Gender and development & approaches / WID ,WAD, and GAD in gender studies

 Critically analyze the various approaches to women’s development focusing on WID, WAD, and GAD.

1.     Introduction

2.     What are women’s development approaches: WID, WAD, and GAD

3.     Evolutionary cycle of WID, WAD, and GAD

4.     Detailed dissection of WID, WAD, and GAD

5.     Critical analysis

6.     Conclusion

Introduction: Women’s approaches to development, an evolutionary milestone in the discipline

                   Since the inception of modernization theory, the feminist viewed it with skepticism. The second-wave liberal feminists came up with the women in the development approach. Marxists came with a women and development approach and the third wave feminists demanded a gendered discourse on development.

What are women’s development approaches: WID, WAD, and GAD

1.     Women in Development:

It is an approach on the lines of liberal feminism and demands particular policies for women’s access to social and economic resources. The approach heavily criticizes the modernization theory and expounds that such theory has led to the disadvantage of women.

2.     Women in Development:

This approach was a neo- Marxist in nature. It drew the academician attention to the dual nature of the job of women at home as well as at the professional services. It says that women have been a part of the system but their services have been ignored. Hence, women-only services need to be stark do for women.

3.     Gender and Development:

With the advent of queer theory, a gendered discourse came into being. It criticized both the WID and WAD for being too parochial nature and called for the gendered discourse in development.

Evolutionary Cycle of WID, WAD, and GAD

                        Ester                             Mexico

                       Boserup                        Conference

                                                                                                       WID

 

          Critique                                                                            Criticism

             Second Wave

            Feminism                                                                      Radical Feminists

 

Modernization                                                                                   WAD

Theory

                                                                                         Third

                                                                                      Wave feminism

                                                        Traverse

 

                                 GAD

Detailed dissection of WID, WAD, and GAD

1.     Women in development

a.     Background:

i. Second-wave feminism and separation vs integration debate.

ii.                 New strand of liberal feminism dissatisfied with women’s socio-economic positions.

iii.              Ester Boserup’s dissection of the UN development program.

b.     Key features of WID:

i.                   Equal access to social and economic resources:

It demanded that women be given equal access to social and economic resources. In reality, it aspired to break glass ceilings.

ii.                 Criticism of modernization theory:

The WID criticized the modernization and dependency theory because it led to the ghettoization of women in traditional roles.

iii.              Demand to separatist discourse for women in development:

 

 

  

Women quota in                             Women separate courses

politics universities in skills development

                                                                                                           of women

c.      Achievements of WID:

i.                   UN decade for women sponsored by World Bank.

ii.                 Incorporation of women in UN development program.

iii.              Breaking the glass ceiling, women became in need of states such as Benazir Bhutto, and Khalida Zia.

iv.               Discipline of women's studies.

 

d.     Criticism:

i.                   It did not focus on intersectionality.

ii.                 It can be called beautifully white and elite women only.

iii.              Other genders were oblivious of emerging development

2.     Gender and development

1.     Background

i.                   Marxist feminism

ii.                 Psychoanalytic feminism

iii.              Radicalism

iv.               Criticism of women in development

 

2.     Key features

a.     The inequalities are structural in nature:

Succumbing to the line of Marxists, they called for the structural nature of inequalities enshrined in radicalism and psychoanalytic that lead to patriarchy and hamper the development of women.

Illustration: Unequal labor participation in rural and urban areas. For example, according to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, only 30% of women labor in rural areas participate in formal labor.

 

b.     Women have contributed to development projects but their efforts remain ignored:

The capitalist system does not take into account the traditional and unpaid role of women. In this way, women have to double their labor.

                       Illustration:

 

 

Emotional role of Domestic                                       Reproduction and

of women                                 chores                                           running family

 

c.      Patriarchal structures lead to the gender gap and glass ceilings:

Ø Global gendered wage gaps.

Ø Impediments for women to reach top positions.

3.     Achievements of WAD

i.                   Equal pay act in the USA.

ii.                 National Organization for women in the USA.

iii.              Abortion rights, recognition of prostitution, etc.

4.     Criticism

i.                   Very radical in nature.

ii.                 Ignored intersectionality.

3.     Gender and Development

The post-modernism discourse called for a gendered debate to development.

 

1.     Background:

a. Third-wave feminism.

b.     Postmodernism.

c.      Criticism on second-wave feminism.

2.     Key features of GAD:

a.     Negation of essentialism in development:

It emphasized the rejection of heterosexuality as normalcy and called for individual gender identity.

b.     Incorporation of traversing in development:

Now the phenomena of gendered development were not confined to men and women. The gendered development has become a vast debate.

c.      Diversification of feminism for development:

 

 

 

   Black feminism                        Eco- feminism                            Cyberfeminism

 

3.     Achievements of GAD:

·        Beijing Conference 1996 leading to gendered debate in development.

·        Recognition of multiple gender identities.

·        Legal protection against gendered dissemination e.g. Clinton passed an act to give legal protection to homosexuals and gays in the US.

·        Problems of intersectionality revolved.

·        Ratification of women's protection in countries.

·        Gender studies as a discipline.

4.     Criticism:

·        Lack of unity and coherence in academic knowledge.

Critical analysis

                   Gendered discourse in development is a journey from equity and individualism to traverse. However, now more work needs to be done for intra- state intersectionality.

Conclusion:

                   “No development is development if it compromises half of the global population.”

                                                                                 (Emma Watson)