Role of women

in developme

nt’ Role of women in development:Background:

In the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, women were only viewed as mothers and housewives, within development policies and programmes. Their economic activities and contributions were ignored and not valued. Development theorists and planners saw men as the agents and actors of development. Men were seen to be the breadwinners of their families. Women were invisible.Women were an under-utilized resource for development.

Women in Islam:Islamic law makes no demand that women should confine themselves to household duties. In fact the early Muslim women were found in all walks of life. The first wife of the Prophet, was a business woman. Women traded in the marketplace, and the Khalifah Umar, not normally noted for his liberal attitude to women, appointed a woman, Shaff'a Bint Abdullah, to supervise the market. Other women, like Laila al-Ghifaria, took part in battles, carrying water and nursing the wounded.

Status of women in world:women perform two thirds of the world’s work. women earn one tenth of the world’s incomewomen are two thirds of the world’s illiterate. women own less than one hundredth of the world’s property

Working Women in Pakistan:Women in Pakistan have progressed in various fields of life such as politics, education, economy, services, health and many more. 16% of Pakistani women were "economically active" (either employed, or unemployed but available to furnish labor).

Female workers are more likely to be full-time workers in all farm sizes in NWFP (89.54%) and Sindh (74,36%). Punjab shows an almost equal division between full-time workers (55.6%) and part-time workers, while in Balochistan 82.84 percent of female family workers are part-time.

Role of rural women:Rural -women are major contributors in four sub-sectors of the rural economy, crop production, livestock production, cottage industry, household and family maintenance activities, such as transporting water, fuel and fodder to and from the home, food preparation and preservation and caring for children, the elderly and the disabled women make up 76 percent of all

part-time workers and only 25 percent of those acknowledged as full-time workers.

Role of urban women:In urban areas, females find their way to schools, colleges, universities or scholarships abroad. Other than the medicine, which was once considered to be the only profession which women joined, Now even the most technical spheres like engineering, architecture, communications and IT. Women can now be seen encouraging cricket teams and participating all kinds of sports from cricket to athletics and even marathon recently held in Lahore.

Today, women in Pakistan hold high ranking positions as the CEOs and executives. Recently the president has appointed Dr Shamshad Akhtar as the first female governor of the State Bank of Pakistan. Two lady doctors of the Pakistan Army have also risen to the rank of major general. The female doctors joined hands with the male doctors in the most inaccessible earth quake hit areas in the northern part of Pakistan to treat the sick and wounded.

Role of women in economic development: Women's development is intrinsic to the development of the developing world. Women produce more than 80 percent of the food in the Sub-Saharan Africa and 50-60 percent in Asia. Women also contribute substantially to the family budget through income-generating activities such as food processing, trading of agricultural products and handicraft production. 

Women in history of Pakistan;Fatima Jinnah, sister of Mohammed Ali Jinnah, was an instrumental figure in the Pakistan movement. She was the first Muslim woman to contest the presidency in 1965, as a candidate of the Combined Opposition Party. Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto was the first female prime minister of Pakistan (1988)(1991) and the first woman elected to head a Muslim country.

Role of women defense systemA total defence system aims at ensuring the physical. civil economic social and psychological security. Women role in defence system covers many fields e.g. role of women in medical, armed forces,millitary,navy and submarines etc.

Role of women in medicalIn medical field women are working well as compared to males,Women works as a gynecologist preventing lives of thousands of women and with their proper cure preventing them from fatal disease. In surgery they also perform a notable contribution. Women working as a midwife and nurse and also a lady doctor serves to save the lives of people nurses receive silver star award previously.

Role of women in militaryDepartment of Defense (DOD) women played a vital role in the theater of operations. By late February, more than 37,000 military women were in the Persian Gulf, making up approximately 6.8 percent of US forces. 3,700 Navy, 2,200 Marine, and 5,300 Air Force (USAF) women deployed. Women served in almost all of the hundreds of occupations open to them; as a matter of law and policy, women were excluded from certain specific combat military occupational specialties.

Role of women in armed forces Permit women to fill active combat roles, including New Zealand, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, Israel, Serbia, Sweden and Switzerland. Other nations allow female soldiers to serve in certain Combat Arms positions, such as the United Kingdom, which allows women to serve in Artillery roles, while still excluding them from units with a dedicated Infantry role. By Service, there were approximately 26,000 Army.

Women on submarinesThe Royal Norwegian Navy became the first navy in the world to permit female personnel to serve in submarines, appointing a female submarine captain in 1995, followed by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in 1998 and thereafter Canada and Spain, all operators of conventional submarines. By Service, there were approximately 3700 navy and 2200 in submarines.

Role of women in navyIt was noted that women now represented 15% of the Active Duty Navy and that women today earn about half of all science and engineering bachelor’s degrees.In the late 20th century and early 21st century, there have been a

significant representations of "women warriors" in popular culture, occasionally including women in the military.

Role of women in physics and engineering.Women played also a role in physics and engineering for making weapons for country survival in all over the world. About 20%women are working in the fields of physics but the ratio is now increasing.

Women’s role in technology Women in the history of technology : Women historically have been under-represented in scientific and technical fields. There are multiple reasons for this, Being the cultural stereotypes and definitions of women and men, which, in the Western world, are grounded in the religious and political culture and have been institutionalized through our education and socialization over the centuries.

Women have been given limited educational opportunities, have been restricted by law from many activities, and have been excluded from professional societies and publications Today we are seeing far more participation by women in the technical fields But in reality, there have always been women who applied their common sense and natural abilities to contribute to their world through scientific and technical innovations.Autumn Stanley, in her book Mothers and Daughters of Invention, proposes that many of the anonymous inventions which mark human prehistory were developed by women. Since women were responsible for gathering food, they probably identified potential food crops such as grains, tubers, fruits and herbs, and transplanted or sowed them near early tribal settlements. This would qualify as the invention of agriculture

Women’s role in processing of food The processing of foods also falls to women in most primitive societies. Grinding roots and grains requires technological development in the form of tools, and storage of perishable food items requires the invention of processes such as drying, jerking, smoking, and pickling. Many foods which we take for granted, such as tapioca and olives, must be chemically processed just in order to be edible

Clothing preparation:

Another field of prehistoric technology which probably fell to women was clothing. Preparation of hides, weaving, and sewing are all activities generally done by women in primitive cultures. The development of preserving, softening, bleaching and dyeing methods for animal skins, the invention of weaving techniques and equipment including carding and sewing implements such as hooks, needles, scissors, and sinew or fiber threads may all be credited to our unknown fore-mothers.

Mechanical inventions:A variety of medical instruments and devices were invented and patented by women during the nineteenth century, including sterilization techniques and devices, medical beds and chairs, field ambulances and stretchers, splints, and an improved speculum. The modern intravenous drip was developed by a team which included Justine Wagner, who worked during the first

half of this century. She also helped develop resuscitation techniques for victims of electric shock, and cryogenic therapy to destroy cancer cells.

Industrial revolution:From the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, we know that women invented and improved machinery and industrial designs. One of our country's earliest successful industries the straw bonnet business was built on several related inventions, all by women. It began in 1798, with Betsey Metcalf's development of an improved method of braiding straw to make straw bonnets. Her invention formed the basis of a flourishing cottage industry. Mary Dixon Kies helped the industry expand in 1809 by developing a process for weaving the straw for bonnets.

Impact of women development in society.Positive impact:People who speaks more of women’s freedom try to prove that a woman is a fitting member of a society to perform any sort of work as a man.They also justify with the reference to the advanced and progressed societies on earth that women can render better services outdoor in comparison with those rendered indoor.They lay much emphasis on the equality of men and women; they want to see women, enjoying an equal status to men.Development increase at a high rate.

Negative impact:All positive impacts are opposed by those who say that the best services of a woman is to look after man’s generation. They declare it to be the most sacred profession for a woman, justifying that she is already doing it by nature. According to them the contrary role of the Western women by working in offices, factories and other fields of men, might give them desired freedom but not the deserved respect.

In this way women are exploited by loading with double duty of home and job. She cannot give her duties properly and generations are being affected.

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