Global Trade Expansion and Liberalisation: Gender Issues and Impacts
Marzia Fontana Susan Joekes and Rachel Masika
Bridge
1 Jun 2007
Background to study
This study was commissioned by the Social Development Division (SDD) of the Department for International Development (DFID), UK, to assess the current state of knowledge about gender inequality and trade, to inform the development of policy in this area and to identify areas for future, policy relevant research. It is largely based on existing literature and analysis of secondary data, as well as on information from selected stakeholder organisations, including international agencies and nongovernmental organisations.
The report was prepared by a team of gender specialists and economists, Marzia Fontana, Susan Joekes and Rachel Masika, under the management of the BRIDGE(briefings on development and gender) service1 at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), UK. A draft version was submitted to DFID in September 1997 and this formed the basis of discussion at a workshop convened at DFID on 10 October 1997. Participants at the workshop included DFID personnel from SDD and the European Union Division (EUD), as well as representatives of NGOs and research institutions. A summary of workshop discussions and list of participants are appended to this report.
Concern with the coherence of development co-operation and broader economic cooperation policies is growing. This report constitutes a contribution to this debate and highlights areas where the existing database needs to be strengthened in respect of gender issues. Given that this is a relatively new area of inquiry, there is also a need to develop the methodological framework to enable more rigorous analysis. For these reasons, only provisional conclusions can be drawn at this stage requiring further empirical investigation and verification.
Overview
A major challenge for development policy aimed at reducing poverty is to enable a more equitable distribution of the gains associated with trade expansion and liberalisation. This requires a better understanding of why some countries and social groups are able to benefit more than others from increasing trade flows. There is some understanding of these issues at country and regional level but there has been little consideration as yet of the gender dimension of trade outcomes.
