GENDER AND SOCIETY

By:
Agustin Martin Rodriguez
Ara Marie Leal Rodriguez

Chapter 7: Women Development and the World

Chapter 8: Gender Interests and Needs

Group 4
Sarah Mae P. Gulleban
Mark Mabitasan
Felix Mayor
Al-sakul Habibul

BSME 2B
 CHAPTER 7
WOMEN, DEVELOPMENT AND THE WORLD

GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

This chapter is about the growth and development of the world and its impact t the
environment and the people. Growth and development is inevitable and we cannot deny the fact that it
is very helpful for us human being especially in our today’s world. Development are assessed by
countries GDP and GNP. The higher the GDP and GNP, the greater economic activity has, that means
greater income and greater development of a country. A continuous growing of this variables reflect
how develop the people are and they have a healthy economy which is progressing.

However, the consequences of the world's constant growth and development is somewhat
problematic. Every country is growing, and the consumption and use of natural resources are higher
that is an undeniable fact. The more the country is being industrialize, the greater the consumption of
food, water, oil and petroleum which regulates the factories and transportation which is crucial to
humans. Since there is development, population is also growing and the need of the people are greater.
Because of this there are constant decline in the following resources that result water shortage for
irrigation and drinking, loss of flora and fauna, oil and petroleum reserves is difficult to access. The
demand for oil is high and scientist estimates that if this scenario continuous there will be a so called "oil
peak" or the easily accessible oil has been consumed and the available supply will be hard and very
difficult to get.

Loss of different natural resources and species is actually a threat to people because this thing
are crucial for everyone's survival. The world is being industrialized and it emits a large percentage of
carbon dioxide and other harmful air pollutants that makes the world to become warmer. It also affects
the weather pattern that is important for people's agriculture. Underground freshwater is also affected.
This is what we call global warming. Too much production and consumption leads to abuse use of our
scarce resources. Human being created the problem because of constant development and they are the
one who suffers for its effect because the environment was destroyed and people are all dependent on
its resources.

WOMEN AND THE DOMINANT ECONOMIC SYSTEM

The pursuit for developing is destructive to the world, threatening human existence and well-
being. It is unsustainable yet people insist on pursuing growth because it is assumed to be necessary for
sustaining economies and maintaining collective existence. Environmental weather conditions, causing
loss of home, food and water shortages, and diseases. Unfortunately, a greater proportion of these
vulnerable people are poor women. These rather unfortunate effect of growth and development sadly
effect women negatively, in part due to their socialized gender roles.
 Development continuously dress cheap labor to cities where economic activity is high. However,
women patriating in cheap labor have to take on the additional burden of child - rearing. Women who
work in factories are also prone to risky jobs in exchange of lower pay than men. Being the primary
health providers in their families and communities, women too suffer from the negative health effects
of global warming, industrialization, and the squalor of expanding urbanization - all of which are the
direct effect of the pursuit of growth.

GENDER AND DEVELOPMENT

Women who choose to participate in the dominant system are made to accept its values.
From the perspective of the dominant system, these values are supposed to result in a better
life, although these same values compel women to decide between success in the economics
system and cultivation of family and community life.
An individual is expected to earn a living and almost everyone will end up working in
institutions that operate on profit and growth.
PRO-WOMEN PERSPECTIVE ON DEVELOPMENT
Pro-economics development may be detrimental to everyone but it has a more negative
impact on women. According to Shiva, an economics system that is geared toward growth and
accumulation is anti-women and anti-environment. “She has a point".
From the perspective of western development, raw nature is a wasted resource that ought to be
transformed into a tradable commodity or things that can then be transformed into instruments of
wealth accumulation in the market.

WOMEN IN RELATION TO DEVELOPMENT

This chapter is written not only to expose the present flaws of patriarchal values on
LIBERAL CAPITALISM, but also to initiate critical thinking about about development and to
reflect on the vital role of women, especially poor peasant women, on humanization. Because
development is still based on aggressive masculine values, women themselves must act
together in enriching, or collecting, this narrow view of development.
HOW WOMEN FEED THE WORLD
Women are known KEEPERS OF BIODIVERSITY throughout the world. In small farms in Africa
and many parts of Asia, women cultivate small backyard farms, thus preserving hundreds of
species. Around 18 to 120 species are farmed in small gardens that are separate from cash crop
hectares.
Mexican peasant uses nearly 435 Flora and Fauna species for various purpose. The
preservation of plant species in these countries is directly tied too.
 CHAPTER 8
GENDER INTERESTS AND NEEDS

GENDER INTERESTS AND NEEDS IN DEVELOPMENT

Empowerment of women, especially the poor and marginalized, is crucial to sustainable human
development. Importance must also be given to care-oriented or socialized feminine values.

Women’s roles are still shaped by development agencies that somehow do not understand the context
or rationale of the women from the grassroots.

In Caroline Monser’s Gender Planning and Development: Theory, Practice and Training,
discussed feminist theories in relation to trends in gender and development and gender planning. In this
work, women’s needs are categorized into two to help development planners efficiently identify
programs that would best benefit low-income women in developing nations. These needs are concerned
with gender roles, empowerment, and women’s access to resources and decision making both in public
and private sphere.

Development plans and policies often view women as one homogenous group. This view,
however, assumes that the needs of women are all the same. The roles may be the same but the
context is completely different. Hence, it is important to determine a women’s gender interests versus
her gender needs in the context of her culture and religious identity.

GENDER INTERESTS

Gender interest are assumed by many to be the same for all those belonging to the same sex.
But according to Maxine Molyneux, a feminist, defines gender interest as interest that are developed by
men or women by “virtue of their social positioning through gender attributes”.

Planners translate gender interest into identifiable and concrete gender needs. Gender interests are
considered prioritized gender concerns while gender needs are “means by which their concerns may be
satisfied”.

Gender interests are further differentiated into either practical or strategic depending on how
these gender interests are addressed.

PRACTICAL GENDER NEEDS

While gender interest is important in gender analysis, gender interest should be translated into
gender planning. Similar to gender interests gender, needs are two types the: practical and strategic.

PRACTICAL GENDER NEEDS in terms of planning are not necessary feminist, it refers to women's
nutrition, leaving condition, health care and employment. But this needs not exactly for women.
Practical gender needs are based on existing gender division of labor: the needs of women as a mother,
such as child care, food provision, house work and wives.

The statement that the practical gender needs such as child care and access to the water and
nutrition are universal needs. It obscures the true women's specific needs. Because of women's practical
needs often involve their roles in the households as primary agent in the reproductive sphere. It masked
the true women's specific need. It confronts the issues that are the heart of feminist movement: gender
inequality, gender justice, and women empowerment.

STRATEGIC GENDER NEEDS

Strategic gender interest due to her socialized gender role as a woman: one who has
subordinate positions in the society. These are needs that are rooted in gender inequality, lack of
political representation, violence against women and other abuses to women.

The women gender interest is gender Equality and if it exists the domestic violence well be
tackled, the gender needs involves the creation of law that can protect women for domestic violence.

Addressing strategic gender needs involves analysis of gander subordination by identifying the
strategic gender needs along with the practical gender needs, so that policy makers can contribute to
the attainment of the strategic gender interest, gender equality, empowerment and equity.

CHALLENGES FOR THE FULFILLMENT OF GENDER NEEDS IN THE PHILIPPINES

Gender mainstreaming- the strategy for the inclusion of the gender perspective in all policies
and programs

The Philippines enact gender mainstreaming. However, the gender literature in the country only
assumes two genders (male and female), and that one's sex is the same with one's gender (biologically
male persons are all masculine and female persons are all feminine).

Challenges

•Such thinking ignores the LGBT persons or persons who do not fall categorically into masculine or
feminine roles.

•Gender needs are equated to women-specific, practical and strategic gender needs

•Gender mainstreaming group women in a homogenous manner without being able to classify who
women are

Confusion also arises because 'gender' and 'women' are not defined in primary gender
mainstreaming texts such as the Magna Carta on Women.