WID (Women in Development)

• In 1970 Esther Boserup published the analysis of her research “women’s role in economic development”
• Women are the major contributors particularly in agriculture to community productivity, but their contribution was not reflected in national statistics
• Feminist revolution, neglect the productive role of women so that it consequently negatives impact on women.
• Economic growth is not concentrated on women role so that access of women on resources become weak.
• Trickle down approach/welfare approach of development could not address the women issues
• Not concentrated on the institutional progress but only concentrated on integration of women
• As a result, international women’s year was in 1975 and the period between 1976-1985 was declared as ‘UN decades for Women.

Theoretical approach of WID

1. Feminist revolution, neglect the productive role of women so that it consequently negatives impact on women.
2. Economic growth is not concentrated on women role so that access of women on resources become weak.
3. Trickle down approach/welfare approach of development could not address the women issues
4. Not concentrated on the institutional progress but only concentrated on integration of women

Criticism of WID

1. The unwanted consequence of depicting women as a unit whose claims are conditional on its productive value
2. Furthermore, the WID, although it advocated for greater gender equality, did not tackle the unequal gender relations and roles at the basis of women’s exclusion and gender subordination
3. Moreover, the underlying assumption behind the call for the integration of the Third World women with their national economy was that women were not already participating in development,
4. The WID was also criticized for its views on the fact that women’s status will improve by moving into “productive employment”, implying that the move to the “modern sector” need to be made from the “traditional” sector to achieve self-advancement, further implying that “traditional” work roles often occupied by women in the developing world were inhibiting to self-development.