Women empowerment for development and poverty reduction

Gender is a common term whereas gender discrimination is meant only for women. They are the only victims of gender discrimination and it is pervasive in Asia. Gender discrimination is not biologically determined; it is determined by society. This discrimination against women can be and must be changed. Though women constitute half of the world's population, they are doing two-third of labour of the total work in the world; but receive only one-tenth of the world's total income. Nearly two-thirds of the women are illiterate and they possess only one-third of the world's assets. Only one-fourth of the families worldwide are headed by women. Bangladesh, being a male-dominated society, gender discrimination is customised here habitually.
Gender equality is, first and foremost, a human right. A woman is entitled to live in dignity and freedom. Empowering women is also an indispensable tool for advancing development and reducing poverty. Empowered women contribute to the health and productivity of the family and community and to improved prospects for the next generation.  Yet discrimination against women and girls, including gender-based violence, economic discrimination, reproductive health inequities, and harmful traditional practices, remain the most persistent form of inequality. There are several organisations and institutions advocating for women, promoting legal and policy reforms and gender-sensitive data collection, and supporting projects that improve women's health and expand their choices in life. Despite many international agreements affirming their human rights, women are still much more likely than men to be poor and illiterate. They usually have less access to medical care, property ownership, and employment. They are far less likely than men to be politically active and far more likely to be victims of domestic violence. The ability of women to control their own fertility is absolutely fundamental to women's empowerment and equality. When a woman can plan her family, she can plan the rest of her life. When she is healthy, she can be more productive. And when her reproductive rights including the right to decide the number, timing and spacing of children are ensured, she has freedom to participate more fully and equally in society.
Gender equality implies a society in which women and men enjoy the same opportunities, rights and obligations in all spheres of life. Equality between men and women exists when both genders are able to share equally in the distribution of power and influence; have equal opportunities for financial independence through work, enjoy equal access to education and the opportunity to develop personal ambitions. A critical aspect of promoting gender equality is focusing on identifying and redressing power imbalances and giving women more autonomy to manage their own lives. Where women's status is low, family size tends to be large. Population and development and reproductive health programmers are more effective when they address the educational opportunities, status and empowerment of women. When women are empowered, the whole families benefit, and this has ripple effects to future generations. The roles that men and women play in society are not biologically determined but are socially determined, and so they are changeable. Although they may be justified as being required by culture or religion, these roles vary widely by locality and change over time.
Key issues and linkages regarding gender discrimination are:
(1) Reproductive health: Women, for both physiological and social reasons, are more vulnerable than men to reproductive health problems. Reproductive health problems like maternal mortality and morbidity represent a major but preventable cause of death and disability for women in developing countries.
(2) Stewardship of natural resources: Women in developing nations are usually in charge of household business and overseeing family health and diet. Therefore, they tend to put into immediate practice whatever they learn about nutrition, environment and natural resources. This practice is yet to be implemented in Asia.
(3) Economic empowerment: More women than men live in poverty in Asian countries. Economic disparities persist partly because much of the unpaid work within families and communities falls on the shoulders of women and thus they face discrimination in the economic sphere.
(4) Educational empowerment: About two-thirds of the illiterate adults in the world are female. Women's education is strongly associated with their emancipation.
(5) Political empowerment: Social and legal institutions still do not guarantee women equality in basic legal and human rights, access to or control of land or other resources, employment and earning, and social and political participation. Laws against domestic violence are often not enforced on behalf of women, especially in Asia.
(6) Women's work and economic empowerment: In nearly every country in Asia, women work longer hours than men, but are usually paid less. Women spend much of the day performing tasks to maintain the household. In many Asian countries women are also responsible for agricultural production and selling. But at the end of the day, what they are paid is far less than the male working in the same organisation or same job.
(7) Unpaid domestic work: Women remain busy in all kinds of domestic work. Overall well-being and quality of life of the entire family depend on the services rendered by women. But still they are neglected and not appreciated for what service they provide to the family and society. Poor women do more unpaid work, work longer hours and may accept degrading working conditions during times of crisis, just to ensure that their families survive.
(8) Intergenerational gender gaps:  Women's lower access to resources and the lack of attention to gender in macroeconomic policy add to the inequity, which, in turn highlights gender gaps. For example, when girls reach adolescence they are typically expected to spend more time in household activities, while boys spend more time on farming or wage work. If parents view daughters as less likely to take paid work or earn market wages, they may be less inclined to invest in their education, women's fastest route out of poverty.
AREAS OF DISCRIMINATION: Discrimination against women has led to their lack of autonomy and authority. Although laws may give equal rights to women, these laws may not be properly implemented. In practice, land and property rights are weakly enforced, with customary laws widely practised in rural areas.
When a boy is born in most developing countries, friends and relatives exclaim congratulations. A son means insurance. He will inherit his father's property and get a job to help support the family. When a girl is born, the reaction is very different. A daughter is just another expense. Her place is in the home, not in the world of men. A girl is treated as a liability in most of the Asian countries. The causes of gender discrimination in Bangladesh are education, religious beliefs, culture, customs and superstitions, low income, and societal attitudes.
It is a belief that education of girls brings no return to the parents and that their future roles, being mainly reproductive and perhaps including agricultural labour, require no formal education. In India, girls are discriminated in several ways - fewer months of breastfeeding, less of nurturing, less care of medical treatment, less of food, and even less of parental attention. As a result, girls are more susceptible than boys to diseases and infection, leading to poor health and a shorter lifespan.
Discrimination against women reduces the available talent in the economy. Women can easily be discriminated because they are kept out of the economic mainstream. This again has profound economic consequences as the nation is deprived of the talent inherent in women.
The writer is lecturer at the Chittagong Independent University. [email protected]