResearch in Senegal, March 2004

• RPB 3 Technocratic Policy Making and Democratic Accountability, August 2004

NEW SERIES FROMTHE INSTITUTE!


REQUIRED READING

ORDERING UNRISD PUBLICATIONS

Books: Please use the ordering information provided in the listing for the title you require.

Papers and other publications: Please contact the UNRISD Reference Centre, Palais des Nations,1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland; phone 41 (0)22 9173020; fax 41 (0)22 9170650; [email protected];www.unrisd.org/publications. Where a price is indicated, payment must be made by US dollar chequedrawn on a US bank, or by bank transfer in US dollars or the equivalent in Swiss francs. The UNRISDReference Centre cannot accept credit card payments.

UNRISD papers and a selection of other publications are available online, free of charge. Visitwww.unrisd.org/publications.

$12 each for readers in the North, $6 each for readers in the South Free of charge

Programme Papers onIdentities, Conflict and Cohesion

• PP ICC 3 Poverty and Prosperity:Prospects for Reducing Racial/EthnicEconomic Disparities in the United States,Sheldon Danziger, Deborah Reed andTony N. Brown, May 2004

• PP ICC 4 Policing and Human Rights:Eliminating Discrimination, Xenophobia,Intolerance and the Abuse of Power fromPolice Work, Benjamin Bowling,Coretta Phillips, Alexandra Campbelland Maria Docking, May 2004

• PP ICC 5 Racial Justice: The SuperficialMorality of Colour-Blindness in the UnitedStates, Glenn C. Loury, May 2004

• PP ICC 6 Managing Ethnic Relations inPost-Crisis Malaysia and Indonesia:Lessons from the New Economic Policy?,Khoo Boo Teik, August 2004

• PP ICC 7 The New Economic Policyand Interethnic Relations in Malaysia,Jomo K.S., September 2004

• PP ICC 8 Environment and Morality:Confronting Environmental Racism inthe United States, Robert D. Bullard,October 2004

• PP ICC 9 Exclusionary Populism inWestern Europe in the 1990s andBeyond: A Threat to Democracy andCivil Rights?, Hans-Georg Betz,October 2004

• PP ICC 10 The Politics of Land Distri-bution and Race Relations in SouthernAfrica, Sam Moyo, December 2004

Programme Papers onSocial Policy and Development

• PP SPD 16 Late Industrializers andthe Development of the Welfare State,Christopher Pierson, September 2004

• PP SPD 17 The Developmental WelfareState in Scandinavia: Lessons for theDeveloping World, Stein Kuhnle andSven E.O. Hort, September 2004

Programme Papers onTechnology, Business and Society

• PP TBS 13 Barricades and Boardrooms:A Contemporary History of the CorporateAccountability Movement, Jem Bendell,June 2004

• PP TBS 14 The Political Economy ofCorporate Responsibility in Brazil:Social and Environmental Dimensions,Paola Cappellin and Gian Mario Giuliani,October 2004

UNRISD Conference News

• CN 13 Corporate Social Responsibilityand Development, Report of the UNRISDConference, Geneva, Switzerland,17–18, November 2003

• CN 14 Social Knowledge and InternationalPolicy Making: Exploring the Linkages,Report of the UNRISD Conference, Geneva,20–21 April 2004


REQUIRED READING

Gender EqualityStriving for Justice in an Unequal WorldA new UNRISD report

The Fourth World Conference on Women was a high point in international efforts toadvance women’s human rights. Now, 10 years on, many around the world are takingstock of what has really been achieved. With this new report, UNRISD aims to make acontribution to this process of reflection and debate, tackling difficult and controversialissues that currently preoccupy many people across the globe.

Based on the findings of the Institute’s ongoing gender research and over 60 spe-cially commissioned studies, the report’s analysis is centred on the economic andpolitical reforms of the 1990s. If most of these reforms did not directly address gen-der equality, they nevertheless received considerable scrutiny from a gender per-spective. And whatever their intentions, they had significant and mixed implicationsfor gender relations and women’s well-being.

As its title alludes, achieving gender equality and gender justice will be very difficult in a world that is increas-ingly unequal. The report presents strong arguments for why gender equality must be placed at the core of efforts to reorientthe development agenda. Indeed, if some of the key contemporary challenges—economic growth and structural transforma-tion, equality and social protection, and democratization—are to be met, this is essential.

ContentsOverviewChapter 1 After Beijing: Uneven Progress in an Unequal World

Section 1 Macroeconomics, Well-Being and Gender EqualityChapter 2 Liberalization and Deregulation: The Route to Gender Equality?

Chapter 3 Liberalization, Labour Markets and Women’s Gains: A Mixed Picture

Chapter 4 Consolidating Women’s Gains: The Need for a Broader Policy Agenda

Section 2 Women, Work and Social PolicyChapter 5 The Feminization and Informalization of Labour

Chapter 6 The Changing Terms of Rural Living

Chapter 7 Cross-Border Migration of Workers

Chapter 8 The Search for a New Social Policy Agenda

Section 3 Women in Politics and Public LifeChapter 9 Women in Public Office: A Rising Tide

Chapter 10 Women Mobilizing to Reshape Democracy

Chapter 11 Gender and “Good Governance”

Chapter 12 Decentralization and Gender Equality

Section 4 Gender, Armed Conflict and the Search for PeaceChapter 13 The Impacts of Conflict on Women

Chapter 14 After Conflict: Women, Peace Building and Development

HOW TO ORDER

ReportPaperback, ISBN 92-9085-052-3,336 pages, 2005, $32 for readersin the North / $16 for readers inthe South • Contact the Salesand Marketing Section, UnitedNations Publications, Office E-4,Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva10, Switzerland; fax 41 (0)229170027, [email protected]

Occasional Papers$12 for readers in the North /$6 for readers in the South• Contact the UNRISD ReferenceCentre, Palais des Nations, 1211Geneva 10, Switzerland; phone41 (0)22 9173020, fax 41 (0)229170650, [email protected],www.unrisd.org/publications

The report and occasional papersare available online, free of charge,at www.unrisd.org/research/gender/report.

New series of UNRISD Occasional PapersSelected background papers are being published as UNRISD Occasional Papers, the first four of which are now available.

• OPGP 3 Women at Work: The Status ofWomen in the Labour Markets of the CzechRepublic, Hungary and Poland, Éva Fodor,February 2005

• OPGP 4 The Politics of Gender and Reconstruc-tion in Afghanistan, Deniz Kandiyoti, February 2005

• OPGP 1 The Feminization of Agriculture?Economic Restructuring in Rural LatinAmerica, Carmen Diana Deere, February 2005

• OPGP 2 Livelihood Struggles and MarketReform: (Un)making Chinese Labour afterState Socialism, Ching Kwan Lee, February 2005


INSIDE COVERAGE

UNRISD is engaged in a year-longeffort to design a new research

programme for the 2005–2009 pe-riod. A crucial component of this en-deavour is a series of consultationswith development researchers to iden-tify key concerns and priority issues,and to ensure that UNRISD thinkingis in step with national and regionalperspectives on contemporary devel-opment trends and policies.

As part of this process, some 25 socialscientists from Africa, Asia, LatinAmerica, Europe and the Middle Eastparticipated in this two-day consul-tation in Geneva. They provided feed-back on a set of preliminary researchideas put forward by UNRISD, andconsidered how the Institute mightstrengthen its relations with researchnetworks and institutions, particularlyin developing countries.

There are a number of common

concerns related, for example,

to the perverse social and

developmental effects of

economic liberalization

and donor conditionality,

the weakening of traditional

centres of higher education

and development research

in the South, and the

marginalization of conceptual

and critical thinking.

Among the participants were repre-sentatives from regional researchnetworks—the Council for the De-velopment of Social Science Research

in Africa (CODESRIA), the EuropeanAssociation of Development Institutes(EADI) and the Latin American SocialScience Research Council (CLACSO).Scholars from universities in Ghana,Lebanon, Peru, South Africa, Switzer-land and Thailand, as well as special-ists from United Nations agencies andEurope- and United States–based re-search institutions, also attended.

A series of regional presentations onthe first day drew out a number ofcommon concerns related, for exam-ple, to the perverse social and devel-opmental effects of economic liber-alization and donor conditionality, theweakening of traditional centres ofhigher education and developmentresearch in the South, and themarginalization of conceptual andcritical thinking in a context where“consultancy culture” is proliferating.They also revealed new issues andconcerns related to the “post-9/11”world and United States hegemony,and their implications for develop-ment aid, democratization, new so-cial movements and identity politics.

On the second day, participants metin smaller groups for more in-depthdiscussions on six sets of issues: so-cial policy; democratization and so-cial development; identities, conflictand cohesion; civil society and so-cial movements; gender and devel-opment; and markets, business andregulation. The discussions served toendorse or critique the preliminaryresearch ideas and to identify areasthat might be given greater empha-sis. These included the analysis of al-ternative visions and models ofdevelopment, global citizenship, therole of the state in development, andthe role of ideas and institutions inthe construction of both dominantand alternative knowledge systems.

Several new areas were also proposedfor study, including the social and de-velopmental impacts of unregulatedand illegal markets, and specific so-cial issues related to diasporas, age-ing and human trafficking.

Areas that might be given

greater emphasis include

the analysis of alternative

visions and models of

development, global

citizenship, the role of the

state in development, and the

role of ideas and institutions

in the construction of both

dominant and alternative

knowledge systems.

One session considered how UNRISDmight interact more effectively withthe international research commu-nity, particularly institutions andnetworks in the South. Proposals in-cluded undertaking collaborativeprojects with the regional researchnetworks, promoting conceptualwork in developing countries, mobi-lizing more resources for the trans-lation of publications, and providingmore opportunities for researchersfrom the South to spend time atUNRISD.

UNRISD is drawing on these discussions

in revising the proposal for the Institute’sfuture research agenda, which will be

submitted to the UNRISD Board in

March 2005.

Consultation Meeting on Future UNRISD Research22–23 November 2004, Geneva


INSIDE COVERAGE

In early 2004, UNRISD launched amajor research project, Global

Civil Social Movements: Dynamicsin International Campaigns and Na-tional Implementation, to examinethe strengths and weaknesses of civilsociety movements and networksrelated to debt relief, internationaltrade rules, global taxation, anti-corruption and fair trade/solidarityeconomy.

A major contribution of the researchwill be an assessment of how globalcivil society movements actually farein national and local contexts. Forthis purpose, in-depth country stud-ies are being carried out in Argen-tina, Bolivia, the Philippines, Senegaland Turkey. These countries havehigh levels of public debt, suffer un-favourable conditions in interna-tional trade, have experienced majorfinancial crises, and face problems ofcorruption in both the public andprivate sectors. However, they havealso been the scenes of importantcivil society initiatives.

This project workshop, co-hostedwith the Institute of Economic andSocial Development, brought to-gether the UNRISD research coordi-nator, national researchers and otherinvitees. The researchers presentedthe outlines of their studies, and thiswas followed by detailed discussionof the theoretical foundations of theproject, definitions of key concepts,and relations between the nationaland international levels of analysis.

Participants agreed on the followingbroad goals for the national-level re-search:

• to clarify the meanings of theterm “social movement” in

different country contexts,highlighting the key actorsengaged at local and nationallevels, as well as their linkageswith regional and internationalmovements and networks;

• to examine the forms ofcontention and institutional-ization, including the questionof why certain issues attractmore popular mobilizationthan others;

The project will draw

wider policy conclusions

on the developmental

implications of social

movements, including the

issue of how constructive

dialogue and cooperation

might be promoted between

social movements and

national and international

institutions, the academic

community, NGOs, the

media and other actors.

• to analyse the impacts of socialmovements on local livelihoods,civil society structure, publicopinion and national develop-ment debates; and

• to draw wider policy conclu-sions on the developmentalimplications of social move-ments, including the issue ofhow constructive dialogue andcooperation might be promoted

between social movementsand national and internationalinstitutions, the academic com-munity, NGOs, the media andother actors.

The studies will also seek to evalu-ate whether the social forces associ-ated with the selected movements areaccepted and viable actors in na-tional contexts, and the extent towhich they are able to make signifi-cant policy impacts.

On the methodological side, the stud-ies are using a common frameworkthat ensures consistency while allow-ing for the diversity of cases. A com-bination of quantitative and quali-tative methods was decided on,including surveys, interviews, casestudies, and the extensive use of sec-ondary documentation and primarysources. Participants in the projectworkshop also discussed publicationand dissemination plans, includingthe organization of a stakeholdermeeting in each of the countries thatwould bring together civil societyactors, relevant government depart-ments, academics and the media to con-sider the principal research findings.

The project Global Civil Social Movements:

Dynamics in International Campaigns andNational Implementation is supported by a

grant from the Swiss Agency for Development

and Cooperation, and UNRISD core funds.

Global Civil Society Movements: Dynamics inInternational Campaigns and National Implementation

25–26 November 2004, Buenos Aires


INSIDE COVERAGE

This workshop was organized byUNRISD to present case study

proposals received through a call forpapers and to discuss analyticalframeworks and methodologies thatwill shape new UNRISD work underthe project Community Responses toHIV/AIDS. Five case study proposalswere selected and funded for the pro-ject—Brazil, India, Kenya, Ugandaand Zimbabwe.

The project documents and analysesdifferent coping strategies put in placeby communities in response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The equity and effec-tiveness of different levels of response—individual, household and socialgroup—are being evaluated. Theproject is also exploring the role andeffectiveness of civil society and stateorganizations in supporting (i) re-sponses to risk environments for HIV,particularly those of women and fe-

male adolescents; (ii) responses to theimpacts of AIDS in economically andsocially marginalized households; and(iii) coping mechanisms used by eco-nomically marginalized communitiesand orphan households.

The first area of research addressesthe responses by social groups to con-fronting risk environments for HIV,particularly where there is a growingHIV epidemic. It is investigating dif-ferent responses that link individualsat risk in widening networks with ashared risk perception, and that driveinterventions to address both micro-and macro-environmental determi-nants of HIV.

The second area of research is the or-ganization of social support for house-holds and families responding to theimpacts of AIDS, particularly in con-texts where the pandemic continues to

Community Responses to HIV/AIDS2–3 August 2004, Geneva

grow. It is hypothesized that the bur-den of AIDS will be borne in a moresustainable way when communitiesorganize and build social networks toshare the costs of AIDS, and to directresources and services toward vulner-able households and families in orderto relieve costs of caring and support.The extent to which this actually takesplace, and what effects such responseshave, are being examined.

The case studies on Brazil, India andUganda are based on primary datacollection, while those on Kenya andZimbabwe are based on secondarydata and literature review. The firstdrafts of all studies are expected inspring 2005.

This workshop and the project, as well as

related research on Politics and Political

Economy of HIV/AIDS, are funded by theRoyal Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway

and UNRISD core funds.

UNRISD EVENTS IN 2004UNRISD EVENTS IN 2004UNRISD EVENTS IN 2004UNRISD EVENTS IN 2004UNRISD EVENTS IN 2004JANUARY21–22 UNRISD Policy Report on Gender andDevelopment—Coordinators’ Workshop, Geneva

MARCH15–17 Commercialization of Health Care—International Conference, Helsinki

25–27 Ethnic Structure, Inequality andGovernance of the Public Sector—International Conference, Riga

APRIL20–21 Social Knowledge and InternationalPolicy Making—International Conference, Geneva

22–23 UNRISD Board Meeting, Geneva

JUNE28–29 Privatization, Commercialization and Uni-versal Access to Water—Project Workshop, Geneva

JULY1–2 UNRISD Policy Report on Genderand Development—Advisory GroupMeeting, Geneva

6 Policy Reform and Income Distribution—Seminar, Geneva

AUGUST2–3 Community Reponses to HIV/AIDS—Project Workshop, Geneva

NOVEMBER4 New Approaches to Poverty: Measure-ments and Concepts—Seminar, Geneva

22–23 Consultation Meeting on FutureUNRISD Research, Geneva

25–26 Global Civil Society Movements—Project Workshop, Buenos Aires


INSIDE COVERAGE

Poverty reduction is high on the in-ternational agenda. But while vari-

ous policies and strategies have beenproposed to reduce poverty, such as theMillennium Development Goals (MDGs)and the Poverty Reduction StrategyPapers (PRSPs), the concept of pov-erty itself is not always clearly definedin the development discourse. Meth-ods of measurement may be vague asa consequence, and this lack of claritycan hamper poverty reduction efforts.

At this public seminar convened byUNRISD, two leading scholars in thefield, Stein Ringen (Professor of Soci-ology and Social Policy, and Fellow ofGreen College, University of Oxford)and José Figueiredo (Senior Econo-

mist, Social Protection Sector, Inter-national Labour Organization/ILO),reviewed the current debates on pov-erty and discussed new research onthe concept and its measurement.

In his presentation, Ringen assertedthat poverty is an unacceptable moralproblem. He argued that in order toapproach it effectively, the very mean-ing of poverty and its measurementmust be reopened to serious investi-gation. Instead of an income ap-proach, he proposed a social reportingapproach that could more accuratelyreflect the reality of poverty. Ringenalso elaborated a “poverty matrix”that shows various dimensions of pov-erty in real life.

Figueredo presented the new ILOconcept of economic security and dis-cussed the associated Economic Se-curity Index (ESI) that has beencalculated for over 90 countries rep-resenting more than 85 per cent of theworld’s population. The concept isbased on seven forms of work-relatedsecurity including income, labourmarkets, employment, skills, work,jobs and representation. According tothe ILO findings, economic security—coupled with democracy and govern-ment spending on social security—notonly benefits growth, but can also pro-mote social stability.

UNRISD invited Giovanni AndreaCornia (Professor of Economics,

University of Florence, Italy) to presentsome of the main findings of his recentwork on trends in within-country in-equality. This research is published inInequality, Growth and Poverty in anEra of Liberalization and Globalization(Giovanni Andrea Cornia [ed.], WIDERStudies in Development Economics,Oxford University Press, 2004).

Cornia challenged several premises ofthe Washington consensus, in particu-lar that liberalization, privatization andthe market provision of public goods,as well as macroeconomic stability,would reduce rent-seeking behaviour,improve competition, increase tradeopportunities for developing countries,and promote the convergence of livingstandards between poorer and moredeveloped countries.

He based his arguments on the data pre-sented in the above volume, which re-

sult from the first empirical assessmentof the relation between policies towardliberalization and globalization, and in-come inequality. The findings include:

• Countries of the Organisationfor Economic Co-operationand Development presentedhigh inequality rates in the earlypost–Second World War period.These were subsequently reducedas a result of improvements inemployment and social securitystandards, and wage stability.

• Inequality in China followed aU-shaped pattern during the post-war period. Social and agriculturalpolicies in the 1950s and 1960spromoted egalitarian growth,while market reforms in agricul-ture during the 1970s and 1980sled to income disparities and ex-acerbated rural-urban inequalities.

• In Africa, inequality has tradition-ally reflected the urban-rural gap,which adjustment policies of the

1980s aimed to reduce. Theresearch findings show thatwhile the urban-rural incomegap has declined over the years,inequality within both ruraland urban areas has increased.

Cornia’s research shows that while thetraditional causes of inequality—ac-cess to education, land and natural re-sources, and urban bias—still matter,new causes are increasingly significant.These can be endogenous factors, suchas technology and a skilled labourforce, and policy factors, such as tradeliberalization. Cornia concluded thatthe old sources of inequality need tobe fought through land reform, tax re-form and targeted investments in themost deprived regions, and the newsources through pro-poor macroeco-nomic policies that minimize outputvolatility and the effects of economicrecession.

Inequality, Growth and Poverty6 July 2004, Geneva

New Approaches to Poverty: Measurements and Concepts4 November 2004, Geneva


INSIDE COVERAGE

uniqueness, and these are anchoredin the “right to difference”.

One can read the struggles of the last30 years through the lens of how thisparadox and the ingrained dilemmasand tensions between principles ofequality and the right to differencehave emerged in various ways in so-cial and political action. The futurewill imply facing political choices anddecisions linked to this recurrent di-lemma, finding at best unstable andpartial “solutions” to it.

Perhaps the greatest challenge of thepresent is to be found in the fact that

The Challenges of Equality and DifferenceCONTINUED FROM PAGE 24

recent decades have seen a growth inbelief (and institutional) systems thatnegate the fundamental equality ofhumanity. Claiming the right to bedifferent and cultural pluralism canthen lead to practices that violate hu-man integrity. Yet there is more to thismatter. A major danger lies in the factthat these belief and institutional sys-tems may seek to assert a particularway of life as the only “right” one andthereby justify oppression or destruc-tion of the “wrong” others.

Much is at stake when the line be-tween pluralism and fundamentalismis crossed—and this can happen when

This workshop brought togetherresearchers carrying out work

under the UNRISD project Commer-cialization, Privatization and Univer-sal Access to Water. It was an opportu-nity to present first drafts of the countrycase studies carried out in Argentina,Bolivia, Chile, Finland, India, the Phil-ippines and South Africa, as well as toprovide comments, discuss findingsand clarify the policy implicationsemerging from the research.

With this research, UNRISD is plac-ing particular emphasis on the out-comes of privatization and commer-cialization schemes under whichwater services are provided not by thepublic sector, but by a multinationalcompany, a public-private partner-ship or a local service provider. Intheory, such schemes seek to benefitfrom market mechanisms, via costrecovery and provision of water at the“best price”. Cost recovery mobilizesadditional resources, providing the

company with revenues to continueand expand activities.

But various schemes of service provi-sion have different impacts on themost vulnerable members of society,especially in countries where a highproportion of the population lives be-low the poverty line, meaning lowability to pay, and/or in peripheralareas with little and/or difficult accessto basic services.

The cases provide a range of perspec-tives on different service provisionschemes, from state divestiture (Chile)to concession agreements (Buenos Aires,Argentina; Cochabamba and La Paz,Bolivia; Manila, Philippines) to corpo-ratization (Johannesburg, South Africa)to innovative measures undertaken bymunicipal companies (Maharashtra, In-dia). The case of Finland considers“softer” forms of private sector involve-ment. All the case studies consider wa-ter and associated regulatory institu-

tions as public goods, recognize thehigh initial investment needed for in-frastructure and its high maintenancecosts, and take into account the exist-ence of market externalities and gen-eral lack of competition in the provi-sion of water services.

On this basis, the studies argue con-vincingly for the importance of regu-latory institutions and policies, and forthe need to link the privatization/com-mercialization of water services to thebehaviour of other markets (such as fi-nancial markets) and to figure in prob-lems related to governance and incen-tives for compliance with contracts.

Following final revisions and peer review,

selected studies will be published as

UNRISD Programme Papers. An editedvolume is also foreseen.

Support for the workshop and the project

is provided by UNRISD core funds.

the affirmation of one’s own superi-ority overshadows and obstructs thequest for basic human equality. Hereis where we can locate, in abstract yetsimple terms, the seeds of a future po-litical agenda.

Elizabeth Jelin is Professor at the Institute

of Social Research, University of BuenosAires, and Senior Researcher at the

National Council of Scientific Research

(CONICET), Argentina. She is also amember of the UNRISD Board.

Commercialization, Privatization and Universal Access to Water28–29 June 2004, Geneva


INSIDE COVERAGE

During the last two decades,progress in most aggregate in-

dicators of human well-being sloweddown, was limited to fewer sectorsand was more unequally distributed.This situation poses policy makersand researchers with two broad chal-lenges. The first concerns social poli-cies that improve well-being whilesimultaneously promoting economicgrowth; the second economic policiesthat lead simultaneously to growthand social progress, or pro-poormacroeconomics.

This UNRISD project, Macroeco-nomics and Social Policy, takes upthe second challenge, focusing inparticular on two macroeconomiccharacteristics that have emergedsince the 1980s. The first is the grow-ing instability of the global financialeconomy, which is associated withmore frequent f inancial cr ises,greater volatility of growth, and anasymmetric distribution of the ben-efits and costs of financial globaliza-tion. The second involves a loss ofdomestic policy-making capacity in

In an increasingly unstable

world economy, the first

task of pro-poor macro-

economics is to adopt

policies that reduce

volatility and the risk of

macroeconomic shocks.

an open economy, which poses policymakers with serious dilemmas whendealing with poverty and inequality.

In an increasingly unstable worldeconomy, the first task of pro-poor

macroeconomics is to adopt policiesthat reduce volatility and the risk ofmacroeconomic shocks. Research isthus being carried out on (i) control-ling and harnessing capital inflows,(ii) establishing the ideal features ofa pro-poor exchange rate regime,and (iii) features of a global insur-ance mechanism that would comeinto play when shocks originate fromthe global economy.

Once a country has been hit by ashock, stabilization is necessary andbeneficial, including for the poor. Theproject is thus exploring the follow-ing types of issues.

• The distributive and povertyeffects of devaluation-basedversus monetary/fiscal-basedstabilization in differentdeveloping countries. Theformer generally maintainsemployment while reducingreal wages for all, and thelatter tends to affect employ-ment prospects for some.

• The optimal choice of stabili-zation targets (usually reductionof inflation and budget deficit)and the pace of adjustment.

• The nature of (permanent andtemporary) domestic safetynets compatible with the newmacroeconomic characteristics.Economic and social rationalitydemands that pro-poor andefficient public spending bepreserved, or even accelerated,during crisis situations. Theproject explores the conditionsand political coalitions thatfacilitated the adoption ofefficient expenditure cuts andreallocations in some countriesbut not in others.

• Debt relief, fiscal flexibilityand public deficit. Countries

hit by external shocks orfacing enduring crises oftentry to reduce the publicdeficit by freezing, reducingor cancelling part of the debt.The project analyses the fiscalbenefits and impacts on thepoor of these different ap-proaches, and considersalternatives such as automaticand costless “debt standstills”and fiscal flexibility.

Economic and social

rationality demands that

pro-poor and efficient

public spending be

preserved, or even

accelerated, during

crisis situations.

Thematic papers analysing policiesthat prevent and moderate macro-economic shocks have been commis-sioned, as have case studies ofalternative policy regimes and theirpoverty impacts in Brazil, Chile,China, India, Mauritius, Malaysiaand Uzbekistan. A project workshopis planned for February 2005 in Flor-ence, Italy, at which first drafts ofthese studies will be presented anddiscussed.

This research is part of a group of projects

on Social Policy in a Development Context,

which is funded by the Swedish InternationalDevelopment Agency (Sida), the United

Kingdom Department for International

Development (DFID) and UNRISDcore funds.

Macroeconomics and Social Policy


INSIDE COVERAGE

This project, for which commis-sioning of research began in

March 2004, explores the complexways social policy and democracycan be mutually reinforcing. Eventhough comprehensive social policieshave been pursued in authoritariansocieties, the worldwide trends in de-mocratization suggest that economicand social development in manycountries today occurs through insti-tutions and processes that are at leastformally democratic. But globaliza-tion and the spread of neoliberalpolicy prescriptions raise questionsabout whether new democracies canpursue social policies that improvethe welfare of the majority of theircitizens. To gain insights into theselinkages in established or relativelystable democracies, the project ex-amines the cases of Botswana, India,Jamaica and Japan, as well as Eu-rope and Latin America.

A major attribute of democratizationis that it may open up opportunitiesfor citizen participation in the policyprocess and subject decision makersto periodic renewal of their man-dates. As a result of these dynamics,

Globalization and the

spread of neoliberal policy

prescriptions raise questions

about whether new

democracies can pursue social

policies that improve the

welfare of the majority

of their citizens.

social policy may be high on the pref-erences of voters and decision mak-ers. However, the vote may not

Democratization and Social Policy

always be an effective instrument forholding decision makers accountable,and social policy may compete withother priorities when citizens casttheir ballots. This project examinesthe extent to which individuals, in-terest groups and political partieshave used the power of the vote toadvance social policy agendas in dif-ferent democracies; the developmentof advocacy groups and coalitions topush through welfare reforms or poli-cies; and the institutional arrange-ments or social pacts that haveemerged around social policy issuesin different democratic settings. Inorder to understand the coverage ofsocial protection and why certaintypes of social policies have been em-phasized over others, it analyses thestructure and evolution of nationaleconomies and labour markets.Three sets of social policies receiveparticular attention: social security,including income support and pen-sions; social services; and subsidies.

The project also seeks to explore theway social policy has been used to con-solidate or improve the quality ofdemocratic institutions. Democraticconsolidation involves behavioural andattitudinal changes in which citizensuphold the intrinsic values and proce-dures of democracy in settling differ-ences, even during severe crisis. Factorsthat help consolidation include thequality of civil society, the degree ofconsensus among elites on the rules ofcontestation and alternations of power,and the development of an effectivebureaucracy and rule of law. However,it is not easy to separate out the effectsof social welfare provision on demo-cratic consolidation from those of otherissues such as incomes, employmentand economic growth.

The findings of the research shouldlend support to the project’s main

hypotheses: social policy that im-proves the security of the majority ofcitizens enhances social solidarity (acornerstone of citizenship), offersdisadvantaged groups non-violent

Social policy that improves

the security of the majority

of citizens enhances social

solidarity (a cornerstone

of citizenship), offers

disadvantaged groups

non-violent mechanisms

via which they can

express demands for change,

weakens clientelist social

relations, and enhances

the capacity of citizens

to participate in public life

as autonomous actors.

mechanisms via which they can ex-press demands for change, weakensclientelist social relations, and en-hances the capacity of citizens toparticipate in public life as autono-mous actors. In other words, socialpolicy may impact the political sys-tem and democracy through socialcohesion.

This research is part of a group of projects

on Social Policy in a Development Context,

which is funded by the Swedish InternationalDevelopment Agency (Sida), the United

Kingdom Department for International

Development (DFID) and UNRISDcore funds.


GLOBAL RESOURCES

UNRISDin CyberspaceSix UNRISD publications oncorporate social responsibilityhave been posted on the Web siteof the Business and Human RightsResource Centre, an independent,international, non-profit organiza-tion that works in partnership withAmnesty International and leadingacademic institutions. www.business-humanrights.org

L’Observatoire des Usagesd’Internet (OUI) has posted thesummary of Les Emigrés sénégalaiset les nouvelles technologies del’information et de la communi-cation, by Serigne Mansour Tall(PP TBS 7, UNRISD, May 2003).OUI is an association that studiesand shares information about socialuses of the Internet. www.oui.net

UNRISD publications on corpo-rate social responsibility are alsoavailable on a social standardsinformation Web site set upunder a public-private partner-ship project that aims to establisha system for the auditing andupgrading of suppliers in 11countries, based on the internationalstandard for social accountabilitySA8000. www.social-standards.info

Gender Justice, Development andRights, edited by Maxine Molyneuxand Shahra Razavi (UNRISD andOxford University Press, 2002)has been selected for inclusion inOxford Scholarship Online, aWeb site that facilitates the onlinepublication of academic andresearch books in the humanitiesand social sciences. The site waslaunched in 2003 with 750 booksin four disciplines—politicalscience, philosophy, economicsand finance, and religion.www.oxfordscholarship.com

Forced Migration Online,established by the RefugeeStudies Centre at the Universityof Oxford, has selected a numberof UNRISD publications overthe years. The latest additionto the site is Michael Cernea’s“Bridging the research divide:Studying refugees and develop-ment oustees”, chapter 21 ofIn Search of Cool Ground: War,Flight and Homecoming in North-east Africa, edited by Tim Allen(UNRISD and James Currey, 1996).Forced Migration Online is a free-access, non-profit academic Webportal. www.forcedmigration.org

UNRISDin the MediaA Financial Times article titled“Companies pressed to adopt higherstandards”, by reporter VanessaHoulder, quotes The Greening ofBusiness in Developing Countries,edited by Peter Utting (UNRISDand Zed Books, 2002), and notesthat UNRISD, other organizationsand scholars remain critical ofcorporate voluntary environmentalinitiatives. The article was publishedin the 16 October 2003 edition.www.ft.com

The Baltic Times, a weeklynewspaper that covers politicaland economic events in Estonia,Latvia and Lithuania, haspublished excerpts from thecomparative study prepared asa background document for theUNRISD international conferenceon Ethnic Structure, Inequalityand Governance of the PublicSector (25–27 March 2004, Riga,Latvia). www.baltictimes.com

“Good governance: The itineraryof an idea”, by UNRISD Director

Thandika Mkandawire, hasappeared in D+C Developmentand Cooperation (Vol. 31, No. 10,2004). Mkandawire writes,“Originally, the term ‘goodgovernance’ was meant to standfor more than official accountabilitygeared towards market efficiency.The African scholars who firstused it were demanding moreequitable state-society relations.Democracy and social inclusionwere considered core elements”.www.inwent.org/E+Z/content/heft-eng/tribune_art1.html

UNRISDand TrainingIntroduction to Infrastructure Policies,a professional reference published bythe Institute of Chartered FinancialAnalysts of India, includes “Sustain-able urban development in India: Aninclusive perspective”, by DarshiniMahadevia, chapter two of thenew volume, From Unsustainableto Inclusive Cities, edited by DavidWestendorff (UNRISD, 2004).

An online communication rightslearning initiative organized by theWorld Association for Christian Com-munication–Latin America is usingCommunicating in the InformationSociety, edited by Bruce Girard andSeán Ó Siochrú (UNRISD, 2003).

UNRISDStaff OutreachYusuf Bangura— was a member of the Office ofthe United Nations High Commis-sioner for Human Rights Board ofExperts that selected papers on


GLOBAL RESOURCES

UNRISD is an autonomous agencyengaging in multidisciplinary researchon the social dimensions of contem-porary development problems. Its workis guided by the conviction that, foreffective development policies to beformulated, an understanding of thesocial and political context is crucial.The Institute attempts to provide gov-ernments, development agencies,grassroots organizations and scholarswith a better understanding of howdevelopment policies and processes ofeconomic, social and environmentalchange affect different social groups.Working through an extensive networkof national research centres, UNRISDaims to promote original research aswell as strengthen research capacityin developing countries.

UNRISD gratefully acknowledges thesupport for its activities provided by itscore funders: Denmark, Finland, Mexico,Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and theUnited Kingdom.

UNRISDPalais des Nations1211 Geneva [email protected]

Editor: Jenifer FreedmanAssociate Editor: Suroor AlikhanProduction: Pamela Smaridge

Opinions expressed in signed articlesare those of the author(s). Publicationdoes not constitute endorsement byUNRISD.

Printed on recycled paper.

“Good governance practices forthe promotion of human rights”for an international conferencein the Republic of Korea.

— chaired a session on conflictand recovery at the UNU-WIDERconference, Making Peace Work,in Helsinki, Finland.

Nicolas Bovay— wrote and delivered a state-ment on “Women and humanrights” at the United NationsSub-Commission on Promotionand Protection of Human Rightsin Geneva, Switzerland.

Kléber B. Ghimire— gave a seminar on “Ruralyouth, future of agriculture andsocial mobilization” at the Instituteof Social Studies, The Hague,Netherlands.

— made a presentation on “Civilsociety movements and the marketquestion” at the Faculty of Econom-ics, University of Urbino, Italy.

Huck-ju Kwon— gave a seminar on “Socialpolicy in a development context”at the Institut universitaire d’étudesdu développement (IUED) inGeneva, Switzerland.— gave a seminar on “Transform-ing the developmental welfare statein East Asia” at the Institute ofApplied Social Science, Universityof Birmingham, United Kingdom.

Thandika Mkandawire— wrote “Disempowering newdemocracies and the persistenceof poverty”, in Max Spoor (ed.),Globalization, Poverty and Conflict:A Critical ‘Development’ Reader,(Kluwer Academic Publishers/Springer-Verlag, 2004).

— presented his paper, “Africa inthe 21st century: Integration andrenaissance”, at the First Conference

of Intellectuals from Africa andthe Diaspora, organized by theAfrican Union in Dakar, Senegal.

Shahra Razavi— presented her paper, “Genderand the silences of contemporarysocial policy debates” at theIDEAs, ECLAC, FLACSO andUNAM workshop, Constraintsto Development and StrategicAlternatives in the CurrentConjuncture, in Mexico City.— was an external referee forTaking Action: Achieving GenderEquality and the Empowermentof Women, the final report of theUnited Nations Millennium Pro-ject Task Force on Educationand Gender Equality.

Cecilia Ugaz— chaired a session of a trainingseminar for Europe-based Peruviandiplomats on the promotion of in-vestments, organized by UNCTADand the Ministry of External Affairsof Peru in Geneva, Switzerland.

Peter Utting— wrote “New approaches toTNC regulation: The potentialand limits of multistakeholderinitiatives”, published in Germanas “Neue Ansätze zur RegulierungTransnationaler Unternehmen:Potenzial und Grenzen vonMultistakeholder-Initiativen”,in Tanja Brühl et al. (eds.), Unter-nehmen in der Weltpolitik: Politik-netzwerke, Unternehmensregeln unddie Zukunft des Multilateralismus(Dietz Publishers, 2004).

— presented his paper, “Learningfrom networks”, at a planning work-shop held to establish Globethicsnetin Bossey, Switzerland.

THE LAST WORD

Printed in Switzerland GE.05-00262-February 2005-11,000 UNRISD/NEWS/27/05/1 ISSN 1020-6825

A nniversaries are always occasions for stocktaking, for recalling memories of the past, for reflecting on what

has happened to aspirations and projects. The future wehoped for in the past is now the present. Such occasionsare also times when people refresh and develop new am-bitions for a “future” future.

Ten years have passed since the Fourth World Conferenceon Women in Beijing, 20 years since the conference in Nai-robi, 30 years since Mexico City. Over time, these andother world conferences and summits (on environment,human rights, population, social development, racism andso on) have emerged as important arenas for debatingand confronting different worldviews about equality andjustice; for planning to redress past injustices; for build-ing bridges, alliances and partnerships among variousactors seeking to fulfil shared aspirations and strategiesfor a better world—a world with declining inequalities,fewer people living in poverty, less environmental dam-age and less oppression.

During these years, there has been a growing recognitionof the need to carry out rigorous social, political, culturaland economic research on issues of inequalities, on histori-cal trends in gender relations, on shifts in the global politi-cal economy, on the differential impact of such major societalprocesses (including a consideration of violence and war)on women and on diverse subordinate populations. GenderEquality: Striving for Justice in an Unequal World, theUNRISD report prepared for the tenth anniversary of theBeijing conference, allows a deeper understanding of suchtrends in the world today, and is proof of the significantways in which the results of serious research can make amajor contribution to political and policy debates.

From the perspective of women’s rights, the first scene onthe stage of contemporary global public action was playedin 1975. The United Nations called for an InternationalWomen’s Year, and convened the first conference on womenin Mexico City where government delegates were to dis-cuss issues related to the “advancement” of women. Out-side the official conference, however, something else washappening: a diverse array of women’s movements andcollectives were coming together to express their own hopesand wishes, to demand a place for their own voice in de-ciding their fate rather than having well-intentioned “oth-ers” decide it. Many governmental and internationalofficials may have considered such action outrageous.

Much has changed in the world in the past 30 years. Thepresence of women in deciding goals and policies forwomen became standard, accepted and legitimate. Ex-isting international geopolitical arrangements shifted and,often, broke down entirely. New regional arrangementsemerged. The political economy of neoliberal restructur-ing and market reforms gained ascendancy, with the ef-fects of widening gaps and increasing inequalities of allsorts now recognized. These last decades also saw democ-ratization forces calling for widening citizenship and forthe empowerment of a range of social actors. Indeed, thedemands of the excluded and the “voiceless” are increas-ingly couched in terms of rights and entitlements, em-powerment and participation.

The process has never been linear or easy. It has involvedthe convergence of the evolving human rights paradigm—which grew in importance during the late 1970s and early1980s, in part as an international solidarity response todictatorial regimes in Latin America—and the concernsfor the fate of significant categories of the world’s popula-tion in historically and structurally determined subordi-nate positions: women in all societies, indigenous peoples,and ethnically and racially defined “minorities”. Femi-nist thinking and the feminist movement have played amajor role in this paradigmatic shift.

Introducing the language and understandings of humanrights to oppressed, segregated and subordinated groupshas entailed major debates and conflicts about ideas andideals; debates that remain, to this day and throughoutthe world, the subject of dilemmas and politics.

There is something inherently paradoxical in the process.Recognition of “the right to have rights” as the basic hu-man right implies recognition and acceptance of funda-mental equality in the human condition. It therefore setshumanity the goal of working toward this ultimate equal-ity of all the world’s human beings. Yet who sets the stand-ard of equality to be achieved? Is it the powerful ofyesterday and today? Only through the concurrent ac-knowledgment of human diversity and the right to bringto the public arena one’s own identity and form of life canthis be achieved. Thus, demands for inclusion and equal-ity by formerly subordinated and oppressed groups, par-ticularly as these groups gain voice and are empowered,are at the same time demands for recognition of theirdiverse identities, of their own views and PAGE 19

The Challenges of Equality and DifferenceElizabeth Jelin

Documents

Gender Equality: Striving for INSIDE Justice in an Unequal ...FILE/27e.pdfgious-identity politics being played out from the global to the local level. Women’s ambitions for social