Gender and the New World Development Report

Dr. Dileni GUNEWARDENA

The World Development Report (WDR) is a theme-based report put out by the World Bank every year. Each annual report focuses on a specific aspect of development. The report typically presents theoretical concepts and empirical data generated by top researchers in the field in a manner that is easily accessible to a "wide international readership." In recent times, technological innovation has made it possible to present information through videos and charts on the WDR website, which has increased the accessibility of the report. In the past, many WDRs have not lived up to the mandate required of them. However, the newly released WDR2012, which focuses on Gender Equality and Development is an example of a WDR that has successfully accomplished its mandate. This reviewer's only complaint is that this theme deserved to have been covered by a WDR a long time ago!

Unlike its UNDP counterpart, the Human Development Report, the WDR tends to draw mainly from development economics in defining its conceptual framework. Since this field has been one of the most vibrant areas in economics in recent times, no apology is needed for doing so. In its own words, the report "uses an economic lens to understand what underlies and drives differences between men and women in key determinants of welfare."

For non-economists unfamiliar with development economics, reading this report is an excellent opportunity to see how powerful this economics lens can be. For example, the report's introduction explains how gender gives rise to inequality: "Played out over the life cycles of individuals, gender can translate into inequalities. It determines the way households allocate resources to sons and daughters, through decisions about boys' or girls' education or about where they work, with sons typically working on the farm and in other market work while daughters work in the home and care-giving activities. By the time girls and boys become adults and form households, women typically have fewer years of education than men (although this is changing rapidly), work longer hours but fewer in the labour force, earn lower wages, and have less say in their communities and societies."

Development economists look at this scenario and identify three main areas in which inequalities tend to matter: (1) human capital endowments such as education and health, (2) access to economic opportunities and productive resources, and (3) agency, or the ability to make choices and take action. Development microeconomics provides the conceptual framework to analyse how these inequalities arise-through decisions that are made within households as well as decisions made by or shaped by markets and institutions. And development micro-econometrics provides the basis for rigorous quantitative empirical research to provide evidence to support or refute the ideas of theory.

What is exciting about this report has to do with what is exciting about the two fields of the Economics discipline that are related to it: Gender Economics and Development Economics.

These two fields have in the last few decades been the ones in Economics in which the most exciting theoretical and empirical developments have taken place. For example, it is in the confluence of these two disciplines that the economic concept of a unitary household has been challenged. Rather, real life for many women all over the world has much to do power and bargaining within households. In addition to exciting theoretical developments, several examples of the exciting field research and experimental research that has been done in the last decade are also presented here.

Description, analysis and action

These concepts and empirical findings are presented in a three-part structure focusing in turn on description, analysis, and action. Part I, taking stock, devotes two chapters to describing the status of gender equity. Chapter 1 describes dimensions or areas in which considerable gains have been made while chapter 2 focuses on areas where improvement is still required. Part 2, the analytical core of the report, analyses the roles of economic growth, households, markets and institutions in promoting (or impeding) improvement in the welfare determinants of human capital, agency, and access.

The first chapter in part 3 focuses on domestic policy action in the three areas of human capital, agency and access, and adds a fourth: namely, limiting the reproduction of gender inequality across generations. The last chapter looks at the complementary role of global action in supporting domestic action in these areas, while the penultimate examines the political economy of gender reform.

However, the report is not just for economics geeks or "wanna-be economists". The results of a qualitative study, conducted across an impressive array of countries and regions, is presented in easy-to-read fashion in several spreads and boxes through the report. Important insights are gleaned: "If there is transportation they will let me learn, and I can become a teacher" or "A woman cannot work outside the village unless she has a male guardian with her" or some of the responses describing pathways and obstacles to empowerment in rural Dhamar in the Republic of Yemen.

Although this is the first WDR on gender (and one hopes that there will be a repetition of this theme, at least every ten years), this is not the first WB report on Gender. Engendering Development, published in 2001 by the Development Research Group of the World Bank, provides some of the early data and conceptual underpinnings for this report.

One of the interesting differences between these two reports lies in chapter 8, which looks at the political economy of gender reforms. It is one thing to know which policies will work. It is yet another to have the political will to bring them about. Moreover, whether policies will work or not, depend on the ground situation-how different environments and social actors respond to these policies.

The chapter brings together a large body of evidence- some of it hard, some of it anecdotal-of the roles played by collective action, firms, and the state in bringing about policy change. Sri Lankan readers will find interesting the reference to "Garments without Guilt", a programme launched by the Sri Lankan Apparel Association Forum, positioning their industry as socially responsible, and gender sensitive. However, the report goes on to remark that practices vary across firms, and smaller firms are likely to pay less attention to social responsibility when the bottom line of the profit margin is at stake.

The report demonstrates that the link between gender equity and development goes both ways-growth and change can improve or impede gender equity. Although the report acknowledges the intrinsic value of gender equity (that women, as human beings, have a right to being treated fairly), it is the message of instrumental value (the idea that gender equity is also "smart economics") that rings loud and clear. It is sad indeed, that this emphasis is needed in order to put gender equity on the agenda of policymakers and decision makers the world over.

The WDR can be viewed in its entirety at http://go.worldbank.org/CQCTMSFI40

The writer is a Senior Lecturer in Economics at the University of Peradeniya.

Mirror, mirror on the wall

Aditha DISSANAYAKE

When the wicked stepmother in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs goes to the mirror everyday and questions "mirror, mirror on the wall who's the fairest of them all"? The mirror tells her "A lovely maid I see, lips red as a rose, hair black as ebony, skin white as snow...". Today's women though, need no mirrors to tell them they are not the "fairest one of all". As advertisements on tv, in the newspapers and magazines and on billboards never grow tired of telling the descendants of Eve, to achieve that total look one has to use a certain toothpaste, deodorant or wash ones clothes with a certain washing powder.

No wonder the leaders of the women's liberation have begun to focus their ire on a new target: the distorted image of women in advertisements. Their primary complaint is against the generally servile role of women in ads. Though nearly one-half of women in today's world hold jobs, they are still depicted in many advertisements as scatterbrained homebodies, barely able to cope with piles of soiled laundry, dirty sinks and other mundane minutiae. In most of these ads, men instruct, while women do the servants' work. This, the feminists argue, only reinforces the idea of women's dependency on men.

Another grievance concerns the use of seductive poses or revealing attire to promote products. Most of these ads, feminists note, perpetuate the notion that women are mere objects. They are also irked by ads that provoke guilt feelings in women with the implication that unless women buy a certain product (i.e baby soap or milk powder) they will fail as mothers and wives.

Not only women's liberationists but some advertising agencies too have taken up the cause against the objectification of women in advertisements. "Some advertisers act like women have brain damage," says the manager (a woman) of a reputed advertising agency based in the USA. "This has to change. Women are tired of insults."

In a survey conducted by a research group 600 women were asked "What TV advertisement can you recall that you find particularly demeaning or objectionable?" The most resented advertisements were for deodorant, washing powder and toothpaste. Most women found these advertisements belittle family life and offend women in their roles as wives and mothers. They also disliked the fact that often the background voice "talked down" to them. "Advertisers must think that women are stupid if they are to believe that a shampoo will help them find the perfect husband." said one irate woman.

According to the National Organization of Women (N. O. W.) there are at least five ways that advertising, in any medium, subtly discriminates against women. Among them the most harmful is the depiction of women as frivolous, docile, stupid, and incompetent. Most advertisements appeal to women's insecurities and fears about their roles as wives, mothers, lovers, and house-cleaners. They convey the image that the only role open to women is to cater to men. In addition, "Women are also encouraged to have a manic obsession with cleanliness." notes N.O.W.

Advertising also portrays limited and unrealistic stereotypes of male and female roles - both occupationally and sexually. This includes the sin of omission in showing only a limited number of occupational roles held by women. A recent survey of ads indicates that nine percent of ads showed women in working roles while ninety-one percent showed them in decorative or homemaker roles. When women were shown in an occupation, most of the time it was as a secretary, beautician, or teacher.

Using women who serve no function except to decorate the product is dehumanizing, N. O. W. contends. When it is desirable to have a person in an ad, that person can be an active, competent woman, rather than a doll. They singled out industrial product advertising as a chief offender. Frequently, the industrial product is so uninteresting that the advertisers "throw in a good looking woman in some ridiculous pose."

N.O.W feels advertising also tries to exploit the women's movement. Many ads are employing the word "liberation," implying association with the movement. Although it is basically a civil rights movement-, it is subjected to much abuse "in the name of humor, creativity, and timeliness."

Yet, even amidst such accusations "admen" continue to stick to the formulas that they consider instigate success. Thus beautiful, serene, glmourous women continue to flutter like little doves around their kitchen sinks or their baby's cribs;obsessed with cleanliness and embarrassed or guilty about dirt,envious of other women's achievements or boastful about her own cooking or cleaning accomplishments.

There are yet a handful of executives in the advertising business who believe that they ultimately will have to take note of the feminine protest. "In advertising," says Dr. Robert Wachsler, a psychologist in the USA, "we will have to show women less as women and more as people."

Or change the slogans and the target group altogether. "Want to be more of a man", future advertisements of men's perfume should ask and reveal the ultimate answer. "Try being more of a woman."

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