Editorial

Affilia: Journal of Women and Social

Work

The Road From Millennium 2017, Vol. 32(2) 125-132

ª The Author(s) 2017
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DOI: 10.1177/0886109917704040
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by 2030: Social Work’s Role in

Empowering Women and Girls

Shanta Pandey1

Affilia, the Journal of Women and Social Work was originally founded by a team of scholars in North
America to provide a venue to share feminist scholarship with a focus on social justice. As the
journal has become a home for nurturing feminist scholarship from around the world, this editorial
explores the United Nations’ (UN) recent call for action to eliminate gender-based discrimination
and to empower all women and girls around the world as well as social work’s role in these goals.
Since the founding of the UN after the Second World War in 1945, many states from around the
world have joined its membership. With the secretary-general as its chief administrative officer, the
UN now represents 193 member states. The regular general assembly of the UN meets annually in
September at its headquarters in New York. Among many priorities, the UN provides a forum for its
member states to discuss and commit to improving social and economic conditions of people around
the world. In September 2015, at the 70th anniversary of the UN, the heads of state and government
representatives from all 193 member countries met in New York and adopted the 2030 agenda for
sustainable development, which contains 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs; UN, 2015c).
Goal 5(SDG5) is to attain gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls by 2030. The
road to attaining SDG5 began 15 years earlier at the 55th General Assembly meeting of the UN in
New York. At this UN session in September 2000, the heads of state and representatives from 147
countries resolved to attain eight goals by 2015, which became known as the millennium develop-
ment goals (MDGs) (UN, 2000a). The third goal (MDG3) was to “Promote gender equality and
empower women.” What progress have women made under the MDG agenda? What challenges
remain in meeting the SDG of empowering women and girls? How should social workers respond to
address the challenges and make SDG5 a reality by 2030?
Gender inequality has historically signaled attention to unequal power between men and women,
with increasing attention to the fluidity of gender expression and the rights of trans and gender

1
School of Social Work, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, USA

Corresponding Author:
Shanta Pandey, School of Social Work, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA.
Email: shanta.pandey@bc.edu
126 Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work 32(2)

nonbinary individuals. Inequalities associated with being a “woman” include people who are
assigned female sex from birth and who occupy female gender roles in their families and commu-
nities. People who embody female characteristics through gender expression or explicit change in
their gender identity are also targets of systemic discrimination and violence. For the purposes of this
editorial, I emphasize the continued salience of the gender binary as a powerful organizing social value
and practice. Empowerment in the development literature refers to a process of attaining power among
those who were previously powerless (Kabeer, 1999; Kabeer & Subrahmanian, 1999). Widely used
indicators of empowerment include education, income, employment, property ownership, participa-
tion in politics, and ability to exercise financial, health care, and mobility choices (Kabeer, 1994, 1999;
Kabeer & Subrahmanian, 1999; Nussbaum, 2000; Pandey, 2017; Pandey, Lama, & Lee, 2012; Sen,
1999; UN Development Programme, 1995). Empowerment is key to understanding a woman’s ability
to decide when to get married, when to have children, and to control the number of pregnancies.
Women’s early and forced marriage, restricted education, economic dependence on their husbands,
constrained power to make intrahousehold decisions, and lack of access to well-paid and secure jobs
are consequences of disempowerment. Mother’s health and education improve her and her children’s
well-being (World Bank, 2012). Social workers around the world have the charge to empower women,
so they may develop their full potentials and that of society.
In the past 15 years, MDGs energized individuals, groups, nations, and international organiza-
tions around the world to collaborate and intervene in pursuit of these bold milestones. A review of
the progress shows that, on the whole, the world is a better place for women and girls today than in
1990. Maternal mortality rates are on the decline, women live longer than men in every region of the
world, an increased proportion of girls are in school, more women are in leadership positions than
ever before in legislatures and organizations, and more working-age women are engaged in paid
labor force (UN, 2000b, 2009, 2015a, 2015b; World Bank, 2012). For example, in 1990, global
maternal mortality ratio was 380/100,000 live births, with maternity complications alone claiming
over 536,000 women’s lives annually (UN, 2000a, 2000b, 2009). Fast-forward 2013, maternal
mortality ratio worldwide had dropped by 45% to 210/100,000 live births (UN, 2015a). Addition-
ally, the enrollment of primary school–age children—both girls and boys—in developing countries
increased from 80% in 1990 to 91% in 2015 (UN, 2015a, 2015b). A higher proportion of girls is also
engaged in secondary and postsecondary education. Working-age women’s employment outside of
the agricultural sector also increased; they now make up 41% of paid labor force compared to 35% in
1990 (UN, 2015a). Around the world, more women are holding decision-making positions than in
the 1990s (UN, 2015a, 2015b). Yet, many challenges remain and need our attention. Overcoming
these challenges will likely determine the extent to which we attain SDG5 by 2030. I highlight five
interrelated challenges—three that have been with us all along and two as new and emerging. Social
work as a profession can and should address these challenges to speed up the progress toward
attaining gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.

Maternal Mortality and Health Inequities

First, while we reduced maternal mortality over the past quarter century, we continue to lose about
2.34 million women and girls under the age of 60 each year; of these 1.2 million die during their
reproductive years (World Bank, 2012). A closer look at these data shows that we lose about 289,000
women annually within 42 days of pregnancy terminations due to birth-related complications (UN,
2015a). These deaths contribute to health inequities because they are occurring mostly among
women in developing countries. A pregnant woman in Nepal has 7 times higher risk of dying due
to birth-related complications than her counterpart in the United States. A home delivery is perfectly
safe when the pregnancy and birth are normal. Delivering at home, however, quickly turns fatal
when women develop complications. A systematic analysis of 23 studies from 115 countries
Pandey 127

comprising 60,799 maternal deaths between 2003 and 2009 found that hemorrhage was the leading
cause of maternal death, resulting in 37% of all deaths in Northern Africa, 30% in Southern Asia, and
27% worldwide (Say et al., 2014). Safe strategies to transport the mothers who develop complica-
tions to health facilities are simply not available for many rural women. This is a significant
challenge. Hence, institutional delivery should be promoted to save the lives of mothers. In response
to the MDGs, many developing countries have improved their infrastructure (hospitals, schools) and
increased the supply of health and education facilities. They have also trained the workforce—
doctors, nurses, midwives, and community health-care workers. However, demand for these services
has not increased. The majority of women in countries like Nepal, India, and Bangladesh continue to
deliver at home. It appears that the decision to use a health facility for delivery involves a complex
set of intrahousehold, community, and structural factors that health professionals alone cannot
address. Health professionals may advise pregnant women to seek an institution for delivery; once
in labor, these women will need family or community members to transport them to the health
institution at that critical time. Attaining SDG5 in the next 15 years will require greater imagination
for solutions, innovation, and interdisciplinary work. For example, Action Research and Training for
Health in Rajasthan, India, has both health professionals and social workers working jointly to
improve maternal and child health. This organization is known for its sensitivity to local social and
cultural nuances. In Nepal, social workers working for the UN Population Fund are engaged in the
design and implementation of community interventions to increase women’s access to contracep-
tives and end violence against women of reproductive age.
Once women arrive at a health institution, it is important that they are treated with dignity and
respect irrespective of their social position. Often women from marginalized background cannot
afford to use health services; they may even experience discrimination by health institutions, dis-
couraging them from future use of health services. Several studies have shown women’s unequal
access to health services based on class, caste, and living arrangement (Bhanderi & Kannan, 2010;
Iyengar, Iyengar, Suhalka, & Agarwal, 2009; Kesterton, Cleland, Sloggett, & Ronsmans, 2010; Nair,
Ariana, & Webster, 2012). In Uttar Pradesh, India, women’s caste determined their likelihood of
using contraceptives, antenatal care, and institutional delivery (Sanneving, Trygg, Saxena,
Mavalankar, & Thomsen, 2013; Saroha, Altarac, & Sibley, 2008). One of the core competencies
of social work professionals is to advance human rights and social and economic justice. Social work
graduates are trained to analyze and understand different forms of social discrimination and injus-
tice. Social workers need to engage with health professionals to understand, challenge, and solve
these complex problems rooted in discriminatory social norms and inequalities. They have the skills
to advocate for equal access to services regardless of caste and ethnicity. They can work with
families and communities to facilitate equal access to reproductive health and institutional delivery.

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) and Gender-Based Violence

Second, until recently, many societies around the world considered IPV against women a private
matter, a social taboo to discuss in public (Hien, 2008; Hussain & Khan, 2008; Mitra & Singh, 2007).
IPV is now a topic for social policy action. Many countries have begun collecting data to document
IPV prevalence. We now know that about one in three women worldwide experiences IPV at some
point in her life. We also know that IPV tends to peak during women’s reproductive years and that
less than half of these victims ever seek professional help (Hussain & Khan, 2008; UN, 2015b).
Health and social work professionals can team up with the state (Moosa-Mitha, 2016) to protect the
most vulnerable women who are at risk of experiencing IPV. Social workers practicing in health
settings should assert a critical role in early identification of abuse. They should also intervene to
prevent and reduce abuse by mobilizing boys and girls, men and women, and engage in women-
centered advocacy efforts, conduct home visitations, and mobilize other stakeholders in
128 Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work 32(2)

communities (Ellsberg et al., 2015; Garcia-Moreno, Hegarty, et al., 2015; Garcia-Moreno,

Zimmerman, et al., 2015; Jayatilleke, Jayatilleke, Yasuoka, & Jimba, 2015; Jewkes, Flood, & Lang,
2015; Michau, Horn, Bank, Dutt, & Zimmerman, 2015; Samarasekera & Horton, 2015).
Additionally, discrimination and gender-based violence are more pronounced among those who
do not conform to binary gender role and norms (Rashid, Daruwalla, Puri, Hawkes, & Chow, 2012;
World Bank, 2015). A criticism is that the MDG3 not did not specify “all women” and the devel-
opment programs in the past ignored the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT)
women (Mills, 2015). The SDG5 calls for an end to all forms of discrimination and violence against
“all women and girls.” In the inaugural report on the global SDGs, the UN Secretary-General, Ban
Ki-moon called for “collective global action” to attain gender equality and “fulfill the pledge of the
2030 Agenda to leave no one behind” (UN, 2016; p.2). Under the SDG5, the states are charged to
develop and implement programs to empower all women and girls, including the LGBT. The World
Bank (2015) has developed a resource guide to work with the LGBT women around the world. It
outlines examples of progress made in different countries to assert LGBT community’s rights. For
example, in 2008, India’s Tamil Nadu state developed a Transgender Welfare Board, whose mem-
bers are mostly transgender community leaders, to help them better access government social
policies and to protect them from discrimination and violence. Social workers can use evidence-
based practices to empower all women and girls. For example, they can work with policy makers to
decriminalize homosexuality or nonnormative gender identities and expressions and prevent dis-
crimination and violence against them.

Child Marriage
Third, the age-old practice of girl child marriage has now come under greater scrutiny for the
right reason. Historically, child marriage was a common practice, perhaps, since the beginning of
the institution of marriage. The Ancient Rome came up with age cutoff for marital consent; they
regarded the minimum age for marital consent as 14 and 12 for boys and girls, respectively,
which was subsequently adopted by the Catholic Church, English civil law, and by default, the
colonial America (Dahl, 2010). Worldwide, while child marriage is declining, about 14 million
girls under the age of 18 are currently married annually, even before they have had a chance to
understand sexual and reproductive health (UNFPA, 2012). In the United States, about 8.9% of
women’s marriages occur before age 18 (Le Strat, Dubertret, & Le Foll, 2011). In some countries
of Southern Asia, somewhere between 50% and 70% of girls are married before age 18 (Hamp-
ton, 2010; Nour, 2009; Pandey, 2017; Raj, 2010). These girls are married as children as a part of
the tradition; many are forced into marriage (Kopelman, 2016; McFarlane, Nava, Gilroy, &
Maddoux, 2016; Sabbe et al., 2013; Salvi, 2009). Regardless of how and why girl child marriage
persists, the practice of child marriage has adverse consequences on women and girls. These girls
not only are at a higher risk for IPV and maternal mortality but also miss out on their childhood,
education, intellectual development, and an opportunity to attain financial independence in their
lifetime (Babu & Kar, 2010; Hampton, 2010; Koenig, Stephenson, Ahmed, Jejeebhoy, &
Campball, 2006; Lloyd & Mensch, 2008; Nour, 2006, 2009; Ouattara, Sen, & Thomson, 1998;
Pandey, 2016; Raj, 2010; Raj et al., 2010; Speizer & Pearson, 2011). It will be difficult to attain
gender equality until we allow little girls to enjoy their childhood. While many countries now
have national laws prohibiting child marriage of girls, cultural practices seem to trump the
implementation of these laws and thus little girls are married illegally (Pandey, 2017). Recogniz-
ing child marriage as a problem is the first step in the right direction. Now that we know its
prevalence and consequences, we can begin to explore ways to eliminate child marriage. Helping
communities maintain vital statistics—registration of births and marriages will make it easier to
monitor the implementation of child marriage prohibition laws (Pandey, 2017). Social workers
Pandey 129

can also organize girls, boys, their parents, local priests, and community members to influence
the decisions to delay the marriage of girls until they attain legal age. In far-western Nepal, the
UNFPA-Nepal, that has several key staff social workers, has found it easier to attack child
marriage by working with local priests and astrologers. Other efforts are also going on to
organize girls and boys.

Demographic Imbalance Around Gender

As we advance toward 2030, we also need to address some emerging challenges. An imbalance in
sex ratio and lack of institutional structures to support rising single motherhood are two significant
new challenges. An imbalance in the sex ratio is a relatively new problem. We are witnessing, for
the first time, gender imbalance in an unprecedented manner, resulting from multiple drivers (sex
selection, neglect of female infants). As of 2015, there were 62 million more men than women,
worldwide (UN, 2015b). This is approximately 8 million more than the total population of Con-
necticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode
Island, and Vermont put together. Imagine all these states with only men. Currently, China (116
boys/100 girls) and India contribute most to this gender imbalance (UN, 2015b). While the
specific implications of such gender imbalance are still unfolding, we have the potential to see
devastating impacts on women and girls and their well-being. Already, thousands of women from
relatively low-resourced countries (e.g., rural Vietnam and Burma) are entering countries with
more resources (e.g., Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea) as foreign brides. Foreign brides are more
susceptible to abuse, discrimination, and have fewer rights when they cross borders and experi-
ence lower social, economic, and health status (Tsai, 2011; Wu et al., 2004; Xu et al., 2014). Social
workers are needed more today than ever before to document abuse and discrimination these
women face and to empower them through advocacy and community mobilization, so that these
women fight for their rights.

Lack of Policies Adapting to Changing Family Structures

Finally, new social policies and institutional structures are needed to empower women with children.
The rise in single motherhood has become a worldwide phenomenon and this trend is likely to
continue. Women raising children as single mothers has increased due to a host of factors including
an increase in divorce rates, increase in labor force participation and financial independence of
women, and improved social acceptance of births outside of marriage (UN, 2015b). In the United
States, one in four children resides in a family headed by a single mother (McLanahan & Jencks,
2015). The proportion of single-mother families is increasing even in countries where state support
for single mothers is on the decline (Utrata, 2015). As women are denied access to well-paying jobs
and equal pay, female-headed households with children are at greater risk of poverty (UN, 2015a).
Social policies have yet to catch up to the reality of changing family structure and associated needs.
Social workers must become central to the design and development of new social policies that better
respond to the changing family structure. We need social policies—children’s allowances, tax
benefits, and other forms of income transfer policies—that are friendly to single mothers and protect
them from becoming poor and homeless. Social workers have a role in mobilizing single mothers to
help influence health and welfare decisions at the local, state, and national level. More importantly,
social workers must also challenge setbacks (e.g., the recent ban on American foreign aid to non-
governmental organizations in resource-poor countries that offer abortion counseling) and help
speedup the process of women and girls’ empowerment, so that all women have equitable access
to resources to develop and utilize their full potential by 2030.
130 Affilia: Journal of Women and Social Work 32(2)

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