Documentos de Académico
Documentos de Profesional
Documentos de Cultura
,$
Gender
and Technology i
Edited by Caroline Sweetman
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Editorial 2
Caroline Sweetman
Marketing treadle pumps to women farmers in India: The IDE India experience 25
Maya Prabhu
Resources 79
Compiled by Emma Pearce
Books and papers 79
Journals 82
Organisations 82
Internet resources 86
Electronic discussion groups 88
Editorial
T
echnology and money are seen by activism have emphasised the importance
many as the two 'engines of progress' of the technical skills and knowledge
of world development (Crewe and required to use the technology, and the
Harrison 1998, 30). The delivery of new. social situation in which this use occurs.
technologies designed in the North to the These.are the key factors which determine
South has been viewed by governments the economic and social impact of a
and non-government organisations (NGOs) technology on the women and men who
of all political persuasions as the key to eco- design, build, purchase, and use it. Writers
nomic and social development. However, here give attention to all these elements.
women's experiences of technological
innovation have shown that this is a gross
over-simplification. While technologies of 'Progress', modernity, and
different kinds, in varying social contexts, technology
offer opportunities to challenge existing For the past 300 years, societies have been
barriers to economic, social, and political judged as progressive or backward depen-
participation, they can also consolidate or ding on their knowledge of European science
worsen existing power imbalances. This and technology (Crewe and Harrison 1998).
collection of articles considers gender As Maggie Foster describes in her article,
relations in the light of the use and critiques of the transfer of mainstream
adaptation of indigenous technologies, and 'modern' technology began to gain ground
the 'technical transfer' of Northern- in the 1960s and 1970s. A focus on mostly
designed technologies into Southern large-scale, technically sophisticated
contexts. Writers here focus on a wide array technologies in urban industrial settings
of technologies, including those intended to gave way to concerns to meet the needs of
enable women to generate income and rural dwellers for 'appropriate' technology.
increase agricultural production; to save Appropriateness was judged according to
their labour in home-based tasks; to enable criteria such as small scale, low complexity,
them to control their fertility; and to and easy maintenance. While this shift
communicate using computer technology. sounds and is still rated as a milestone
The definition of 'technology' used in in development thought and practice, the
this collection is a broad one. Technology judges who deemed technologies
can be defined as an object which does 'appropriate' or otherwise were still not the
something that works or helps (Everts 1998, women and men who would use or adapt
5). Gender and development research and them, but Northern, predominantly male,
Editorial
During the 1990s, a major focus for are matched only by dire predictions of the
gender and development policy and marginalisation and oppression awaiting
practice has been power relations between those who are not linked up. What is the
women and men, in the family and in the real scope of these new technologies in
public sphere. There have been widespread offering empowerment for women living in
calls for organisational change, to ensure poverty in South and North?
that our organisations are shaped by a Radhika Gajjala and Annapurna
commitment to gender equity and the Mamidipudi's article (written as an Internet
rights of women (Goetz 1998). Only once dialogue between two authors based in
this has been achieved, can organisations North America and India) challenges
start to develop projects which challenge simplistic ideas about what constitutes
women's marginalisation on grounds of 'modern' technology, drawing a parallel
intrinsic justice, rather than simple pragma- between debates on ICT and the textile
tism. In her article, Maggie Foster argues industry. In both, they argue, Southern
that it is particularly difficult to convince women are seen as backward and their
organisations which focus on technology to traditional skills and knowledge derided. In
see women's rights as their concern, fact, Southern women innovate and adapt
because of the Northern tradition of seeing technologies as they have always done,
technical and social fields of study as integrating those from other cultures into
distinct from each other, and the association their own. This dynamic approach to tech-
of technical subjects with men. Maya nology proves that distinctions between
Prabhu's article analyses the ways in which what is 'traditional' and what is 'modern'
her organisation has addressed the need to are meaningless and patronising. While the
change its own identity in order to ensure Internet definitely offers opportunities for
that women as well as men are reached in discussion and debate, which may lead to a
the communities where organisations work. better understanding between people living
in different contexts of wealth and poverty
across the world, such prejudices will not
Gender, technology, and be challenged unless Southern women
communications actually shape their Internet 'spaces', and
Northerners listen and question their own
During the past decade, there has been a assumptions about the South. In short,
renewed interest in the power of communi- 'with all the rhetoric about the need to
cations and information exchange as an liberate "unheard voices", we miss an
engine for development, coinciding with the essential point: those voices have been
growth of personal computing and telecom- talking all along. The question is who is
munications, and the 'virtual world' created listening' (Agustin 1999,155).
as a result. Radhika Gajjala and Annapurna Heather Schreiner's article, a case study
Mamidipudi exchange their views on the of a pioneering telecentre project in rural
Internet, while Heather Schreiner looks at South Africa, provides a 'reality check' of a
telecentres, which offer more familiar ways different kind regarding women's use of
of electronic communications including new communications technologies. The
radio and telephone in addition in Internet realities of setting up and maintaining
access. Currently, discussion of the scope of sophisticated and expensive machinery in a
the Internet to bring about understanding developing country means that such centres
between Southern and Northern women are seen by many as an impossible dream.
and men, to exchange information, and to In one conference in Ethiopia in 1998, South
offer marketing and lobbying opportunities, African participants who discussed their
country's experience were told that they did there is a practical rationale for using
not understand the realities of their neigh- new technology, busy women who view
bours (ECA Conference, Addis Ababa, May computer technology as alien and off-
1998). At a recent estimate, trade relations putting are unlikely to see the point of
between unequal economies mean that an exploring it although, as Schreiner
information economy can trade one copy of reports, many recognise it as a valuable
word-processing software for 2,000 kilos of future resource. Echoing the case study
African coffee (Tandon 1999,134). from South Africa, Southern women who
A common concern for several writers in participated in a research survey by the
this issue, including Heather Schreiner and Association for Progressive Commu-
Maya Prabhu, is the scope for development nications (APC) listed the following
practitioners to work in partnership with obstacles to using computer technoloy:
the private sector in order to make it limited access to the Internet, time
possible to afford technical innovation, and consumption, information overload,
render it sustainable. This is a particularly language constraints, lack of privacy or
challenging idea for many NGOs whose security, skill deficiencies, and alienation
left-wing political roots encourage them to (Farwell et al., 1998).
reject the idea of working for profit with Another communications technology
individuals. However, these debates are discussed in this collection is radio. For
increasingly common, and opinions are many years, radio was in vogue as a
much less polarised than hitherto: 'the idea valuable method of popular education and
is that if we were to hop on to the train of distance learning, promoting skills and
the market, and maybe slightly redirect knowledge for development over great
some of the actors, and if necessary jump distances in a relatively accessible form.
off in time, we would arrive much faster at However, many studies in North and South
where we want to be' (Everts 1998, 69). have also documented the role of the mass
media in reflecting existing sexist stereo-
types about women and men. Charles
Using liard' and 'soff Chilimampunga provides an entertaining
communications technologies yet incisive case study of radio advertising
in Malawi, as a reminder that this issue
Some contributions here consider the ways remains highly topical. Gill Gordon and
in which the older technologies of electronic Katie Chapman's article reflects current
and print communications have been used, interest in communications technologies as
both positively and negatively, from a a key to promoting social development
gender perspective. In Heather Schreiner's goals and participatory methods of
article, all the electronic methods of development. In their case study of
communicating offered in the telecentre reproductive health technologies in
were new to the surrounding community; Zambia, they discuss the use of the 'soft'
computers are offered alongside telephones technologies of interactive learning to
and photocopiers, but the telephone proved promote these, as an alternative to the
most popular. Heather Schreiner points out 'hard' technologies of radio, video, and
that women do not as yet perceive a need to print. Continuing this theme, Joyce Otsyina
use them: while they are well aware of the and Diana Rosenberg's article looks at
advantages of using telecommunications to different methods of communication used
overcome geographical distances, their in a rural community in Tanzania to
migrant male partners are at the other end promote the use of improved stoves and
of the telephone, not the computer. Unless agricultural techniques.
Editorial
T
he simplest way to describe the term 'new' technologies within contexts of
'cyberfeminism' might be that it globalisation3, third-world development,
refers to women using Internet and the empowerment of women. We wish
technology for something other than to question the idea of 'progress' and
shopping via the Internet or browsing the 'development' as the inevitable result of
world-wide web2. One could also say that science and technology, and develop a
cyberfeminism is feminism in relation to critique of the top-down approach to
'cyberspace'. Cyberspace is 'informational technology transfer from the Northern to
data space made available by electrical the Southern hemisphere. There are two
circuits and computer networks' (Vitanza questions of central importance: First, will
1999, 5). In other words, cyberspace refers women in the South be able (allowed) to
to the 'spaces', or opportunities, for social use new technologies under conditions that
interaction provided by computers, are contextually empowering to them,
modems, satellites, and telephone lines because they are defined by women
what we have come to call 'the Internet'. themselves? Second, within which Internet-
Even though there are several approaches based contexts can women from the South
to cyberfeminism, cyberfeminists share the truly be heard? How can they define the
belief that women should take control of conditions under which they can interact
and appropriate the use of Internet on-line4, to enable them to form coalitions
technologies in an attempt to empower and collaborate, aiming to transform social,
themselyes.The idea that the Internet can be cultural, and political structures?
empowering to individuals and commu-
nities who are under-privileged is based on
the notion of scientific and technological The Internet and
progress alleviating human suffering, 'development'
offering the chance of a better material and Cyberfeminists urge women all over the
emotional quality of life. In this article, we world to learn how to use computers, to get
make conceptual links between 'old' and 'connected'5, and to use the Internet as a
Cyber feminism, technology, and international 'development' 9
tool for feminist causes and individual em- whether women in these contexts are
powerment. However, ensuring that women indeed going to realise empowerment
are empowered by new technology requires through the use of technology, we need to
us to investigate issues which are far more understand the complexity of the obstacles
complex than merely providing material they face, by considering the ways in which
access to the latest technologies. The Internet the conditions of their lives are determined
has fascinated many activists and scholars by unequal power relations at local and
because of its potential to connect people all global levels.
across the world in a way that has never
been possible before. Individuals can
publish written material instantaneously,
The form of this article
and broadcast information to remote In the following, we each describe our
locations. Observers predict that it will engagement with cyberfeminisms, develop-
cause unprecedented and radical change in ment, and new technology, and discuss
the way human beings conduct business some of the problems that we encounter in
and social activities. In much of the North, our efforts. Both of us have interacted quite
as well as in some materially privileged extensively using the Internet, where our
sections of societies in the South, the interactions occasionally overlap when we
Internet is celebrated as a tool for enhancing engage in discussions and creative ex-
world-wide democracy. The Internet and its changes with others6. One of us, Annapurna
associated technologies are touted as great Mamidipudi, is also involved with an NGO
equalisers, which will help bridge gaps working with traditional handloom
between social groups: the 'haves' and the weavers in south India. The other, Radhika
'have-nots', and men and women. Gajjala, works within academia, and creates
Since the Second World War, develop- and runs on-line 'discussion lists'7 and web-
ment in the sense of transferring and sites from her North American geographical
'diffusing' northern forms of scientific and location, aiming to create spaces that enable
technological 'progress', knowledge, and dialogue and collaboration among women
modes of production and consumption, with access to the internet all over the
from the industrialised north into southern world. This paper was written via the
contexts has been seen by many as the Internet, across a fairly vast geographical
one over-arching solution to poverty and distance of approximately 10,000 miles. We
inequality around the world. Much of the have written the article as a dialogue, to
current literature, as well as media make our individual voices and locations
representations of the so-called under- apparent. This unconventional form and
developed world, reinforces this discourse method seems appropriate for our subject
of 'development' and 'under-development'. matter: a belief in the possibilities of
As scholars such as Edward Said (1978) dialogue and collaboration across geo-
have pointed out, this process is also graphical boundaries offered by this
apparent in the context of colonialism, medium of the future. We do not consider
when the production of knowledge about either of us to represent the North or the
the colonised nations served the colonisers South, 'theory' or 'practice'; each of us
in justifying their project. will use her professional and personal
experience of technology within both 'first
What, then, does it mean to say that the
world' and 'third-world' contexts. We share
Internet and technology are feminist issues
caste, class, national, and religious
for women in developing nations, when the
affiliations, but once again, neither of us are
project of development in itself is saddled
representative Indian women.
with colonial baggage? In order to examine
10
related skills to be able to manage the pride of the textile industry of this country
technical side. My background as creative were abandoned and replaced by chemical
writer and student in the humanities had dyes. Even in remote Chinnur, the
not trained me for the technical aspects of spreading wave of modern science changed
being an active producer on-line, and my people's perceptions of traditional techno-
knowledge is mostly self-taught. Later in logy; they now saw it as outmoded, and
this article, I will discuss my e-mail lists as this resulted in almost total erasure of
part of an effort to try and facilitate knowledge of the traditional processes
collaborations between feminists across vast within these communities.
geographical boundaries. What scope is Europeans had started to document the
there for them to discuss and assert their local dyeing and weaving activities in the
differences on an equal basis, within these eighteenth century; Indians themselves
electronic social spaces which are them- continued this up to the early twentieth
selves based in unequal economic, social century, in a bid to preserve knowledge.
and cultural relations? In a sense I suppose But this process meant that knowledge
my on-line ventures could be called 'cyber- which had been firmly in the domain of
feminist' investigations. practice of the artisans was now converted
into textual information, and shifted the
Annapuma: ownership of the knowledge to those able
Until the nineteenth century, most of the to 'study', rather than those who 'do'.
weaving industry in the area where I work As the outside world mutated into a
was shaped by the demands of local global village, the organic processes of the
consumers. Chinnur is a little village in traditional artisan weaver turned full cycle,
Adilabad, in an interior region of the back to popularity when the colour of neeli
Deccan plateau in South India. There used (indigo) caught the imagination of ecology-
to be a large concentration of weavers with conscious consumers in the late 1970s. But
a reputation for excellence in this area. even while the self-congratulatory back-
Their reputation was based on three things: patting went on among the nationalists and
the skill of the farmers in producing intellectuals, the weavers had internalised
different varieties of cotton; the ability of information about 'modern' chemical
different groups of people to work together technology. Just as they had begun to find a
and process the cotton; and, finally, the footing in the market, their practical
wealth of knowledge of dyes and knowledge was again found wanting. The
techniques that added aesthetic value to only available information about vegetable
utility. Different castes and communities dyes was documented in the language of
were inter-linked in occupational, as well as the colonisers, codified, and placed in
social relationships, exchanging services libraries or museums, inaccessible to the
and materials, creating a strong local traditional practitioners from whom the
market economy which was entrenched in information had been gathered in the first
the traditions and rituals of daily life. For instance. Thus, although it looked as if a
example, during specific seasons or events, demand had been created for their product,
women of leisure from non-weaving in reality this further reinforced the image
communities spun, exchanging spun yarn of weavers' technology as needful of input
for sarees (Uzramma 1995). from outside experts, in the weavers' own
However, the development of chemical minds as well as in those of others.
dyes almost 100 years ago in Europe had a Today, in most descriptions of the hand-
calamitous effect on traditional Indian loom industry, the traditional weaver is seen
dyeing practices. Processes which were the as an object of charity, who can survive
12
only through government handouts or experiences don't 'count', since we are not
patronage from social elites. Yet their 'real' third-world women. Even as we
'sunset' industry as it was referred to by demonstrate our potential by attaining the
a top official in the Department of Hand- level of education and 'westernisation'
loom and Textiles in charge of formulating required to become powerful within global
strategy for this industry (personal structures, we are silenced once again.
communication, 1999) has the second
largest number of practitioners in India, Annapurna:
farming employing the greatest number. Outside the house of one of the weavers in
For the men and women engaged in the village of Chinnur is a chalk-written
weaving in villages across India, the address board in English. It says:
journey from traditional neeli (indigo) to 'Venkatesh U.S., Weavers' Colony,
modern naphthol (chemical) dyes has Chinnur'. The initials U.S. after this man's
meant a journey from self-sufficiency to name stand for 'Unskilled Labour': a
dependence, self-respect to subordination; powerful statement on how an expert
in short, a journey to 'primitivity'. weaver chooses to categorise himself. This
classification in the government records, he
Radhika: hopes, will make him eligible for a low-
Most highly-educated women from the grade job in a government office.
third world, whether or not we live in the I first came here as one of a team of field
North, experience a parallel journey to workers from an NGO which offered mar-
'primitivity' in the sense Annapurna uses keting support to craft groups. Natural
above. In part, this happens through dyeing seemed an option which would add
acquiring western-style education and value to the cotton cloth, and which would
professional status, which is not often an also eventually decrease weavers' depen-
autonomous personal choice. No woman of dence on a fickle market and centralised
the third world has the luxury of not raw material supply systems. We ourselves
choosing to be westernised if she aspires to did not know the technology, but we were
be heard, or even simply to achieve a level optimistic about the chance of reviving it,
of material freedom, comfort, and luxury provided there was active participation on
within global structures of power. Many of the part of producer groups.
us have 'made it' within westernised Transferring the technology of natural
professional systems, and have enjoyed dyeing to the field presented many
the status of the representative third- challenges. The sources of information
world woman within global structures of available were texts some of them 300
power. Yet, as a result of our education years old noting original processes of
and professional status, we are not artisan practice. Some scholars had
representative, although we are of the third researched fragments of the old processes,
world, and our stories are not those of and some practitioners recalled parts of
many truly under-privileged women in them. We needed historians to access
third-world locations. information from libraries where the
Often, we meet other people's documentation was kept; we then needed
expectations by taking on the role of dyeing experts to interpret the recipes,
victims of third-world cultures, or, botanists to participate in the process of
alternatively, victors who have 'survived' identifying materials, engineers to create
our backgrounds. Yet, when we refuse appropriate technology to ensure fastness
these roles allotted to us, some feminists and brightness in colours, and chemical
from Northern backgrounds suggest our technologists to interpret the techniques
Cyberfeminism, technology, and international 'development' 13
and demystify processes that had been this is her journey. In this context, which
inter-linked with ways of life that were technology is traditional and which
sometimes centuries old. Making scientists modern? Who is to decide which one is the
of the weavers, we had to help them re- road to empowerment and self-respect?
interpret information to suit their changed
environment and resources. We did not Radhika:
want to impose on them in the name of My journey to 'modernity' began with an
traditional technology processes that increasing awareness of my own ignorance,
would place demands on them which and of the contradictions and injustices
would be more oppressive than toxic which exist within the Northern
chemical dyes. The innate capability and educational system. I refuse to be either a
skill of the weavers made this seemingly 'victim' or a 'victor', and continue to hope
impossible task feasible, and success came that through dialogue, women, men and
five years later, when we produced a range children from different backgrounds
of colours and dyeing techniques that throughout the world can work together to
withstood the most stringent of quality overcome injustice.
tests. A group of dyer-weavers now acted In late 1995, when I started my first
as resource people in workshops held by us Internet discussion list, access to the Inter-
to train other groups. net was limited mainly to men and women
Our clients today are confident weavers from the North. (This is the case even now,
who come back to us time and again, to although there are more men and women
participate in the effort to empower more from the South who use the Internet). I
and more artisan groups by sharing started the third-world women discussion
information on a technology that has list partly as a result of my frustration with
emerged from their efforts on the field. what I saw as a lack of political commit-
In Chinnur lives Venkatavva, whose ment and exchange within some women-
husband is one of a group of six weavers centred lists. I was frustrated with the way
who decided that they would take the risk in which topics were discussed. Even in
of inviting an outside agency to help them those instances where women and men
become self-sufficient. When we first from the South had access, they came from
visited Chinnur eight years ago, a particular class background. I was also
Venkatavva was unable to offer us any frustrated with the way people represented
hospitality. Her three-year-old daughter's themselves. In my opinion, some were too
staple drink was weak coffee, drunk eager to be 'ideal native informants' for
without milk. There was no food to be Northern audiences. Southern participants
offered to visitors who turned up once the used the Internet as an opportunity to
morning meal was past. Today, she perform to a Northern audience and
entertains buyers from Europe, while receive favours for sufficiently western, or
listening to her husband tell the story of his appropriately exotic, performances. Even
successes. Her eyes are bright with laughter discussion lists and web-sites that claimed
when she remembers less successful to be critical and feminist sometimes fell
experiments which resulted in pale and into this trap (possibly, my own lists and
fugitive colours, and irate customers. She websites do so, too).
points proudly to the shirt that her It was important to me at the time I
husband Odellu wears today, which he started the third-world-women list, and
himself has woven. The journey from continues to be now, that a conscious effort
chemical technology to the indigo vat, from should be made to be critical and self-
dearth to bounty, from apathy to laughter reflexive. My second list, Sa-cyborgs, was
14
started with a similar goal in mind, but the Modern technology holds no bogies for her;
focus of this list is an interactive exchange she has choices that many women in the
of creative writing in relation to gender, north don't have access to. On days the
race, class and geographical location. Both electricity fails she watches the traditional
lists were formed in the recognition that story-telling enacted in the village square
acts of representation are political. instead of the distant Santa Barbara on
One of the main purposes of both my television. The quality and quantity of the
Internet discussion lists is to facilitate choices available to her are based as much
connections between third-world activists on the failure of technology, as on its
and scholars located within, and outside, success. So would modern technology be
US academic institutions. I hope that this working towards more quality and
dialogue will result in collaborative work quantity in choice, or less?
by and for women living in under- As an activist working in developing
privileged and oppressive conditions, in technology for her I can only say this: let
North and South. My lists are humble her have access to the Internet why
efforts which form a small section of the should this be barred when other aspects of
larger efforts being made by women all modern life are imposed, from Western
over the world. Whether they have been consumer goods, to twentieth-century
successful in any sense is not for me to say. diseases such as HIV/AIDS. But let it not
There are many feminists and activists be assumed that the Internet will empower
using the Internet in far more effective her. Otherwise this too will do what other
ways, and examples of these can be seen all imposed technology has done: the exact
over the world-wide web (see opposite of what it purports to do.
http: / / www.igc.apc.org / vsister / res / index The Internet will be a more colourful,
.html for some examples). exotic place for us with women like
Venkatavva flashing their gold nose pins,
Annapurna: but what good will it do them? As it is at
Women who tussle with the question of present, the Internet reflects the perceptions
how to define their class and Northern or of Northern society that Southern women
Southern identity on the Internet are a are brown, backward, and ignorant. A
privileged few. Questions relevant to alternative, kinder, depiction of them which
women to whom Internet technology is is also widespread is that they are victims
being touted as the route to empowerment, of their cultural heritage. Is being exposed
might ask: 'but who has the Internet to such images of themselves going to help
empowered? How has this happened? How Southern women by encouraging them to
relevant is this process for women like fight in dignity and self-respect, or will it
Venkatavva?'. further erode their confidence in their fast-
Venkatavva has seen the advent of changing environment?
roads, cars, telephones, and television in What, then, is the process by which a
the short 30 years of her life, and woman like Venkatavva could be
understands the advantages, the empowered by the Internet?
disadvantages, and the illusion of access
that these give her. In a land of faulty cables Radhika:
and unpredictable electricity supply, her Venkatavva should be free to decide how
children only drink milk on the days that the Internet and other related technologies
the bus doesn't run, because on those days might be used to benefit and empower her
the milk in the village can't be taken to the and her community. The tools and access
city to be sold, and isn't worth any money. should be provided unconditionally, not as
Cyber feminism, technology, and international 'development' 15
T
he nature of poverty is complex: it is
the result of a series of power intervention fulfils its objective from their
relationships which affect our whole point of view.
lives, even our chance of life itself. Perhaps ITDG is an international NGO founded
the most important of these relationships in in 1966 by the economist Fritz Schumacher,
terms of our opportunities for a fully author of Small is Beautiful: A study of
productive life is that which all societies economics as if people mattered (1973). The
define between the sexes. Development organisation is now working from seven
interventions which aim to promote poor self-managing country offices, in Bangla-
people's access to technological support in desh, Sri Lanka and Nepal in Asia, Kenya,
order to relieve drudgery all too often end Sudan and Zimbabwe in Africa, and Peru in
up benefiting the better off and the more Latin America, in addition to its head office
powerful who are usually men in the UK. Since the 1970s, ITDG has been
(Appleton and Scott 1994). Drawing on the working at improving its own, and others',
experience of the Intermediate Technology recognition of the part played by poor
Development Group (ITDG), this article people in technology and technological
argues that technology transfer must be a innovation. People's understanding of
two-way process, recognising the appropriate technology (AT) and the role of
uniqueness and complexity of the lives of AT organisations has altered over the last
people living in poverty, and the skills and 33 years: 'this shift has been primarily
knowledge that they have developed to towards giving due emphasis to the
cope. It must allow those women and men technological capabilities of people rather
who seek support from development than just the characteristics of technologies.
interventions to define their own needs, and The work of IT (and other AT organisa-
to participate in the design and transfer of tions) is therefore now as much about
technology through a dialogue between enabling disadvantaged people to identify
poor people and project staff. Further, the and develop technologies to address their
women and men who live in poverty must needs, as these needs change over time, as it
18
is about identifying or developing specific boost their earning power. The outcome of
technological options for specific locations this work was her book Blacksmith, Baker,
at a particular time' (Scott 1996,4). Roofing-sheet Maker (1984). As the title
This article charts the evolution of suggests, Carr found women engaged in
ITDG's approaches to gender and light engineering work, as well as work
technology, and the discovery of poor more commonly associated with women.
women 'invisible technologists'. I also focus She emphasised the importance of
on our current work with women in considering women's involvement with
industries and sectors traditionally thought technology in a broad context of production
to be closed to women, and on the ongoing and commercial activity, and moving
development of a training tool which aims beyond this context to give attention to
to bridge the gulf between development women's access to credit, raw materials,
professionals and poor producers. and markets where their enterprises stood a
fair chance of success. In order to promote
these ends, she suggested promoting
ITDG, GAD and linkages between women's groups, to
understandings of ensure that the women retain control at all
technology stages of the production process (Carr
The prevailing western traditions of 1984). This work was conducted in liaison
technology even 'appropriate' with the Commonwealth Secretariat's
technology, defined by Schumacher as Women and Development Programme.
simple, small-scale, low-cost, and non- Both within ITDG and outside, under-
violent (Schumacher 1973) are rooted in standings of the key role that technology
a male-dominated culture. Technology has plays in economic development have
been associated with machines, with become more sophisticated as a result of
hardware located outside the home, with such research and analysis by both
engineering, with men. During the 1970s academics and practitioners. It is now clear
when ITDG began its project work with that technology is concerned with so much
communities, the artisans with whom more than simply making machines work:
western male experts worked were it includes not only the hardware or
invariably, although often unconsciously, product, but an appreciation of the skills
imagined to be male. This undoubtedly and knowledge, as well as the social
hampered AT organisations from arriving organisation, which are necessary for
at a useful definition of what constitutes sustaining and adapting technologies in the
technology, and who the poor producers face of changing circumstances. 'The four
the proposed target population for their Schumacherian characteristics which
projects actually are. It has also made it defined AT and which helped to decide
particularly difficult for ITDG, as an questions of the choice of technology, have
organisation working exclusively in given way to a view of technology as one
developing-country contexts, to integrate a
element in a dynamic socio-economic
gender perspective into its work; and yet
system. Technology is now perceived as
this is critical if it is to fulfil its aim of
having four inter-related constituents:
effectively targeting the poorest people.
technique, knowledge, organisation and
Conducting and recording research product.' (Scott 1996, 2)
carried out since the early 1970s for ITDG, As views of the role of technology in
Marilyn Carr considered 50 case studies in development have evolved, so too has a
22 poor countries of women involved in 38 growing awareness and respect for the
unconventional projects which aimed to technologists living in poverty in deve-
Supporting the invisible technologists: The Intermediate Technology Development Group 19
producers in 1984, but according to her craft as a school girl. Her brother was a
findings they were few in number. Today, blacksmith and she took time off from her
it appears that there are still relatively few, studies to work with him. In the black-
but we now know that our increasing smithing sector women may be collecting
awareness of them is not only due to their coconuts, burning them to prepare charcoal,
numbers. Our preconceptions, and problems cleaning up the workshop, helping pull the
in finding an appropriate research metho- blower (most blacksmiths still use a
dology, may have obscured the true extent traditional blower) etc. but the share of
of women doing jobs of this nature, many their contribution is not recognised even by
of whom see themselves as 'helping out' themselves ... if I ask outright what they do
within family businesses. In a recent report, at the workshop, they promptly reply "Oh.
Kusala Weththasinghe of IT Sri Lanka It is my husband (son/brother) who does
reported a 'small but significant involve- that work. I cannot do these things".'
ment of women in [light engineering], a Kusala Weththasinghe believes that the
sector that most of us believed to be perception of women's role in light
"closed" to women ... The project really engineering by communities and by project
aimed to involve women by helping small- workers is similar to that of the agricultural
scale artisans to consider women's needs sector some years ago: 'It is generally
when designing and making tools and assumed that only men are involved in the
equipment. Now, at the initial stages we see production. The work done by women is
two types of involvement by women. One invisible because it is seen as "help". The
is supporting the business by maintaining fact that most small-scale light engineering
financial records. The other is actually workshops are located in part of the house
being involved in the production' (internal is another reason why the contribution of
report, 1999). the women may not be noticed' (ibid.).
The women who assist and support their Kusala Weththasinghe reports being
male relatives within such family enter- informed by a partner organisation about a
prises by using business skills, keeping woman welder in Hambantota, south Sri
books or doing the marketing are involved Lanka, who took up the job after the death
in a powerful function in traditionally of her husband: 'The lady has learned the
male-dominated sectors 'through the back craft because she had no other way to
door'. An avenue for research is how the support her children. She cannot use any
status of the women responsible for the helpers in the workshop because the society
financial viability of their businesses rises in frowns upon men spending time in a house
their family and their community. In where a man does not live! For the same
addition to playing this role, these women, reason she is reluctant to go for training to
their daughters or others who have develop her skills'(ibid.). The partner
watched them, may feel able in the future organisation is currently trying to arrange
to attend engineering training to enable for an experienced craftsman to visit her
them to participate as engineers in the workshop and train her. They will make
business, either alongside male relatives or sure that some of their women community
in their stead. In the IT internal report, development workers are present while the
Kusala Weththasinghe stated: 'In a village training is conducted.
where the project is promoting a collective Another example of women engineers
effort to help a cluster of very poor black- comes from Bangladesh. Significantly for
smith families, we have met a woman who organisations who are committed to pro-
is involved in the production side by side moting a change in gender power relations,
with her husband. She says she learned the Mahjabeen Mukib in IT Bangladesh reports
22
unexpected support from the community affects their jobs and benefits. Both these
towards women are involved in reports highlight the fact that much more
engineering in a project supported by awareness is needed from us as 'outsiders',
ITDG. In her view, 'to consider women and that our assumptions about the
only as consumers of the sector leads to the productive activities of poor women must
fallacy of sustaining the perception of be continuously questioned. A 'large
outsiders (us) who assume that women amount of skill and knowledge may exist
cannot be employed in light engineering. within a community, but much of this is
Small interventions through our project not recognised by outsiders. Even where it
will not increase women's participation in is recognised, local people may not have
the sector immensely but will dispel the the self-confidence to draw upon this store
myth of this sector being a 'male domain'. of experience and see ways in which it can
It is necessary to set up examples in order be used as the basis for understanding and
to boost women's self-confidence and using a "new" level of technology. This
position in society vis-a-vis men. This is means that when outsiders work alongside
also in an attempt to increase life's options rural people they have to be able to bring
... We went with an open mind and were an holistic viewpoint with them, rather
surprised to find out that we (as outsiders) than one constrained by the boundaries of
have more resistance within ourselves and an academic discipline' (Appleton and
in our attitudes as opposed to those who Croxton 1994, 3).
are a part of the sector or who have links
with the light engineering sector ... There is 'Mainstreaming' gender in a technical
enough support and willingness on the organisation
part of the community members to the idea ITDG faces the particular challenge that
of women's involvement in light it has always been an organisation for
engineering activity but there is still a lot to promoting the transfer of appropriate
be done ...' (internal report, 1999). technology, but that technology itself is a
concept imbued with male bias. However,
Current challenges it is not an organisation made up of
'technologists' alone. It aims to draw on the
skills of both social scientists and techno-
Promoting learning among 'outsiders' logists, and not to create an artificial divide
Growing awareness of the issues faced by between these two disciplines. Increasingly,
women technologists has focused attention ITDG technicians are moving towards
not only on the methods used to commu- listening, learning, and facilitating develop-
nicate with them, but on the skills and ment in partnership with the communities
training needed by field workers and they serve. ITDG does not have gender
project staff to equip them to work in co- project officers as such; in fact, we are
operation with the women. ITDG 'is aware against the idea, preferring to 'mainstream
that addressing gender relations is usually gender' by expecting all project staff to take
the most difficult aspect of project imple- responsibility for including a gender
mentation' (IT Kenya Gender Impact perspective in projects.
Assessment Study Report for the Pastoralist
Project, Luta Shaba 1999, 6). It is a great Recognising development as
challenge to understand the gendered a gradual process
nature of poverty, of productive and repro- The time-scale against which development
ductive survival strategies, of what women practitioners measure change is important
actually do and how outside intervention for those projects which confront deep-
Supporting the invisible technologists: The Intermediate Technology Development Croup 23
rooted attitudes involving gender roles and with' producers, fail to build or strengthen
responsibilities. In these interventions, existing technical innovation skills among
there is a challenge to maintain accounta- women and men, and have a particularly
bility while at the same time being ready limited impact on women, whose domestic
to take risks, to follow tentative leads, and roles render them less visible.' (internal
to await gradual transformations with draft training manual, 1998). Training
patience. The current emphasis in many courses such as these may have actually
NGOs on short-term impact measurement reduced the confidence and status of
may obscure more important long-term women as producers.
issues. This appreciation of slow change ITDG has been developing an improved
over time is very much part of the partici- training method with a manual entitled
patory approach to community energy 'Discovering Technologists: Women's and
development in ITDG-supported inter- men's work at village level' (unpublished,
ventions in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. In 1998). Videos, slides, cartoon illustrations,
Nepal, reports on IT's support to the micro- posters, and a manual are included in the
hydro sector talk of small beginnings, of 'a training pack. This manual is intended to be
small step forward'. In Bangladesh the small a tool which can be used in every project, to
enterprise unit talks of 'gradually moving help highlight the existing technical
towards a gender-sensitive direction.' capacity of poor women and men, and to
(internal reports, 1999) Sometimes the most show that this is flexible and adaptable. It
valuable impacts are slow-maturing, should assist partner NGO field staff to
unexpected, and difficult to measure. You communicate more effectively with the
cannot quickly build peer respect, foster people involved in projects, and quickly
self-confidence, or have an impact through disseminate the information gathered
a solitary role model. Attitudinal change during the training (with the permission of
can take a generation. participants). The modules are partici-
patory, and include the opportunity for
Developing a tool to meet these challenges debate and involvement in technology
In the face of these challenges, there is a development. They also explore ways of
growing awareness that information and designing the project which will minimise
training are required, to help those working the danger that benefits will be appro-
directly with poor women and men techno- priated by the better-off. In short, the
logists understand how gender differences training endeavours to involve local people
underpin the acquisition and use of techni- in the development, acknowledgement and
cal skills, and also examine the social status dissemination of local technical capacity.
given to different technical tasks performed The training method was tested by local
by women and men. We also need to NGOs in Sri Lanka, and subsequently
revolutionise the way information about tested and discussed by ITDG gender and
these technologists and their knowledge technology co-ordinators who participated
and skills is communicated between poor in a workshop in Sri Lanka in January 1999.
communities. 'The possibility of local Two people responsible for co-ordinating
people, especially women, being able to the pilot training from each country where
contribute to courses, and to assess, modify, ITDG works attended; staff in the Sri Lanka,
adapt and innovate technologies them- Bangladesh and Zimbabwe offices are
selves, was formerly not considered and particularly enthusiastic and committed.
did not form part of the thinking behind Currently, the manual is being further
training design. As a result, such courses, pilot-tested; training has already been held
because they 'talk at' rather than 'work for participants from local NGOs in Kenya
24
U
ntil a few years ago, advocates of national not-for-profit organisation with
the use of appropriate technology headquarters in Denver, USA. IDE's work
for development tended to overlook is currently funded by the Swiss Agency
or misrepresent women's circumstances for Development and Cooperation, the
and needs, even though a key aspect of Interchurch Organisation for Development
developing appropriate technology is to Cooperation, Misereor, the United States
answer the question: 'appropriate for Agency for International Development, and
whom?' It is now widely recognised by the Dutch Government. Working in Asia
development theorists and policy-makers and Africa, IDE aims to improve the lives of
that not only is technology not gender- the world's poorest people through its twin
neutral, but it can also be a tool to change goals of developing and disseminating
gender relations. Through using techno- simple, low-cost, and appropriate techno-
logy, women can gain a chance of empower- logies, and stimulating local enterprise to
ment: their daily lives can be made easier, deliver these technologies on a for-profit
and they can challenge the stereotypical basis. IDE technologies must fulfil the
gender roles, through gaining time, skills, organisation's requirements by being
and knowledge to participate in other kinds affordable, easy to maintain, and capable of
of work. In particular, women's use of new producing a net rate of return of at least 100
technologies in non-traditional spheres such per cent per year for the user farmer.
as in the commercial farm sector potentially There are two basic means of promoting
challenges the rigid traditional polarisation appropriate technology: the first is by using
of tasks as 'men's' and 'women's'. trained extension workers. The major
advantage of this is that it provides a free
IDE's approach service to the poorest farmers. Yet its dis-
advantage is that government and
Initiated by a group of North American non-government organisations can never
entrepreneurs in 1981, International fund enough extension agents (at least in
Development Enterprises (IDE) is an inter- India) to reach the scores of people who
26
need, and will benefit from, using the From IDE's internal sales records, we
technology. A further disadvantage for estimate that 95 per cent of treadle-pumps
women farmers and those who aim to are bought by male-headed households.
improve gender power relations is that However, this data may be misleading, as
extension agents in India are mostly men2, in-house qualitative studies reveal many
who for cultural reasons tend to restrict instances of women buying the pump but
their interactions to male farmers, assuming asking for their son or other male relative's
that no woman would be interested in name to be written on the purchaser's
irrigation technology. warranty card. This card (which the local
The other route is to promote technology dealer fills in) is the primary means for us
through the private sector. The advantages to track the number of pumps sold and,
of this route are obvious: it harnesses the more importantly, to receive information
efficiencies of the private sector to promote on who buys them. Information from a
and supply technologies on a large scale. short gender-analysis study 3 which I
IDE believes that its success stems from its conducted for IDE in 1998 showed that,
treatment of poor people as customers and while women may not make actual
not recipients of charity, and the fact that it purchases, they strongly influence the
disseminates products that are affordable decision to purchase this product.
and appropriate for their needs.
In India, IDE promotes treadle pumps Working with NGOs and
(a foot-operated water lifting device) in the private sector
selected districts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, and
Building supply networks
Orissa. Over the past four years, IDE has
also test-marketed a second major product IDE aims for a broad impact through a
affordable micro-irrigation systems (drip comprehensive strategy of creating aware-
and sprinkler systems) in India and ness about technologies, thus increasing
Nepal, and these technologies have met demand for them, and at the same time
with a similar positive response. IDE has ensuring their availability (supply). This
just begun scaling up the promotion of strategy is put into place in several districts
affordable micro-irrigation technology in within a state. In building the supply
several semi-arid regions of India including network for appropriate technologies, IDE
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, works with and through others, creating
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, linkages between and building on the
and Himachal Pradesh. strengths of the private sector and NGOs.
Since IDE started working in the region Because private businesses must make a
in the late 1980s, small and marginal profit, they have a strong incentive to
farmers in south Asia (who cultivate less deliver products in a sustainable manner.
than one acre of land usually divided into NGOs, for their part, often enjoy strong
several plots) have purchased over 1.4 relationships of trust and respect with their
million treadle pumps to irrigate their land, target group. This relationship helps in the
through over 3,000 small enterprises (local introduction of a new technology or idea.
hardware and agriculture input shops). NGOs are also a critical link because they
These pumps are mostly bought by male can offer the poorest farmers credit to
farmers, but used both by male and female purchase the product.
farmers. Treadle pumps are used IDE works in partnership with the local
extensively by women, particularly in areas private sector through identifying and
where male migration rates are high. motivating suitable manufacturers to make
Marketing treadle pumps to women farmers in India 27
the product, linking them with appropriate farmers' meetings; product demonstrations,
distributors and dealers who will stock and for example at village bazaars and fairs; and
supply the product at the grassroots level, video shows of a hugely entertaining
and training local mechanics to provide commercial film (with the necessary
after-sales service (see graph below). Each ingredient of melodrama!) whose action is
of the private-sector players in the supply centred around the treadle pump. All these
chain is self-sustaining, as they operate on a promotional techniques are employed to
for-profit basis. IDE offers support to them varying degree in each area, depending on
by building their capacity to manage the level of awareness about the product.
business operations, monitor quality Farmers' meetings constitute IDE's most
control, and by aggressively promoting the important point of contact with farmers; in
products in rural areas. We employ innova- the areas where treadle pumps have been
tive tools of rural marketing (much like a promoted alone, IDE conducts over 8,000
private-sector company would). These tools farmers' meetings each year, reaching out
are described further on in this paper. to over 160,000 farmers. These meetings last
Local NGOs play an important role as between 45 minutes and one hour, and are
IDE's other partners: they stock products, attended by groups of 15-20 farmers. The
help create awareness about them among meetings are not only a means for IDE to
their target group, and assist in providing promote the treadle pump, but also serve to
training to mechanics and farmers . They provide farmers with tips on improved
also provide farmers with credit, if agricultural practices. The treadle pump is
necessary4. IDE itself aims only to build the not a 'community product' (one which
links between the private sector and NGOs lends itself to community ownership and
to enable them to distribute appropriate management), and IDE therefore works
technologies to marginalised people. directly with individual farm families; but
community-level promotion efforts such as
Rural marketing farmers' meetings enable us to understand
IDE uses innovative methods of rural the needs and aspirations of marginalised
marketing to promote technology among farmers as a social grouping. Ideas for new
farmers. These include highly interactive products come out of these meetings and
other forms of direct contact. IDE staff income by working on a richer farmer's
follow up farmers' meetings with visits to land, or through off-farm labour. Especially
existing users of treadle pumps in order to in these cases, the women of the household
check on the quality of installations, to perform all agricultural tasks from sowing
train them in regular maintenance of the and weeding to harvesting, with the single
pumps, and to ensure that they have access exception of ploughing. Women from
to a mechanic for repairs, should the need backward castes and tribes in India parti-
arise. These one-on-one meetings are also cularly contribute to farming operations,
used to gauge the farmers' satisfaction with including irrigation by treadle pumps.
the product. All this feedback is channelled Among the women managing farms
back into IDE. who Sengupta met during the course of her
research for IDE was a woman aged about
Gender, technology, and 45, who ran the farm with help from her
marketing children and daughter-in-law, while her
husband attended to his shop in the local
The process of mainstreaming gender market. Her son helped with powering the
concerns into IDE's work here in India pump by pedalling from time to time,
began about two years ago, across several while her daughter-in-law was responsible
states in the country5. Since 1997, external for domestic chores. Sengupta's research
evaluators and funders have advised IDE shows that little effort was made to consult
to empower rural women by targeting this woman, or others, in the design
them as purchasers and users of our process, to understand the impact of the
products, and by training them to maintain treadle pump on their lives, or indeed to
and repair them. Sulagna Sengupta, a view them as potential 'customers'.
consultant who assessed the impact of the For an organisation such as IDE, it is
treadle pump for IDE, mentions that there immensely challenging to acknowledge
are 'widespread phenomena of women women as users of technology, and to adapt
treadling the pump in marginal and small our working practices according to their
farmer households who are mostly from needs. Thinking of women as 'customers'
scheduled (backward) castes' (internal for the technologies means ridding our
report, 1999). Internal data on the profile of work of predominantly masculine values,
treadle-pump users as well as external which is hard because most of IDE's
studies showed that the extent to which marketing staff are young men7. Consider
women use the treadle pump differs from the machismo associated with achieving
state to state and from community to sales targets or well-defined quantitative
community6, but that overall the treadle indicators, and you realise that little space
pump is used by many women. is left for 'gender' concerns and the
In 1987-88, 85 per cent of rural female development of 'softer', more qualitative
workers and 75 per cent of rural male indicators of success.
workers in India were employed in agricul-
ture (Govt. of India, quoted in Agarwal Advertising and marketing
1994), demonstrating the contribution of Adopting a commercial route involves
women to Indian agriculture. Women are promoting technologies through various
traditionally responsible for kitchen means of advertising, and these usually
gardens, while the main fields tend to be conform to gender stereotypes. Like
men's responsibility. However, the men of extension agents, advertising managers
many households using treadle pumps and sales representatives in the commercial
have taken to supplementing the family sector are mostly men. Many bring
Marketing treadle pumps to women farmers in India 29
'traditional' perspectives about 'men's' and a natural customer group) you would have
'women's' worlds to their work. For to find an alternative outlet, preferably
instance, if an organisation wishes to village-based, such as a commission agent
advertise an improved cooking stove, it will or the village grocery store.
target women in their publicity campaigns,
which makes sense in terms of the current
gender division of labour. However, in the
The impact of the treadle
area of agriculture, advertising and sales
pump on gender relations
activities almost exclusively target men, as IDE has commissioned a wider
it is often seen, falsely, as a male-only independent study to analyse how using
domain. Advertising or promotional cam- the treadle pump has affected intra-
paigns that do aim to reach both men and household dynamics between women and
women purchasers to promote different men in India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. The
kinds of products can be a powerful means report (available from IDE by the end of
of breaking some gender stereotypes. 1999) looks at women's and men's
Incorporating a gender perspective into participation in, and organisation of, work,
promotional campaigns has implications changes in occupation and employment,
for the type of media chosen, and the earning potential, and so on. In this section,
contents of the message. I will focus on the impact of marketing
Advertisers who aim to deliver a treadle pumps to women farmers in the
message to women face challenges such as district of Sitamarhi in north Bihar, India.
relatively low literacy levels8, and restricted The socio-cultural landscape of
opportunities for displaying or delivering Sitamarhi district is strongly patriarchal
your message. If you wanted to advertise and feudal. Agriculture is the major source
an improved seed for potatoes to both men of livelihoods; small and marginal farmers9
and women (using, say, a poster), you predominate. While this district is blessed
would praise the benefits of the seed with fertile land and abundant ground-
through pictures rather than heavy copy, water resources, marginal farmers face
and put it up at places where men and continual challenges in improving the
women congregate. For men, this might be productivity of their land, which for the
the local cigarette shop, for women the local most part requires that they have assured
bangle and sari shop. In addition, you access to water. Women (particularly those
would place the advertisement at the shop from disadvantaged caste and class
selling the seeds. A major obstacle faced by backgrounds) play an important role in
advertisers in rural India is the relatively agriculture. They do not plough, but are
low mobility level of women outside their involved and often play a key role in
homes or their villages. all other aspects of farming, partly because
male migration rates from the district are
Designing appropriate supply strategies high (personal observation and commu-
Gender differences also affect supply nications, 1998-89). Before IDE began
strategies. Going back to the seed example, promoting the treadle pump in the area,
women usually do not visit shops that sell women (belonging predominantly to the
agricultural goods such as seeds and fertili- vegetable-growing castes of kushwahas or
sers. If you would want women to be able kurmis) used hand-pumps up to six hours
to buy this product (and as they commonly per day in order to irrigate the family's
manage their households' vegetable small vegetable plots. A high proportion of
gardens, even if they are not involved in the men in the area migrated to cities and
other agricultural activities, they would be towns in search of work, or worked as farm
30
labourers, as the lack of assured access to social situation restricted women's partici-
irrigation rendered their fields unprofitable pation in the presence of men, we set up
(discussions with women, April 1998). separate meetings with women farmers.
Once IDE introduced treadle pumps in Second, IDE worked with influential local
the area primarily targeting male women and opinion-formers, including
farmers the households where male local teachers and leaders of self-help
migration had not taken place adopted the groups. The greatest challenge for our male
treadle pumps, chiefly because it offered staff (and an on-going one) is how to talk to
them 'water independence' or 'assured women without such a gesture being
access to irrigation' (market research, ORG- misinterpreted. Seeking out and working
MARG, New Delhi, 1999). There was a with female opinion-leaders greatly helps
clear need to provide the women in the to overcome this.
households where men were absent with Another strategy was to work with local
information about, and access to, treadle NGOs, including one which has established
pumps, both as a means to reduce their a network of active women's self-help
workload, and to introduce them to a non- groups. We also conducted pump demon-
traditional technology. strations among women, encouraging them
The first challenge was to provide to try the demonstrated technology; and
women with information about this techno- established demonstration plots with
logy, since IDE's staff were predominantly women-headed households. Using the
male; the second was to set up supply demonstration plot, we trained women
outlets from which women could purchase users in basic pump maintenance and good
the pumps. IDE promotes treadle pumps agricultural practice, particularly in
through the private sector in this district: growing vegetables which improve family
local hardware shops stock the product, nutrition and command a good market
while IDE promotes it through the methods price. We appointed an enterprising
outlined above. Due to socio-cultural woman (the secretary of the self-help
factors including purdah requirements, group) in the area as a dealer for treadle
women do not normally visit hardware pumps, who would be able to earn a steady
shops. Moreover, they do not view 'hard- income from commissions earned off pump
ware' as their domain, so even if they did sales. Finally, we provided training for
visit the markets they would not enter a local IDE staff (all male) on gender issues,
hardware shop to look out for new equip- the importance of women farmers as
ment (discussions with women, 1998). customers and, most importantly, on how
IDE met these challenges in the to interact with women. Throughout this
following manner. First, it ensured that all whole process, we ensured that we
IDE field staff made an effort to reach both consistently talked with the men in the
men and women during promotional family as well. As a result of these efforts,
events such as farmers' meetings, demon- over 18 months 75 pumps were sold to
strations, and video-van shows. It has taken marginal women farmers with credit
quite a lot of persuasion from our staff support from their groups.
(with support from influential women) to Over the past two years, there has been a
persuade women to participate in 'mixed' perceptible change in the circumstances of
promotional events. In the local culture, women who have begun using treadle
women, particularly young women, do not pumps (internal report, 1998). All the
sit in the presence of the male elders of women say that the time spent on irrigation
their families, including their fathers-in-law has been substantially reduced. With this
and older brothers-in-law. Thus, where the decrease in workload, they have been able
Marketing treadle pumps to women farmers in India 31
to send their children back to school instead farmers11. Once other, poorer, farmers in
of keeping them at home to work in the the village have observed the product work
fields. Most women have begun growing and seen its impact on the other farmers'
higher-value seasonal vegetables, to bring output over at least one or two crop cycles,
in income. However, much more needs to they invest in it as well. The reason for this
be done to train the women in timing their is simple: poorer farmers cannot take risks
crops in order to get the best price. The and invest in a product whose returns they
women express a strong interest in learning are not sure about. In order to reduce the
more about agriculture. Initially, many time-lag between the poorest farmers first
stated that they felt that this was not really seeing the product and their eventual
their domain, but with consistent effort on purchase, IDE works with local NGOs and
our part they began to view themselves as the supply chain to provide credit, which
important contributors to cultivation10. absorbs some of the risk. Thus, adopting a
The men in the family are beginning to more commercial route to promoting
make important shifts as well. While technologies does not limit one's ability to
initially they were resistant to the idea of reach the poorest. It does, however, mean
their wives and daughters participation in taking into account from the start the time it
agricultural and technical training, they will take to reach the poorest farmers.
now see the benefits of the small vegetable Having said that, I believe that if you have
gardens for the family, and recognise the products that are really cheap, you can
women's contribution to growing vegetables reach the poorest farmers at the outset. IDE
in the main plot. Finally, perhaps most will this year launch products including
importantly for many women, using the agricultural implements (corn husker,
treadle pump has meant a major change in grubber, and weeder) which cost US$0.5,
their lives, because it has involved them in US$1, and US$6 respectively.
using machinery. Moreover, it has enabled
many them to grow extra vegetables in the
main family plot (ibid.). Lessons from IDE's
experience
Our impact on poverty We now know from experience that there is
a long learning curve on integrating gender
IDE has often been asked whether it is able concerns with technology development and
to reach the 'poorest of the poor' farmers dissemination. It is critical to move slowly
through its market-based approach. Given and strategically, and be prepared to take
the nature of the work we are engaged in small steps. It is very important to
(i.e., promoting affordable irrigation recognise that each geographical area has
systems), we would define the poorest its own peculiarities, which must be
farmers in our target group as those who explored and understood before steps are
are termed 'landless' or who only own made in accordance with local conditions.
kitchen gardens. IDE certainly aims to We have learned, first, that products
improve the livelihoods of these farmers by must be developed with an understanding
providing them with access to irrigation so of gender roles and relations, because the
that they can grow vegetables profitably. nature of the technology itself will
We have observed the following pattern for determine the degree to which it is adopted
treadle pump adoption in a village: the first by women. IDE has now built this
pumps are bought by the opinion leaders consideration into its procedures: we have
who are better-off farmers but still fall field-tested our low-cost agricultural
within the category of marginal and small implements and micro-irrigation kits. We
32
are now ready to sell these products on a the need to integrate gender issues into the
large scale; all of them aim to reduce the programme to emerge, before emphasising
women's workload. that this necessitates change in the
In marketing terms, we have learned that organisation itself. We have found that
sales to women are not in themselves a there is no substitute for regular, non-
sufficient indicator of the level of threatening orientation on gender issues for
involvement of women in the use of the all staff. It is important that this training
technologies we are promoting. While combines conceptual awareness-building
women may not actually go to shops to buy and practical tips for implementation.
the technologies, they may significantly Another early step that we found useful is
influence the decision to purchase, and to put in writing a brief, lucid policy
therefore information about the product statement on gender issues in the context of
should be made available to them. It is our organisation's work.
important to include other indicators of Iin a technology-orientated organisation
their involvement in monitoring and staff tend to expect clear, definite answers
evaluation, such as women's attendance at on what 'gender' is, and on how they can
training sessions and promotional events. integrate it into their work. They anticipate
With this additional information, the nature ready linear models (preferably with
and degree of women's participation can be quantitative deliverables) to implement a
judged more accurately. gender-sensitive programme, and complain
An important learning point is that if an of lack of clarity if this is not there. In this
organisation wants to integrate a gender context, it is difficult to advocate a more
perspective into its programme, there is no process-orientated and flexible approach.
point in having separate staff implementing Integrating gender into the development
a 'gender' programme which simply targets and marketing of appropriate technologies
women for sales and promotion, which is a relatively new area, and therefore there
tends to isolate the issue of gender power are few models to emulate. A big challenge
relations. I strongly believe that being a for IDE is to develop good qualitative indi-
woman places you in a disadvantageous cators to measure the impact over time of
position to talk about gender in the first integrating gender issues into our activities.
place. One of my major aims over the last We plan to carry out small action-research
two years has been to win over male projects over the next year to fine-tune our
colleagues as allies and indeed to get them understanding of various aspects of the
to support the importance of integrating development and marketing of technologies.
gender in IDE both in the programme, IDE is also keen to develop partnerships
and within the organisation. Without the with other NGOs and funders interested in
support of these few key individuals, gender and technology, to share infor-
progress would have been impossible. It is mation and evolve common platforms of
important that all staff see the potential of learning. Another challenge is to increase
both men and women as users of technolo- the commitment of our staff to incorporate
gies, and the potential of using technologies a gender-awareness into all our work.
to challenge unequal gender relations. Taken together, these insights have
Integrating gender into recruitment, helped clarify IDE's goals on gender work
performance appraisal, and other personnel in its programmes. These are to help women
policies can be very problematic, and lead own an asset in non-traditional spheres such
to resentment among staff. From my as agriculture; to save their labour; to help
experience, it is more expedient political, them generate income; and to improve their
if you like to allow a strong rationale for skills and knowledge in agriculture a
Marketing treadle pumps to women farmers in India 33
sector to which they make great, but 7 Sales jobs in rural India typically entail
invisible, contributions. From these first high levels of daily travel over 50-60kms
four aims, IDE hopes over time to improve by motorbikes or mopeds. This makes it
women's decision-making status in the difficult (though not impossible) to hire
household, and to expand their domain into local women for these jobs, particularly
the public sphere. For us at IDE India, this in more conservative states like Uttar
is just a beginning. Pradesh and Bihar.
8 It is important to note that challenges
Maya Prabhu is Senior Manager for Gender and such as low literacy facing organisations
Development, IDE, C5/43 SDA, New Delhi 110 such as IDE not only spring from gender
016, India. Tel: +9111 696 98121696 9813/ differences; they also encompass
696 4632. Fax: +9111 696 5313; e-mail: ide@ problems which arise from other aspects
ideindia.org I mayaprabhurajan@hotmail.com of social differentiation, such as caste.
9 Those with less than 1 hectare of land.
Notes 10 Prof. Tushaar Shah, in Social Impact of the
Treadle Pump Programme: Foundation
1 The author is Senior Manager for Gender Study Field Notes (Orissa, 1999), writes:
and Development at IDE India. The views '... we met Asalata Parida ... she looked
expressed in this piece are my own. a miserable person, divorced barely
2 Only 0.5 per cent of extension workers three months from her husband who has
in India in the 1980s were women (ibid.). already married another women. Her
However, donors like DANIDA have son died; and a daughter was given to
recognised this as a problem and have her husband's custody by the Caste
initiated projects to train women Panchayat. Asalata is now dependent on
extension workers in Orissa. her invalid brother, and has begun to
3 The gender-analysis study was carried take full responsibility of the farm,
out in 1998 by Maya Prabhu and Sarat including the treadle pump; it looked as
Dash. It used qualitative methods such though pedalling the treadle pump is
as focus-group discussions and going to be her way of living with a
individual interviews with women. modicum of self-respect as a dependent
4 Our experience with more formal credit in her brother's family.'
mechanisms such as Regional Rural 11 The treadle pump in that sense is a self-
Banks has not been very successful due selecting product largely due to the fact
to the high transaction cost. We have that it is manually operated and is
therefore sought to provide farmers designed for small plots. No 'rich'
with access to credit through NGO farmer will be interested in this product.
partners and private-sector dealers, if
they request it; we do not use 'availa- References
bility of credit' as a promotion tool.
5 My passionate belief in the importance Agarwal, B (1994) A Field of One's Own:
of an awareness of gender issues to Gender and Land Rights in South Asia,
make development interventions more Cambridge University Press.
effective led me to champion this Carr, M (1997) 'Gender and technology: Is
agenda within IDE. there a problem?', paper prepared for
6 For example, among higher castes, TOOL/TOOL Consult Conference on
women may not be permitted to leave Technology and Development:
the household and therefore do not Strategies for the Integration of Gender,
participate in agricultural work. Amsterdam, 6 June.
34
Reproductive health
technologies and gender:
Is participation the key?
Katie Chapman and Gill Gordon1
This article discusses the impact of a community-based distribution (CBD) project in Eastern
Province, Zambia, on reproductive health and gender relations. It shows how reproductive
health can be furthered through participatory methods, including both 'hard' information
technologies and 'soft' communications techniques2 to promote the use of reproductive
technologies in controlling fertility and protecting against sexually transmitted diseases.
F
or the past 30 years, feminists have technologies in coercing women to control
sought to answer the question whether their fertility (see Hartmann 1987, Dixon-
reproductive technologies are women's Mueller 1993).
friend or foe. The debates have tended to be Alternatively, those who see
polarised. The main criticisms put forward reproductive technologies as beneficial to
by those arguing that these technologies are women, have heralded them as a means for
unfriendly to women hinge on limitations women to control their reproductive role
in the safety, effectiveness, and accepta- and balance this with other aspects of their
bility of reproductive technologies in lives. In this light, contraceptive techno-
particular, contraceptives. Advocates of logies have the potential to alter gender
women's health have criticised the choice of roles in families and societies (Schuler,
available contraceptives for not meeting 1998). Evidence of this is provided by
reproductive needs, and for controlling various studies from different cultural
women's fertility at the expense of their contexts. For instance, a study from The
health (see Hardon 1994 and 1997). Women's Gambia shows how contraceptives have the
experiences in using the methods, and the practical benefit of enabling women to rest
impact of such use on their daily lives, between successive pregnancies. This break
including their relationships with men, from childbearing is seen as particularly
have often been ignored in the research useful for women who have undergone
and development process. Women's health obstetric trauma or reproductive mishaps
advocates have called for a more compre- (Beldsoe, Banja and Hill, 1998). In contrast
hensive analysis of context-related effects of to this, the potential of family planning and
the methods, and of the users' perspectives reproductive health 3 programmes for
on appropriateness and safety, at an early explicitly 'empowering' women has also
stage of contraceptive development been emphasised (see Dixon-Mueller 1993,
(Hardon 1994). Accompanying these and Population Reports Series M, No. 12,
arguments are those which focus on the 1994), arguing that contraceptive techno-
potential (or actual) abuse of contraceptive logies can promote equality between
Reproductive health technologies and gender: Is participation the key? 35
women and men. Another, related, view agenda of the UN Conference on Population
focuses on the opportunity these offer some and Development in Cairo, 1994 (ICPD
women to enjoy their sexuality without fear 1994, Mclntosh and Finckle 1995). In
of pregnancy (Dixon-Mueller 1993). addition, there is growing awareness that
gender inequality has serious implications
for women's (and men's) health and well-
The impact of reproductive being4. Gender relations are a key factor in
health programmes on women's and men's different levels of
gender relations susceptibility and vulnerability to particular
The widespread availability of contraception conditions and infections, including HIV; in
has generally not been accompanied by a their access to health-care and the variety of
substantial shift towards gender equality in health services available to them; and in the
countries throughout the world; in most social and health consequences of gender
cases where women's economic and inequality (BRIDGE 1999). A pertinent
political power has increased, there is little example comes from Zambia, where a
or no evidence to suggest that access to woman's explanation for her irregular, and
contraception has been a significant factor therefore ineffective, use of the
(Schuler 1998). The weak link between contraceptive pill was that her husband
contraceptive usage and gender equality would take her packet of pills with him
can be attributed to two main factors. First, when he went on a trip, for fear of her being
the introduction of a new technology alone unfaithful (personal communication, 1999).
cannot change power structures between The present danger from the HIV /AIDS
women and men, which are embedded in pandemic challenges health providers to
society. Second, reproductive health meet gender-specific sexual health needs
programmes have seldom been designed beyond reproduction (Cornwall, 1999). One
and implemented in ways that empower response is to develop new technologies
women and promote gender equity; indeed, which will enable women to protect
the accommodation of gender-based inequi- themselves from unwanted consequences of
ties has often reinforced patriarchal power sex, using methods which do not depend
structures. For example, the Bangladesh on change in gender relations. For example,
Family Planning Programme employs the female condom offers women another
women in each community to deliver choice over which they have control; while
contraceptives to women in their homes on female microbicides could, in the future,
a national scale. This has resulted in high enable women to protect themselves from
rates of contraceptive use and a drop in HIV without the knowledge of their
fertility rates. In failing to address issues of partners and still conceive if desired.
women's powerlessness such as their lack Another response is to confront, or
of mobility instead bringing contra- strategically undermine, gender inequality
ceptives to women's homes, and co-opting through reproductive health programmes.
male decision-makers the programme
has reinforced ideologies which subordi-
nate women (Schuler 1998). Technology, information
strategies, and gender
It is critical to take gender inequalities in
sexual decision-making into account when Both 'hard' and 'soft' technologies can be
designing and providing reproductive used in information, education, and
health technologies. This approach, which communication (IEC) strategies to promote
is essential in the current crisis caused by reproductive health: the technologies are
HIV/AIDS, reflects the reproductive health complementary and synergistic in raising
36
Role-play, games and discussion were techniques with peer groups, analysis of
used to explore the groups' expectations as data collected routinely by CBD agents and
women or men at their stage of life, and the government staff, and focus-group
positive and negative impact of these on discussions with users of the CBD services,
their lives. For example, young women non-users, and those who had stopped
discussed the fact that they were expected using services. The range of techniques
to be sexually submissive to their provided information on the positive and
husbands, even if they suspected their negative impacts of the project on the lives
husbands to have an STD or HIV; while of community members and of the CBD
men felt that they were expected to seek agents themselves, and came up with
sexual satisfaction outside marriage if their suggestions for improving the programme.
wives were unavailable for any reason. Reductions in the prevalence of STDs and
Activities undertaken in the peer-groups malnutrition were reported by RHC staff,
focused on hopes and fears for the future; but statistics are not available at this time.
concepts of friendship, love, and marriage;
personal risk-taking; and people's tendency Number of clients using CBD services
to judge others. Participants practised On average, CBD agents reach between 150
communication skills through role-play and 200 new clients a year with contracep-
(such as how to say what they would like tive services. The contraceptive prevalence
sexually in an assertive way). The joint rate has more than doubled in areas where
workshops provided an opportunity for the project has been operating since 1996.
men and women, young and old, to share CBD agents who were trained in 1996 have
common concerns and note differences, to about 700 clients registered. On average, 40
build trust and co-operation, and to per cent of clients use oral contraceptives, 7
practise communicating about their lives. per cent foam, and 53 per cent condoms.
Often, this was the first opportunity for Male and female clients are equally
women and young people to voice their represented, with on average 10 per cent
needs and concerns in public, and they under the age of 17 years. A quarter of male
found it empowering. As one adolescent and 13 per cent of female clients are single.
girl said: 'I now feel confident to express Data on changes in health status and
myself in public. I have found my voice' fertility rates are not available, but RHC
(personal observation, 1997). staff report a drop in the number of cases of
In the final stage of the process,each peer STD and malnutrition. The local courts that
group could present to the whole deal with cases of adultery, marital discord,
community a 'special request' for a change divorce, and pregnancy outside marriage
in behaviour, often directed at another peer report a drop in the number of cases, which
group,. In one village, adolescent girls they attribute to the CBD project (internal
asked older married men to stop pursuing documents, 1999).
them for sex. One year after the activity,
this was reported to have resulted in a Feedback on reproductive technologies
sustained reduction in this behaviour. Both men and women in many of the peer
groups reported that they appreciated
The CBD project's impact modern contraceptives because they were
easy to use, free and reliable. Between 40 to
In 1998, the project team, supervisors, CBD 60 per cent of women chose combined or
agents, and members of the Neighbour- low-dose oral contraceptives, and around
hood Health Committees carried out an 65 per cent continued to use them until
evaluation of the CBD project, using PLA they wished to conceive. Some women
Reproductive health technologies and gender: Is participation the key? 39
liked the combined contraceptive pill, The impact of IEC techniques on gender
because periods are very regular and there relations and sexuality
is less bleeding. Some users of the low-dose Considering the impact of participatory IEC
pill and contraceptive injections liked the methods, women in particular appeared to
absence of periods, because they did not feel empowered by the opportunity to speak
have to worry about menstrual hygiene. out about their concerns at the joint work-
The most frequently mentioned negative shops. For instance, older women expressed
effects of the contraceptive technologies their dislike of a traditional practice,
were menstrual irregularities, infertility, whereby they were expected to show in
and side effects associated with the pill and specified sexual ways their gratitude for a
injectable hormonal methods. Fears about gift of cloth, often purchased with money
infertility stem from local understandings they had contributed to earning. The men
of reproductive anatomy and physiology, seemed surprised that the women disliked
and misconceptions about how the pill the practice, and saw no reason to continue
works. Menstrual irregularities were a it. Adolescents spoke in public for the first
problem because sex during bleeding is time about their need for sex education and
taboo. Men complained about this side- contraceptives. At the time, this appeared to
effect, and reportedly sought other women. be empowering, although the older men
Some women who used injectable contra- harassed the adolescent girls with provo-
ceptives and low-dose pills worried about cative questions. However, it was later
what happened to the blood that is learned that this kind of exchange caused
normally lost; some believed that it caused conflict and distress to some individuals, so
bloated stomachs and swollen legs. the community agreed that the peer groups
The main problems reported with the would share only what all members had
condom as a contraceptive technology agreed, and the CBD agents would act as
included breakage, which may increase as a mediators between the groups to discuss
result of a local preference for dry sex, very sensitive issues, using pictures or role play.
vigorous sex, or poor storage in hot condi- Work in single-sex peer groups gave
tions. Emergency contraception, for use people of different ages and sexes the
when a condom breaks, is not yet openly chance to explore their needs and desires,
available in this area of rural Zambia. It was and to gain confidence in speaking about
reported that condoms are too big for some sexual issues in a relatively safe space. They
adolescents, whilst the rim can be tight and could rehearse together new ways of
painful for the well-endowed. Condom communicating and behaving sexually.
disposal in communities with few latrines, They could take action to address their own
and in cases of illicit sex, is not straightfor- gender needs, and the CBD agent could
ward. Negative connotations of condom transmit their needs to others to bring about
use were also a problem. Single people, change. However, single-sex groups do not
adolescents, and those having extramarital offer practice in talking to the opposite sex
sex were seen as the main users of condoms. and in empathising with their concerns and
It was considered insulting to suggest the feelings. Working with both men and
use of a condom to a wife or committed women, and adolescents and older people,
girlfriend. However, the same meaning was is essential for improving gender relations,
not attached to the female condom, which and for achieving a better understanding of
was in high demand in the project. Married adolescents' needs by the community.
people appreciated it as a woman's method, The PLA activity with peer groups gene-
with no side effects and offering protection rated many potential CBD clients for
against pregnancy and disease. counselling on contraceptive methods, STD
40
transmission, and other sexual worries, and such freedom might be empowering for
inspired other interventions aimed at impro- young girls if they gain material benefits
ving gender relations and reproductive and pleasure, but not for the wives. Boys
health in the peer groups. If the solutions said that they were able to 'practise sex for
were beyond the mandate of the CBD future perfection without paying damages
agents, they were encouraged to collabo- to pregnant girlfriends'. As a result of the
rate with other extension agents or sectors, CBD project, boys and girls were less likely
such as the community development officer to be forced into early marriages because of
for income-generation. pregnancy and the need to legitimise sexual
Both men and women cited more contact. Young people usually saw this as
harmonious marital relations as the most positive; however, some parents felt it was
positive impact of the service-delivery negative because they could not longer
component on sexual and gender relations. count on a dowry when their daughters
This was because couples were now using married, and on the labour of sons-in-law.
technologies which meant they could have Some findings indicated that in certain
sex at any time, even when their babies cases gender relations were worsened by
were small, without fear of starting another the availability of contraceptives. This was
pregnancy. Women talked of regaining cited half as frequently as the improvements
sexual desire after childbirth. The spacing in gender relations, and many disagreed,
of births achieved by contraceptive techno- saying that it is not contraceptives which
logies meant that couples could enjoy sex lead to promiscuity, but an individual's
without a baby lying beside them. One man character. Some people thought that contra-
commented, 'whether I turn to the left or ceptives were causing quarrels and divorce
right, all I smell is scented powder, not because of lack of trust and jealousy,
baby's urine as it used to be'. Community especially in cases where contraceptives
leaders reported that there were fewer were used without the other partner
marital quarrels, and women said that men knowing. The most frequently mentioned
stayed at home, together with their money, negative effect of greater use of contracep-
because they no longer felt the need for girl- tive technologies was 'increased promis-
friends. Women seemed to enjoy their cuity' and, for these committed Christian
sexuality more, and this was linked to a communities, immorality. This was reported
sense of empowerment: one talked about with reference to adolescents who were
'staying young and beautiful' and another sexually active before marriage, and to
of 'the freedom of working in the fields adultery after marriage. A wife complained
without a baby on my back'. During the that condoms enabled her husband to chase
evaluation, the service providers reported 'anything in skirts', while some husbands
that male opposition to contraception has worried that their wives could take lovers
reduced since the CBD programme started, with impunity if they took the pill.
because the male CBD agents reach men Some women found the constant sexual
and have time to counsel them properly. availability which some contraceptives
Adolescents perceived the CBD project allowed, even soon after childbirth, irk-
as positive. Girls reported that they could some or distressing. Previously, they had
stay at school longer by avoiding teenage appreciated 'nights off from demanding
pregnancy. Some girls felt they could have husbands during menstruation and at the
affairs 'even with married men' without fertile time (personal communication, CBD
consequences. This is a good example of an agents, Chipata). One man said that 'with a
intervention having positive impact for one condom you can even have sex during the
group, while affecting another negatively: woman's menses'.
Reproductive health technologies and gender: Is participation the key? 41
CBD agents encouraged clients as much However, this focus also presents challenges
which should not be underestimated.
as possible to talk to their partners about the
decision to use contraceptives, and offered Participatory approaches can help to
to counsel them individually or as a couple. unravel the complex links between repro-
However, where clients did exercise their ductive and sexual health. Currently, new
right to confidentiality, this occasionally and distinct conceptualisations of sexuality
resulted in hostility and even violence from and gender are arising, provoked by a
partners and parents, and in accusations of realisation that, 'an important barrier in our
sexual relations during private counselling efforts to understand gender relations is the
sessions between clients and CBD agents of difficulty in comprehending the links
the opposite sex. In principle, the CBD between sex and gender ' (Flax 1992, cited
agents were expected to deal with clients in Correa 1997). It may be that lessons
of both sexes, unless the client felt un- learned from the application of partici-
comfortable with this. patory approaches can in turn help to
The impact of involvement with the establish clearer parameters for advancing
CBD project on the CBD agents themselves the sexual and reproductive rights agenda.
was also assessed. Many felt that their Creative combinations of hard and soft
training has helped to improve gender technologies used as part of a participatory
relations with their marital partners. process can help to address gender relations
Women reported that they felt empowered and sexuality and enable people to use
to talk more confidently; and a male CBD reproductive technologies in ways that
agent reported that he and his colleagues enhance their lives. However, choices are
had become 'less brutal and more caring'. limited by cost both to the communities,
and to the project. In the Zambian project, it
was not feasible to use radio or video, since
Future challenges few people have access to these techno-
for participatory logies. Even securing funds to purchase
approaches to gender and fuel for vehicles to distribute contraceptives
reproductive health to the project areas was a constant struggle.
If reproductive health technologies are to In this context, it was also seen as too costly
fulfil their potential for improving sexual to support a drama group to travel around
and reproductive health, it is essential to the villages performing plays on sexual and
understand and address gender relations reproductive health. Role-play, drama, and
and sexuality. It is increasingly recognised pictures created by project workers and the
that men and women of all ages need oppor- community themselves represented the
tunities to share their ideas and feelings, most sustainable use of media.
explore their own attitudes, develop skills, This use of the 'soft' technology of parti-
and apply new knowledge to their own cipatory approaches to IEC is time-
situations (Weiss 1998, IPPF 1997, Gordon consuming for both project staff and
1992). Participatory approaches can trans- community members, and demands
form gender relations and enable providers considerable skills on the part of facili-
of reproductive health services to gain a tators. Participatory approaches will only
better understanding of their clients' needs. transform gender relations if the facilitators
Donors' growing interest in participation, use them in such as way that people's
partnerships, and the involvement of 'civil values and attitudes are challenged. On
society' in development (ODA, 1995, IDS some occasions, the use of interactive IEC
1996, Hausman 1998) provides opportu- activities reinforced negative gender
nities for transforming gender relations. stereotypes: one story used as a discussion-
42
starter showed a woman having an affair Gill Gordon is a freelance consultant in sexual
with a travelling jewel dealer for money, and reproductive health, and a Stepping Stones
and then infecting her husband with HIV. trainer. E-mail: gmgordon@netcomuk.co.uk
In the ensuing discussion, many people
blamed the woman, saying that women are Notes
the source and transmitters of HIV. Stories
created by agents reflect the attitudes of 1 Gill Gordon has provided technical
their creators, and it takes time to assistance to the programme discussed
successfully challenge the gender biases of in this article through Options
community workers. Consultancy Services since 1995.
It is not easy to predict the outcome of 2 Hard technologies include electronic,
opening the floodgates in talking about audio and print materials. Soft techno-
sexuality. Issues of confidentiality and logies include interpersonal communi-
safety must be addressed from the start. cation activities such as counselling,
However, it is impossible to guarantee small group work, interactive
confidentiality in a group, so people may performing arts, and Participatory
put themselves at risk of gossip leading to Learning and Action (Hubley 1993).
harassment, conflict, or stigmatisation. If 3 'Reproductive health is a state of
distressing issues are aired, this can lead to complete physical, mental, and social
positive change if handled constructively; well-being and not merely the absence of
but it can also result in conflict, worsening disease of infirmity, in all matters
the position of vulnerable people. It is relating to the reproductive system and
important to establish support mechanisms its functions and processes. The term
for participants. therefore implies that people are able to
It is important to use participatory have a satisfying and safe sex life and that
approaches in ways that benefit as many they have the capability to reproduce
people as possible in the project area. There and the freedom to decide if, when and
is a risk that intensive work with relatively how often to do so ... Sexual health aims
small groups can result in feelings of to enhance life and personal relations and
exclusiveness and superiority among parti- not merely counselling and care related to
cipants, who are often the better-off. This reproduction and sexually transmitted
results in negative attitudes towards those diseases.' (ICPD Programme of Action,
who did not attend, and a lack of sharing. Paragraph 7.3, United Nations 1994)
An evaluation of a project using the 4 For a summary of how gender roles
Stepping Stones approach in two rural affect reproductive and sexual
communities in Uganda illustrated this behaviour, see Population Reports Series
finding (Actionaid et al. 1998). J, No. 46 (October 1998).
5 In radio-listening groups, community
Katie Chapman is Projects Manager and members listen to an educational
reproductive health programming specialist at programme on the radio together and
Options Consultancy Services Limited discuss it, using questions or activities
(k.chapman@options.co.uk), which provides suggested by the presenter or a local
technical assistance to NGOs, donor agencies, facilitator. The programme may also
and multilateral on all aspects of reproductive, distribute print materials to listeners.
sexual, and maternal health programming. 6 Stepping Stones is a practical approach
Options Consultancy Services Ltd., 129 to enabling women and men of all ages to
Whitfield Street, London W1P 5RT, UK. explore their social, sexual, and psycho-
Fax:+44 (0)171 388 1884. logical needs, to analyse the factors that
Reproductive health technologies and gender: Is participation the key? 43
Correa, S (1997) 'From Reproductive Health The Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
to Sexual Rights: Achievements and (1998) New Perspectives on Men's
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and Women's Rights: Transforming Development (1991) National training
Reproductive Choice, Praeger, Westport, manual for CBD programmes.
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Dixon-Mueller, R (1993ii) 'The Sexuality Health 7mages,MacmilIan, London.
Connection in Reproductive Health', in Mclntosh, CA and Finckle, JL (1995) 'The
Studies in Family Planning, Vol. 24, No. 5. Cairo Conference on Population and
Ewles, L and Simnett, I (1985) Promoting Development: A New Paradigm?', in
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the Missing Link in Women's holder participation in aid activities',
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Hardon, A (1994) 'The development of Republic of Zambia/WHO (1995) Zambia
contraceptive technologies: a feminist Contraceptive Needs Assessment.
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2, No. 2, Oxfam GB, Oxford. M e m o r a n d u m on Family Planning
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vaccines', in Reproductive Health Matters, Artist, IT Publications, London.
No. 10. Schuler, SR (1998) In Accommodating,
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Wrongs: The global politics of population Planning Programs, JSI Working Paper
control and contraceptive choice, Harper No. 14, JSI Research and Training
and Row, New York. Institute, Inc., Boston.
Hubley, J (1993) Communicating Health, SHIP (Sexual Health Information Pack)
MacMillan/TALC. (1997) Institute of Development Studies,
International Conference on Population University of Sussex.
and Development (1994) Programme for Sen G, Germain, A, Chen, L (eds.) (1994)
Action. Setting A New Agenda: Sexual and
IDS (1996) The power of participation, IDS reproductive health rights, Harvard
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(1994) Opportunities for Women Through and AIDS research program',
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45
T
here is no lack of technologies and activities can be based on culture or
scientific discoveries which could religion. In some parts of the world,
bring about economic growth and cultural and religious barriers prevent male
rural development in poor countries. The extension officers from having close contact
main problem is the lack of effective with women. This is particularly true in
communication strategies and methods Muslim countries, where male extension
(Singh 1981). Studies over the past three officers may be forbidden to speak to
decades have revealed that in many parts of women (Rosenberg 1986). Husbands, too,
Africa, most development programmes can sometimes be reluctant to allow their
meet with little success because ineffective wives to learn new ideas from men who are
communication strategies are used not part of their communities (ibid.).
(Mchombu 1992, FAO 1990). With the identification of communication
If the aim of rural development is to strategies as a stumbling block in rural
alleviate poverty, then development development comes the need to find out
information must be communicated in a what means and methods of communi-
way that will not prevent or deter women cation work best and in what
from actively participating in development circumstances. In 1992, such a study was
activities. The poorest and the most needy carried out in Tanzania (Otsyina 1993). It
in most rural societies are women. They examined the strategies employed by an
carry heavy responsibilities for farming, for extension agency in communicating
feeding their families, and often take the development information to farmers.
role of head of the household (Spore 1993). Within the general objective of determining
Timetables for development activities often the effectiveness of the methods used to
take no account of the time women spend mobilise all farmers to participate fully in
on household chores. Other reasons for the development process, our research also
women's marginalisation from communi- aimed to discover how well the needs of
cations and information on development women were being met.
46
Shinyanga and the Hifadhi Dodoma (HADO) project and, in 1986, the
Ardhi Shinyanga project Hifadhi Ardhi Shinyanga (HASHI) project.
The HASHI project is a soil conservation
The Shinyanga region is situated in north- and afforestation programme. It was
west Tanzania, south of Lake Victoria. It established in 1986 under the Ministry of
has a total area of 50,764 square kilometres, Lands, Natural Resources and Tourism, in
more than half of which is arable land, the division of Forestry and Bee Keeping,
12,079 is grazing land, and 7,544 forest and is funded by the Norwegian Agency
reserves. Annual rainfall ranges from 600 to for Development (NORAD). HASHI's main
1,200mm across the region, but during the task is to undertake, within the bounds of
dry season, from May to November, total the resources and capabilities available,
rainfall is under 50mm (Darkoh 1982). The desertification-control practices which are
region has a population of 1,674,000, about ecologically sustainable, financially
95 per cent of whom live in rural areas. In attractive, and culturally acceptable. They
contrast to a national male literacy rate of are also intended to help create a diver-
79.4 and a female rate of 56.8 (UN 1998), in sified economy, in order to raise the
Shinyanga the literacy rate at the time of the standard of living of the rural poor of in
research was estimated at below 25 per Shinyanga Region, most of whom are
cent, with women making up the majority women. Thus HASHI's aim is not to change
of the illiterate group (Bureau of Statistics the existing gender relations between men
1988). The inhabitants of the region are and women, but to help them improve their
mostly Sukuma, who are predominantly standards of living.
agro-pastoralists. Kiswahili and Kisukuma In order to achieve this, HASHI tries to
are the most widely spoken languages. raise farmers' awareness and provides
The Shinyanga region is one the most extension services in tree-planting and soil
degraded and deforested areas in Tanzania, conservation. It differs from many rural
because vast areas were cleared to eradicate development projects in aiming to promote
tsetse flies and quela birds during the 1920s people's participation in decision-making
and 1930s (Glasgow 1960). In addition, the and in solving their own problems. HASHI
unsuccessful Ujamaa (villagisation) operates with the guiding principle: 'Go to
programme under the then President the people. Live among them. Start with
Nyerere, and the introduction and what they know. Build on what they have.'
expansion of cash cropping, particularly But, even after so many years of HASHI's
cotton, in the 1950s and 1960s further involvement and interaction with the rural
contributed to land degradation. This communities, there is no clear indication
caused low and decreasing soil fertility, that women are actively participating in the
scarcity of water and fuelwood, and a programmes or adopting the ideas and
decline in grazing areas (NORAD 1988). practices being communicated (Shao et al.
Soil conservation measures were intro- 1992). Hence there was a need to assess the
duced into Sukumaland by the colonial communication strategies being used.
authorities as early as 1920 (Berry and
Townshend 1973), but their measures failed The research
because implementation depended on a
system of coercion and punishment Two of the six districts in Shinyanga
(Fuggles-Couchman 1964). After Indepen- Shinyanga Rural and Meatu were
dence, interest in conservation was revived selected for this assessment. Five villages in
and several projects were started, with more each district (most of which have HASHI
success. These included the Hifadhi Ardhi projects) were involved. The research was
Rural development and women: What are the best approaches to communicating information? 47
% of respondents
Level Male Female Total sample
No education 34 46 40
Adult education 16 13 14.5
Primary education 46 40 43
Secondary education 1 0 0.5
Teacher Training college 2 1 1.5
Bible school 1 0 0.5
NB: Respondents were allowed more than one response. Thus percentages do not add up to 100. This applies to
subsequent tables in the text.
48
Problem % of respondents
Distance to source 78.1
Must hire trailer for transport 31.3
Scarcity of firewood 30.2
Must get permission 20.8
Difficult to harvest 9.4
High prices 2.1
Must hire labour to cut 2.1
cent of respondents possess the maximum respondents who owned cattle were men,
land holding: most men owned between and only 16 per cent of female respondents
0.5 and 8 hectares. In contrast, some 70 per claimed absolute ownership of cattle.
cent of female respondents had no land Almost a quarter of women did own a
holdings of their own; they depended proportion of a household's cattle for milk
entirely on their husbands and relatives. production (usually between one and five
Even those with land of their own cows). Chickens are associated with
possessed only between 0.5 and 5 hectares. women, while goats and draft animals are
This land was acquired through inheri- associated with men. In Sukuma culture,
tance, either from late husbands or from cattle belong to men and wives have no
relatives. Land, according to Sukuma part in decision-making over cattle. At the
culture, is owned by men; women depend same time, a woman can own cattle if she is
entirely on their husbands. A woman not married, if she inherits them from her
cannot own land unless it is specifically husband, or if she has been given them by a
given to her by her parents, husband, or relative. In this case, she makes decisions
her husband's relatives. However, an concerning them (Shao et al. 1992)
unmarried woman can have a plot
allocated to her by the village government The problem of fuelwood
or hire one for a period of 2 years (Shao et Obtaining fuelwood is a woman's duty,
al. 1992). Women in general cannot and 96 per cent of female respondents said
therefore make any decision that involves they had problems finding sufficient
the development of the land. This affects firewood throughout the year. The few
the extent to which they can employ women (4 per cent) who did not identify
conservation and afforestation techn- this as a major problem had husbands with
ologies, such as planting trees for fuelwood large land holdings and large uncultivated
and other products. woodlots. Because of the difficulties
Seventy per cent of all households involved in fuelwood collection, women
interviewed during our research kept are forced to use cow dung, maize cobs,
livestock: cattle, goats, sheep, and chickens.. and cotton twigs as sources of fuel.
Cattle is the most common livestock, The firewood problems encountered by
owned mainly by men. Cows are multi- women are presented in Table 2. A major
functional and serve as a source of problem is scarcity, and women often
accumulating wealth and savings. They are walked long distances between 1 and
an important economic and social asset in 30km, but 9.5km on average to collect
Sukuma society. Eighty-six per cent of firewood. During the rainy season, flooding
Rural development and women: What are the best approaches to communicating information? 49
Channel % of respondents
Male Female
Village meeting 71.0 57.7
Film show 66.0 55.7
Radio 29.0 14.4
School 5.0 10.3
Seminar 7.0 5.2
Neighbours 1.0 8.2
Posters 6.0 0
School children 2.0 4.1
50
woodlots to provide fuel. On the face of it, presented in Table 5. For both men and
this should have been successful, since such women, tree planting at the homestead was
training would meet women's specific the predominant activity adopted, probably
needs. However, women's reactions to this because it is the most practical and the one
idea expressed during group discussions, most emphasised by HASHI.
although not overt, indicated that some of The slightly higher percentage of women
the women were suspicious of UWT. It is is probably accounted for by the fact that, in
not perceived as 'traditional', but as a addition to the seedlings supplied directly
group imposed from outside. They were by HASHI to the farmers, some were
therefore not enthusiastic about becoming brought home by school children and given
members. In fact, only 15.6 per cent of to their mothers who did the planting. A
female respondents were reached through higher percentage of women also planted
UWT, and its effectiveness as a channel for trees on the farms; but then women spend
communicating with rural women is more time working on the farms than men
therefore questionable. and might have been ordered by their
The main method of communication husbands to plant the seedlings. The really
used by HASHI for training on making and surprising result is that only 5 per cent of
using improved stoves was to choose female respondents made and used
women, usually members of traditional improved stoves, particularly as special
women's groups, from the various districts seminars involving only women were
and bring them together for a seminar, organised. This finding is discussed in the
usually in Shinyanga town, Afterwards, the next section.
women were supposed to return to their Both male and female farmers showed
villages and teach other women the skills of enthusiasm for some of the new ideas and
improved stove making. would like to put them into practice in due
course. Man liked the idea of private
From communication to woodlots 40 per cent of those
practice interviewed said they would like to
establish one and women that of
The ideas and techniques that were put into improved stoves (50 per cent) and woodlots
practice reflect on the effectiveness of the (25 per cent). Lack of land, seedlings, skills,
communication strategies. These are and equipment were cited as reasons for
Table 5: Main ideas put into practice
Ideas % of respondents
Male Female
Tree planting at homestead 65.5 69.7
Leaving trees on farm (not felling) 17.2 3.9
Planting trees at UWT farm 0 6.6
Setting up tree nursery 4.6 1.3
In situ conservation 4.6 0
Planting fruit trees 3.4 2.6
Making contour ridges 3.4 2.6
Planting trees on farms 3.4 11.8
Making improved stoves 0 5.3
52
the delay in putting things learned into Although most female respondents were
practice. Respondents also mentioned the aware that people within the locality had
problem of lack of water and the been trained to teach them about the new
destructive activities of termites. These stoves, there appear to have been no special
reasons did not differ between men and efforts to learn the skills. One of the women
women, although women more frequently who had been trained said that she had
cited lack of skills. attempted to run classes, but that none of
the women in the village had attended.
The adoption of improved In our view, the most likely cause for this
stoves failure lies in the way technical information
in which is communicated to rural women.
Only a few women owned land or cattle, Traditional women's groups, from which
and thus they could not participate as the trainees were chosen, are strong and
actively as men in conservation activities form a major traditional system of
such as tree planting on farms or fodder information sharing. Since the groups
developments. It seemed that the techno- originated from within the community and
logies likely to be more readily adopted by were shaped and controlled by it, their use
women were those which improved their by HASHI should have been a most
standard of living, but did not involve the effective way of spreading ideas. What
use of land or benefit livestock. The went wrong was that HASHI staff
adoption of improved stoves by women is themselves chose the trainees, without
an activity which, in theory, can consulting the other women in the groups.
significantly reduce a woman's workload, This made them suspicious, and they were
which a woman has control over without therefore reluctant to learn the new skills.
any interference from men, and which will What might have been an effective channel
also help women contribute indirectly to of communication was therefore crippled
the conservation of the environment (Everts from the outset. Secondly, there was a
1998). Moreover, spending less time or problem in the number of women trained.
money on finding firewood would improve Seminars are expensive to conduct, as
standards of living. participants have to be taken care of
As stated above, the rate of adoption of financially. Therefore only a few were
the improved stoves in Shinyanga was low. trained and it was not possible for them to
Only 5 per cent of the women sampled make a major impact. If the women
actually adopted the use of improved themselves have been given the
stoves. But most of them (50 per cent) were opportunity to select those they would
aware of their value and wanted to have learn from and if the training had been
them. However, lack of technical skills done in the locality in the form of village
meant that their adoption was delayed. One workshops, then more results would have
woman told us: 'We are very much aware been achieved.
of the benefits of improved stoves and we
are all very anxious to have them in our
homes. But you know what? We do not
The present situation: An
have the skills for making them; only few
update
women were trained to come back and In 1998, UNDP conducted a Participatory
teach us. They failed to teach us because Poverty Assessment in Shinyanga to help in
they are just not the right people who can the eradication of poverty in the region.
teach us. They were not chosen by us so we Even though the study was specifically on
can't feel free to approach them.' women and their information needs, it is
Rural development and women: What are the best approaches to communicating information? 53
interesting to note that just as in the earlier more accessible to men than to women.
study of 1992, the information gap between This is partly due to cultural constraints,
women and men is still evident. Most and partly to the fact that women are
women seem not to be aware of their rights occupied with household chores at the time
in society as wives, mothers, and, more when such activities take place. Other
generally, as citizens who are equal to their forms of training such as seminars
male counterparts. For example, most were dominated by a minority of privileged
women are not aware of the fact that they men. A typical comment on this was: 'We
can seek redress in court if molested by can see what our neighbours are doing. The
their husbands, or can fight for the right to things being practised are nice. We
inheritance at the death of their husbands. however do not understand what they are
The 'top-down' approach to information practising. They were just selected by
communication by field workers is still in HASHI staff, with the help of some village
use. The same communication methods are leaders. To us, they are favourites and the
used for both men and women without privileged in our society. We, the poor
considering the role of women in society, ones, have been left out. How can we
and men continue to be suspicious of the follow their footsteps if we do not know
acquisition and skills by their womenfolk what they are doing?'.
(Otsyina 1998). The introduction of improved stoves was
specifically aimed at women, with the
Some conclusions object of helping women solve their fire-
wood problems and improve their living
In Shinyanga, women continue to be the conditions, but it failed because of ineffective
poorest group in the community, since they communication strategies. Women rely far
have little land at their disposal and few more than men do on informal information
cattle. They therefore stand to benefit most networks. Their participation in the
from new ideas in soil conservation and development process and their enthusiasm
afforestation. However, our 1992 study for the adoption of ideas could be improved
revealed that in fact male farmers benefited if information was communicated to them
most. The technologies introduced tended on a household basis, in addition to group
to be concerned with activities which are work. Attention also needs to be paid to the
traditionally done by men, while no natural suspicions of men in a traditional
attempt was made to challenge this gender society towards the acquisition of
division of labour. Future research will knowledge and skills by their womenfolk.
focus on female-headed households and the Men must be made aware of everything
impact of HASHI's activities on them. To that is being introduced to women; there
date, HASHI's aim has been to help must be more integration of communication
everyone, especially women, to improve methods. At the same time, more use of
upon their living conditions, but it has female extension workers could overcome
wished to do this without interfering with cultural constraints.
the culture of the people. In addition to the strategy of approaching
HASHI also failed to use communication women within their households, women's
channels that takes into account existing isolation needs to be overcome. Because of
socio-economic differences between the the nature of their household and farming
genders. The same sorts of communication duties, women tend to be tied far more to
strategies were used for men and women. the area of their homes. More training in
The most used channels of communication their localities through village workshops
village meetings and film shows were would encourage the active participation of
54
I
n the predominantly agricultural villages prostitution. To prefer to send daughters to
of north and north-east Thailand, work in urban areas is a rational strategy
exquisite silk and cotton textiles are still for families: a study of households in north-
hand-woven and decorated by women, east Thailand found that on average 28 per
who learn the skills from their mothers. cent of household income was remitted by
Proficiency in these skills conveys status on absent daughters (Archavanitkul and Guest
a young woman in the village, because in Skrobanek et al. 1997), and in general
traditional beliefs hold that a good weaver daughters remit far more than sons
possesses womanly virtues and will make a (Sainsbury 1997). Other young women may
good wife. This article uses the example of be forced out of craft work and into the
ThaiCraft, a Thai NGO and alternative urban employment market at some point,
trade organisation (ATO), to discuss since the markets for traditional handmade
development projects specifically set up in products the tourist market, the
order to provide an alternative to female expatriate market within Thailand, and the
urban migration, through the employment overseas market are both limited and
of young women in income-generating unreliable. This is particularly true of the
home-based craft projects. ThaiCraft overseas market, which can evaporate in
focuses on promoting and supporting the the case of a recession (Harris 1997).
traditional technologies of textile Home-based craft projects tend to be
production, and is one of the larger of the seen by their supporters as protective and
many NGOs working in this field. redemptive; they perpetuate ideas of
The north, particularly the north-east, are women hand-weavers as virtuous and
among the poorest regions in Thailand, and industrious, and a perception of the
economic hardship allied to a lack of complex skills required in traditional
opportunities for paid work makes urban weaving as being 'natural' to women. This
migration necessary for many. For young contributes to these skills being seen as
village women, there are two main avenues 'non-skills' outside the village, and
of work in urban areas: factory work and specifically in the factories where these
Skilled craftswomen or cheap labour? 57
skills are in demand. Research has shown ThaiCraft works with over 60 commu-
that perceptions of women as unskilled nity-based artisan groups throughout
labour are linked to low wages and poor Thailand, including members of Thailand's
working conditions, and that projects such Hill Tribe minority groups and refugee
as those run by ThaiCraft could evolve groups. Most of ThaiCraft's producers are
strategies to improve young women's women. The organisation states that its
longer-term chances of securing better paid, aims are to help craftspeople achieve a fair
more fulfilling, secure work. income for their work and to preserve the
Much of the research for this article was beauty and skill of Thai craft traditions
carried out in 1994 when I was working in (ThaiCraft News, April 1998). ThaiCraft
Thailand, and visited some of the weaving aims to achieve this by 'building dynamic
villages of the north and north-east. I also educational partnerships among producers,
draw on project literature and publicity volunteers, and the public' (ThaiCraft 1997,
material from ThaiCraft. 4) and by disseminating information about
producers' cultures and traditional crafts,
while employing appropriate marketing
Craft and textile-based techniques (ThaiCraft Manager's Viewpoint
NGO projects in Thailand 1995). A significant proportion of Thai-
Craft or textile-based development projects Craft's projects are textile-based, while
are becoming increasingly popular with other projects involve basket-weaving,
NGOs, local people, donors and local, wood or paper products, and jewellery.
national and international authorities; a ThaiCraft's activities include supporting
prominent motivation for supporting them community groups in order to help them
is that they can offer sustainable livelihoods move towards self-reliance, co-ordinating
to local people while attempting to preserve the activities of producers in order to
Thailand's rich cultural heritage and artisan ensure fair payment, and maximising
communities (ThaiCraft 1997,4). marketing opportunities to increase
ThaiCraft was set up in 1992 and is based producers' income. A further objective is to
in Bangkok. At its inception, ThaiCraft was provide training for producers to increase
initially run largely by volunteers, most of their knowledge and capabilities in product
whom were expatriate Japanese, British, design, production techniques, efficient
and American women; most of them were organisation, and marketing skills.
in Bangkok as accompanying partners of ThaiCraft states that it is also concerned
male breadwinners. ThaiCraft's publicity with preserving its producers' commu-
material and information, which was nities, traditions, culture, and environment
originally produced only in English and (ThaiCraft 1997).
Japanese, explicitly reveals that the ThaiCraft works with a number of
expatriate market is also the primary target smaller grassroots projects and NGOs
market of the organisation. Recently, infor- within Thailand, with foreign donors and
mation has also been produced in Thai, and agencies such as the British Government's
there has been a drive to recruit more Thai Department for International Development
volunteers and paid staff at all levels of the (DFID), and other NGOs such as Oxfam, or
organisation. However, the expatriate Traidcraft. These organisations provide
volunteer base continues to be extremely financial or technical support: for example,
important, both in terms of the day-to-day Traidcraft sent British-based designers to
running of the organisation, and the success Thailand to run workshops to advise
of its sales in Bangkok (ThaiCraft 1994, producers on design, materials, quality
ThaiCraft 1997, ThaiCraft March 1998). control, marketing, and fashion (Report of
58
repetitive procedure, involving patience as compared to the finest silk cloth and the
well as manual dexterity, it also requires most delicate silk thread. You are as cool
great mathematical, technical, scientific and as beautiful as silk. I wish I had thread
(Harris 1997) and artistic skills, as shown in for you to weave, but I do not know if you
Table 1 below. In addition, the skills are interested in me or if you think I am an
required are not natural, but learned at undyed inferior yarn. Please do not think of
home from childhood, passed on from me that way but put my thread in your
mother to daughter. loom'. (Conway 1992, 44).
In north and north-east Thailand, The moral associations of textiles and
weaving is strongly associated with virtuous women seem to have been
'womanly virtues' (Conway 1992), and the internalised to some degree by ThaiCraft.
production process itself is value-laden in ThaiCraft encourages its volunteers to visit
terms of a woman's or girl's status in the villages and meet its producers. After one
village. The relationship between weaving such visit, an expatriate volunteer reported:
and success as a wife is clearly recognised 'Patience is the main virtue needed, and
in traditional village societies, where young sadly many of the present generation of
women known to possess the technical young women prefer other areas of
skills of weaving are prized as future brides employment ...' (ThaiCraft, March 1998).
as illustrated by the following village Patience is perceived as a natural feminine
saying: 'A good wife is like a ploughshare. virtue here (echoing the case of female
If she is skilled at weaving then her factory workers, discussed in the next
husband can wear fine clothes. A wife who section), and there is an implied slur on
talks harshly and is unskilled at her loom those young women who prefer other areas
makes a family poor and shabby in dress' of employment. Such views are ironic when
(Conway 1992, 42). expressed by expatriates, many of whom
In the past, young men would court their are in Thailand in connection with the very
future wives as the girls spun or wove industries and businesses which encourage
cloth. Weaving terms make up metaphors urban migration, and are engaged in a
for physical and romantic love, as shown in global economy which attributes little value
this example which would be sung to a moral, cultural, artistic, or economic
young woman by her suitor: 'You are to be to traditional crafts and craft skills.
Table 1: Skills required for traditional cloth production in north and north-east Thailand
Rachel Humphreys spent a year working in Kogan Page, London and Philadelphia.
Thailand and was able to carry out research intoHarris, M (1997) Common Threads: Women,
women in textile production. She now teaches Mathematics and Work, Trentham Books,
at the School of Oriental and African Studies, Staffordshire.
Thornhaugh St, Russell Square, London WC1H Kind, S (1994) 'Environmentally Friendly
OXG; e-mail: rh7@soas.ac.uk Fashion', Bangkok Post, 27 October 1994.
Lever, A (1988) 'Capital, Gender and Skill:
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64
T
he South African government's 1995 education, poverty, and lack of access to
Telecommunication Policy Green information were preventing women from
Paper set out to promote telecommu- getting vital resources to support develop-
nication and information access to all South ment and capacity-building activities in rural
Africans. In 1997, the Universal Service areas. Thus, the telecentre initiative seemed
Agency (USA), a statutory body, was innovative and potentially rewarding to
established in accordance with the Telecom- women. The possibility of universal access
munications Act (103 of 1996). The agency to telecommunication and information
committed itself to a programme of creating resources, which could support and enhance
'information literacy for all' (USA 1996). Its many agricultural, health, and education
primary focus was to promote access to initiatives currently available for women,
telecommunications for all in South Africa, seemed to be a step in the right direction.
by co-ordinating a pilot programme of ten This article draws on evidence collected
telecentre sites in rural 'disadvantaged in the course of my research into the tele-
areas'. Community groups throughout centre in Bamshela, Kwa-Zulu, and its
South Africa were requested to tender for impact on women and men in the local
the telecentres. In the following, I will community. My involvement began two
describe how the community of Bamshela in months before the telecentre opened on 29
rural KwaZulu/Natal has used its telecentre April 1998, and will conclude in April 2000.
as a resource since its opening in 1998. I employ an 'active research' approach
through regular visits to the telecentre for
discussions, observation, and interviews.
The development research The aim of this 'hands-on' approach has
project in KwaZulu/Natal been to gain insight into the early stages of
Rural women continue to be disen- the telecentre development and contribute
franchised in the new democratic South positively towards the development by
Africa through the lasting male control over advising on service provision and hardware
social and economic affairs. Lack of maintenance, and by networking with
Rural women, development, and telecommunications: A pilot programme in South Africa 65
The conception of the Government's Bamshela, and the other nine pilot sites,
telecentre initiative included awareness of were awarded the same model of tele-
gender issues and the need to promote centre, of which details are given below. It
women's needs and rights. Each telecentre was planned that each centre would be able
site had to employ at least one woman as a to adapt and evolve their hardware to the
trained manager (USA 1996). A local community requirements it serviced. It was
telecentre clearly has the potential to envisaged that the telecentres would
enhance rural women's access to much- provide not only much-needed public
needed telecommunication and information telephone access, but also faxing facilities,
resources, and to enable capacity-building photocopying, poster printing, scanning,
to take place. A number of government and CV composition, skills training and
non-government bodies have been distance-learning facilities. Government
encouraging South African women to funding, with donor support, picked up the
develop computing and information bill for the pilot projects, and paid for site
technology (IT) skills in order to be become renovation and building, basic training, and
part of the expanding IT employment service support for 12 months after opening.
market. These include the Gender It was expected that each centre would
Commission, a government body set up to work as a small business enterprise. Clients
monitor and review the status of women would pay for the use of telephone and fax,
with regards to the 1996 Constitution of photocopying, computing, e-mail and
South Africa; SANGoNET, a not-for-profit Internet facilities, at a rate that would
Internet service provider; and Women's generate income for the telecentre (USA
Net, also a not-for-profit Internet service 1996). It was predicted that this income
provider. A recent report submitted to the would allow the telecentre to become
Gender and Sustainable Development Unit, economically viable after a year, and that
states that 'the promotion of education and any profits would be re-invested in the
training initiatives' targeting women as telecentres to upgrade and develop
potential users and facilitators, and resources (USA 1996).
'supporting the implementation of ICT Work on building and renovating the
access' by women, would facilitate 'access site for Bamshela's telecentre, and the
to electronic information as a trans- selection and training of two members of
formation tool'. (Huyer 1997). the community to be locally-based
managers, began in 1997. The telecentre is
The telecentre's first year located in a converted health clinic next to
the town's bottle store and building
From the start, many in the Bamshela suppliers. The centre opened in April 1998,
community were excited by the prospect of to much fanfare and celebration. USA had
being awarded a telecentre, and opened the first telecentre in KwaZulu/
expectations for such a local resource were Natal on time, and to date, it is the only one
high (discussions with community in Natal that is fully operational. There
members, 1998). Not only was the centre were six telephone lines with headsets, a
likely to be a useful communication fax machine, a photocopier, six state-of-the-
resource, but the community was aware of art Pentium computers, and a scanner. The
the potential of the centre for development, two managers (one of whom was a woman)
education, and training. They recognised had been trained in computing and
the potential of the site to attract and management skills. However, the managers
encourage the growth of new small said that they considered their three-week
business enterprises in the community. period of basic training to have been
Rural women, development, and telecommunications: A pilot programme in South Africa 67
inadequate, and state that the promised income to the centre. The telecentre has
support and back-up facilities had not been begun to work on an application to the
provided (interviews, 1998-99). regional library service for the placement of
a library facility at the centre, which would
provide a wider range of resources on one
Setbacks and challenges site and generate further sales (ibid.).
At the time of writing (May 1999), as the Managers are frustrated because they
centre moves into its second year, there are cannot realise and utilise all the facilities
indications that many opportunities for the that are housed in their centre. It was
telecentre to make a meaningful impact on projected that employment opportunities at
the community from the start have been the centre would grow as the facilities come
lost. The Internet facility was only success- on line and develop, but this has not
fully installed by the telecentre's first proved possible, beyond the fact that an
birthday. The printer stopped working after additional three male managers have been
the first day, and until April 1999 managers employed. Managers also report that they
have had to undertake a five-hour journey are unable to train others because of their
to print at a different facility, because they own lack of knowledge. They do not know
have been unable to raise enough capital what will happen to the computers after
from the telecentre income to buy a new 2000, or whether they will have enough
printer. The Arts and Culture Committee money to upgrade. Managers' concerns
has now made a loan available to pay for a about security force them to sleep at the
new printer, and managers say that this has centre, and often the trainee staff act as
made a great difference to the centre's security guards at night, with the result
ability to provide a comprehensive service that, thus far, the telecentre has had no
(ibid.). Two of the computers are used to robberies (interview, March 1999).
produce basic resumes for clients who can The telecentre cannot as yet generate
pay. Assistants from the community have enough income to keep prices at an
been trained to help with this task, and the affordable rate for all. The telephone
managers say that they hope to train more service has been, unexpectedly, the largest
assistants to develop areas such as website source of revenue, due to the problems
design, scanning, and e-mail and Internet with the other facilities. Yet the revenue
usage (ibid.). realised by the phones is not sufficient to
Managers told me in March 1998 that, in ensure financial security. Problems with
the current situation, they cannot develop one telephone line have not been resolved
their roles as they had hoped at the time of and it continues to give problems, as it did
their training. They had aimed to be from day one. More importantly, telephone
resource managers and educators for the lines at Bamshela are vulnerable to local
community. One year down the line, they weather conditions, and frequent break-
have been forced to become more realistic. downs mean that much-needed revenue is
There is no longer talk of imminent plans lost. At the time of writing, the telecentre
for literacy and business-skills training for borrows electricity from the generator of
local women's groups. Time and money the bottle store next door when its own
that could have been spent training local system breaks down (interviews, 1998-9).
women and men how to register e-mail By March 1999, prices for all the facilities
addresses, create web-sites to advertise had increased by 150 per cent since
their products, and network with other opening, from 40 cents per phone call unit
groups nationally and internationally, is to one Rand per unit, (exchange rate is
taken up with looking for other sources of currently R10.00:1.00, and, according to
68
discussions with community members in asked if they had ever used the telecentre.
1999, monthly earnings in Bamshela are in Half of them said that they used the facility
the range of R700 to Rl,300). Many people to telephone friends and relatives, when
in Bamshela, especially women, feel that they had spare money and were near the
economic factors exclude them from using telecentre. A straw poll at the telecentre
the centre's resources (interviews, 1999). showed that over 70 per cent of customers
The telecentre managers fear that what using any facility, and 60 per cent of
began as a potential income-generating customers using the telephone, are women.
resource will very shortly become a The average amount spent on a phone call
financial burden to the community, which in the telecentre is R5. Ninety per cent of
the local Arts and Culture Committee would requests for CV writing come from women,
have to shoulder. Although the telecentre and half the students requesting computer
was funded and supported by the govern- time are female.
ment for one year, the income generated by Changes to gender relations may come
the centre is now supposed to pay for its about as a result of using the telephone.
upkeep, wages, and services. It is a The ease of communication with family
resource that is owned by the community. members working as migrant workers
Since its opening, the telecentre has appears to have led to some changes in
declined as a popular meeting place; budgeting arrangements. Interviews with
managers clearly have an uphill task in women whose husbands work as migrant
encouraging the community to reclaim the workers confirmed that they now budget
centre for themselves, and to be interested their income in consultation with their
in what it has to offer. The centre plans an husbands over the phone.
advertising campaign in Bamshela to re- The telephone is a useful communication
generate local interest: it is encouraging tool for families forced to live apart for long
customers to use the Internet to view their periods of time. According to the telecentre
names on the voters' register prior to the managers, women who live in more
national elections on 2 June 1999. isolated communities far away from the
telecentre usually travel together by taxi to
The impact on women the telecentre at weekends. It is still quite a
novelty to them, and the calls are
The telecentre now employs five staff, but expensive: women indicated that there are
only one of these is a woman, responsible times when telephone money is used to
for 'customer services'. Although she has buy more important necessities, like food
been trained in business management and and schoolbooks. Telecentre records show
computer skills, she does not use those that the average call made to keep in touch
skills in her current position. When asked with family is about R30.1
about this she said she enjoys her work as it The women customers I have inter-
is, but feels that she needs more training to viewed cited their lack of language skills
provide a wider range of services, because and education as an obstacle to computer
she has not been using many of her use: the meeting between cultures I had
computer skills in the past year (personal wished to witness does not appear to have
communication, 1999). yet happened. As stated earlier, so far there
From my research, it seems clear that have been no skills-training programmes
many women from the Bamshela commu- available to them. In my view, telling
nity are using the telecentre as a phone women about the use of ICT, and providing
shop. During interviews with passers-by training, would not be enough in any case
undertaken in April 1999, women were to promote their sustained use of new
Rural women, development, and telecommunications: A pilot programme in South Africa 69
T
he Malawi Broadcasting Corporation mercials of various products and services,
(MBC) runs the main radio station in which were aired on MBC Radio 1 over a
Malawi. Recently, this organisation one-week period. This study aimed to find
aired a commercial which referred to house- out the extent to which women in Malawi
wives as 'women who just sit at home' are denigrated in radio commercials, to
(personal observation, 1997). This implies examine how media images of women are
that the work of caring for home and family, created, and to suggest some ways of redu-
which most Malawian women do daily, is cing the extent of women's denigration.
not work at all. This is just one example of Radio commercials which ridicule or
the negative stereotypes peppering our condemn women make it hard for women
radio advertising. While mass communica- to assert their personal identity, to break
tions technologies can be used positively for down gender stereotypes, and to enjoy
development, they can also contribute to freedom. Other commercials do not convey
women's subordination. In particular, negative images of women, choosing
advertising in the mass media has been instead to focus on men. It is my contention
shown in studies outside Malawi to portray that in a male-dominated society, such
females as dependent, non-competitive, absence of women's issues is tantamount to
and home-oriented, with little authority supporting women's subordination.
(Goffman 1979, Posner 1987, Singer 1986).
Women tend to be shown in their 'traditional'
gender roles: as either housewives, whose Methodology
interests are limited to domestic needs, or
as a sexually alluring 'background' to The 100 commercials were tape-recorded,
advertisements, making the advertised transcribed, and analysed using the method
goods attractive by association. of content analysis. For each sex, five pairs
This paper is based on a study in which I of images (one negative and the other
examined a random sample of 100 com- positive) were constructed. Each commercial
72
was examined to see whether it was which were silent on females (more than
'gender-neutral', or whether it presented half of the sample), 48 commercials
females and males as people who have little portrayed males positively, while of those
or much authority; who are dependent or silent on males, only five portrayed females
independent; home-oriented or office- positively. Commercials which contained
oriented; non-competitive or competitive; assertions of male superiority were deemed
and who are seen as 'sex-objects' or as to be denigrating women indirectly.
'complete individuals'. It must be noted
that while home-orientation and office-
orientation in themselves are neither Poor representation of
negative nor positive images, Malawian females in commercials
society regards the former as negative,
mostly because of its association with low The sex of the character(s) voicing or airing
monetary rewards. each of the 100 commercials was discerned
from their voices, names, and titles. A
female voice was heard in fewer than half
Presentation of gender in of the 100 commercials, while a male voice
radio commercials was heard in as many as 91 of them (see
Table 3). In addition, 53 commercials
Table 1 shows, for each sex, the number of featured a male voice only, compared to
commercials which portrayed one of the nine which featured females only.
ten images. Females were portrayed A questionnaire was sent to MBC
negatively more often than males: for management in 1995, and their responses
example, almost 80 per cent of commercials pointed towards a number of factors which
portrayed men as having authority, appear to influence the poor numerical
compared to only 13 per cent of women. representation of women in radio
Table 2 summarises the portrayal of both commercials. First, management reported
the male and female character(s) appearing that this reflects the poor representation of
in a particular commercial. Only seven of females on the MBC staff: only 11.4 per cent
the 100 commercials mentioned neither are women (Kaimila-Kanjo 1995, 4). Fewer
women nor men. Females were portrayed than 40 per cent of MBC employees who
positively in just seven commercials, while read out commercials on radio, or record
males had a positive image in 77 of them. them, are female. Second, MBC managers
While only three commercials presented reported that advertisers think that women
males in a purely negative way, 27 lack the expertise to sell products and
presented females in this way. Of those services on the radio, and consider radio
Females
Image Negative Silent Pos/Neg Positive Total
Negative 0 0 2 1 3
Males Silent 0 7 3 5 15
Pos/Neg 2 2 1 0 5
Positive 25 48 3 1 77
Total 27 57 9 7 100
commercials to be less effective when they types associated with the selling of some
are voiced or aired by a female. This is products and services (discussion with
borne out by the fact that clients who MBC manager, 1995).
submit ready-made commercials use the
male voice most frequently. MBC managers
confirmed that clients often demand that Negative images of women
their commercials are read on air by men.
Third, where the client leaves MBC to As Table 2 showed, 36 of the 100
choose the person to voice a commercial, commercials portrayed females negatively.
MBC uses voices it deems suitable to the Table 1 showed that 24 out of the 41
type of commercial. Staff reported to me commercials which were judged to
that they make an effort to relate the denigrate females presented the females as
content of a commercial to the sex of the voices of little authority. Of the others, four
person who will voice it. This suggests that showed them as dependent, eight as home-
staff at MBC view the content of most of the oriented, five as non-competitive people,
commercials as suitable to be voiced by and four as sex objects.
men, although I as researcher strongly hold
the view that all the advertisements could Women as voices of little authority
have been aired by either sex. Finally, I was Some commercials suggest that women
told by radio staff that, having voiced a have very little authority. The males speak
commercial, women have been known to with a commanding tone of voice, and
later withdraw their voices from the literally have the last word in many
commercial, because of negative stereo- commercials. As Table 3 shows, a female
Table 3: Number of commercials by sex of all voices heard and sex offinal voice(s) heard
Gender of all voices heard
Sex of final voice(s) Female only Female and Male Male only Total
heard
Female only 9 5 0 14
Female and male 0 8 0 8
Male only 0 25 53 78
Total 9 38 53 100
74
was the last speaker in only 14 per cent of in the above example, the male sets his seal
the commercials, whereas a male spoke last on the woman's decision on cosmetics by
in 78 per cent of them. In commercials endorsing the products (Kaimila-Kanjo
featuring female and male voices, the last 1995). In the next example, dealing with the
voice heard was that of a female and a male serious issue of fertility, women's
in 13 per cent and 66 per cent of the dependency on men's decision-making is
commercials respectively. This finding unquestioned, and men are encouraged to
reflects the observation that when women take responsibility. The script has been
and men are in the same group, the men translated into English from Chichewa.
actually dominate the conversation and talk
more than the women do. Further, men Commercial 2: Teach your wife (family planning)
tend to interrupt women when they are Male 1: Child-spacing is your
speaking more than women interrupt men, responsibility, father.
as a show of power (Henley 1977, Tannen Male 2: Most of us fathers know our
1991). A sample of the 24 commercials family responsibilities. We mean to take
suggesting that women have little authority care of our wives and children, to ensure
is the following: that their daily needs are met...
Male 1: Child-spacing is your
Commercial 1: Warm you up and refresh you responsibility, father.
(cosmetic) Male 2: As the husband and head of
Female 1: Hi Jean! Oh, why the dry skin? household, you should teach your wife
Female 2: Well, Mary, I have tried all about the importance of child-spacing if
sort of oils ... you are to manage to take care of your
Female 1: Try the wonderful range of children, to fee, clothe and educate them
Care products, Jean... without difficulties ...
Female 2: Thank you for the advice, Male 1: Child-spacing is your
Mary. responsibility, father.
Male: Care Skin Beauty and Care
Petroleum Jelly ... Although child-spacing is a responsibility
which should be addressed jointly by both
Here, the male speaks last in a conversation women and men, the woman is here
between two females. What he says could deprived of power. She is portrayed as a
have been said by Female 1 or another passive wife and mother, waiting to be
female. The females' voices are muffled by taught and cared for.
the male's commanding tone of voice. (Of
the 16 commercials about cosmetic Confinement of women to the home
products, 56 per cent were aired by, or Of the 12 commercials which portray
featured conversations between, females women in a particular setting or occupation,
only, 25 per cent by both females and eight place the woman in the home, and
males, and 19 per cent by males only.) only four portray her in occupations
outside it. The women depicted working
The dependency of women outside the home are a primary school
Advertising encourages female dependency teacher, a model/actress, a banker, and a
by urging women to be passive and not to nutritionist. Women are not portrayed in
live out their aspirations. In most of the professional positions: as medical doctors,
commercials examined, a woman rarely mechanics, professors, journalists, lawyers,
makes decisions on her own, except where and so on. Part of Commercial 3 implies
cooking and cosmetics are concerned. Even that a woman's place is the home.
The denigration of women in Malawian radio commercials 75
Gender of voices
Image of females Female Male Female and male Total
Negative 0 5 22 27
Positive 6 0 1 7
Negative and positive 3 0 6 9
Neutral 0 48 9 57
Total 9 53 38 100
78
and men meeting together in cyberspace' evidence across the whole range of food
through the Women on the Net project, set cycle technologies. This book gives a brief
up by the Society for International Develop- account of this knowledge and goes on to
ment with UNESCO funding. Contributions explore women's role in the innovation
from discuss the scope for using the process. The arguments are illustrated
Internet as a political tool to further the through case studies and the book includes
cause of women's equality. The first book to guidelines for development practitioners
consider these issues from the point of view working with women.
of women in developing countries, as well
as those from industrialised settings. Trade-Related Employment for Women in
Industry and Services in Developing Countries,
Gender and Technology: Empowering Women, Susan Joekes, UN Occasional Paper No. 5,
Engendering Development, Saskia Everts, Zed1995.
Books, 1998. The paper provides information on the
This is an up-to-date introduction to the situation in five countries where the project
issue of gender and technology in develop- on Technical Co-operation and Women's
ment. Starting from a commitment to Lives, run jointly by UNRISD and UNDP,
women's rights and gender equity, it has conducted policy dialogues on issues
discusses practical ways of identifying of gender.
women's technological needs, and of http: / / www.unrisd.org / engindex / publ / li
integrating gender considerations into st / opb / opb5 / opb5-05.htm
technology projects. It includes a timely
section on the potential for women of Inventing Women: Science, Technology and
working with the private sector. Gender, Gill Kirkup and Laurie Smith
Keller, Polity Press, in association with the
Women's Roles in the Innovation of Food Cycle Open University, 1992.
Technologies, Ipek Ilkkaracan and Helen The book aims to introduce students of
Appleton, UNIFEM, 1994. women's studies to debates in science and
This source book, published with IT, stresses technology. The articles are written in an
the importance and scope of women's accessible style; topics addressed include
existing technical experience, highlights the third world technology and appropriate
expertise that exists in rural areas, and technology, and the impact of science and
questions the low status traditionally technology on the status of women.
accorded to women's technical knowledge. Polity Press, 65 Bridge Street, Cambridge
The book aims to show development practi- CB2 1UR, UK.
tioners that in the process of developing
technologies, women must be consulted 'Innovations in Work Organizations at
first because they are the real 'experts'. Enterprise Level, Changes in Technology
Women's Ink, 777 United Nations Plaza, and Women's Employment', Swasti Mitter,
New York, NY 10010, USA. Fax: +1 (212) BRIDGE Report 14 1993, IDS.
687 8633; e-mail: wink@womenink.org; Analyses the impact of new ways of
website: http://www.womenink.org working and new technologies on women's
employment in both the developed and the
Women's Roles in Technical Innovation, Ipek developing world. The report outlines how
Ilkkarakan and Helen Appleton, UNIFEM, different technologies will change patterns
1995. in women's employment and concludes
Women's indigenous technical knowledge that close collaboration of research and
and innovative solutions to problems are in policy-making bodies is necessary.
Resources 81
IDS, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9RE, and gender factors, and biases at all levels
UK. Fax: +44 (0)1273 691647. Also at http:/ / of policy-making, have led to ineffective or
kipper.ntd.co.uk/cgi-ids / getbook.dll /138 even harmful development projects. Uses
case studies from development literature on
Missing Links: Gender equity in science and agriculture, health, and nutrition, as well as
technology for development, Women Encounter from feminist scholarship on Africa and is a
Technology: Changing Patterns of Employment technical critique of the sources.
in the Third World, Swasti Mitter and Sheila IDRC, 250 Albert Street, PO Box 8500,
Rowbotham (eds.), Routledge, 1995. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1G 3H9.
This collection explores the effects of new
technologies on women's employment and Working Group Report, United Nations
on the nature of women's work. The editors Commission on Science and Technology for
and contributors are leading scholars in the Development, IDRC, IT Publications and
field of technology and development; the UNIFEM, 1995.
articles document the impact of information The final report of this working group is
technology on the working lives of women presented along with papers from many
in third world countries. academics. The aim of the book is to
Routledge, 11 New Fetter Lane, London persuade governments, the UN, the scien-
EC4P 4EE, UK. Fax: +44 (0)171 842 2302. tific community, and NGOs of the need for
action and a better understanding of the
'Re-envisioning Woman, Science and links between gender, science, technology,
Technology Towards 1995 and Beyond', and sustainable human development.
Programme Proposal, Once and Future
Action Network (OFAN), Jan 1995. Food Cycle Technology Source Books,
Outlines the opportunities that OFAN (1987-93) (series), UNIFEM.
envisaged for the 1995 UN conference on These titles cover small-scale processing of
women and the parallel NGO forum, crops in developing countries, in order to
focusing on the contribution of the World provide UNIFEM consultants with technical
Young Women's Christian Association. (See understanding of traditional and improved
Organisations section for contact details.) technologies for use in these countries. Also
offers an illustration of the wider socio-
Technological change and rural development in economic context in which such projects are
poor countries: Neglected issues, Kartik C. Roy found.
and Cal Clark (eds.), Oxford University UNIFEM, 304 E 45th Street, 6th floor, New
Press, Calcutta, 1994. York, NY 10017, USA.
Looks at technological change and rural Fax: +1 (212) 906 6705.
development in India and considers
appropriate technology, technology transfer, EmpoiverTools: Technology for Women's
and women's status in relation to these. Empowerment, UNIFEM, 1995.
Oxford University Press, Walton Street, This booklet illustrates how technologies
Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. can strengthen women's position in their
Fax: +44 (0)1865 313925. communities. It describes improved cassava
processing in Cameroon and Ghana, a
Technology, Gender, and Power in Africa, Pakistan radio project which provides
Patricia Stamp, International Development women with information on available
Research Centre (IDRC), Ottawa, 1990. technologies, and related projects in
The author argues that flawed approaches Mozambique and Nigeria. To read the
to the links between technology transfer article on the Internet, visit gopher://
82
grassroots producers, provides urban and Latin America, Western Asia, the
rural women with technical support in their Caribbean, and the South Pacific. Its
productive activities, using participatory quarterly newsletter, The Tribune, and other
methodologies. action-oriented publications offer strategies
for action and resources in four main areas:
Instituto de Estudios Regionales Ayacucho information and communication, science
(IERA) and technology, women organising, and
Urb. Maria Parado do Bellido Gl-16, Casilla community economic development. Science
do Correos No 60, Ayacucho, Peru. and technology is a major programme, with
IERA focuses on research, documentation, emphasis on demystifying and
advocacy, dissemination, training, and popularising science and technology.
networking activities in the area of
traditional agriculture and technology, Kenya Engergy and Environment
traditional medicine, health, nutrition, and Organisation (KENGO)
the environment, with specific attention to Natural Resources Research and
women's knowledge, and their productive Development Programme, PO Box 48197,
and reproductive roles. Nairobi, Kenya.
Tel: +254 (2) 748 281; fax: +254 (2) 749 382
Intermediate Technology Development KENGO is a coalition of grassroots
Group (ITDG), women's groups involved in research and
Myson House, Railway Terrace, Rugby CV community development activities using
21 3HT, UK. Tel: +44 (788) 560 631; fax: +44 appropriate technologies and locally
(788) 540 270; website: www.oneworld.org/ available resources.
itdg/index.html
ITDG is an international development Once and Future Action Network, (OFAN)
agency which works with rural commu- Secretariat, Business District, 40, Duke St,
nities in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It Kingston, Jamaica.
aims to enable poor people in the South to Tel: +1 (809) 967 2399 fax: +1 (809) 967 2397;
develop and use skills and technologies website: http:/ /www.wigsat.org/ofan/
which give them more control over their ofan.html
lives and which contribute to sustainable This is a growing NGO network which
development. It regards development as a seeks to reclaim women's traditional and
process of increasing people's economic rich knowledge of resource management,
power by improving their access to environmental conservation, and 'science
technologies appropriate to their skills, for survival', and to promote women's
incomes, and environments. ITDG has contribution to redirecting science and
offices in Bangladesh, Kenya, Nepal, Peru, technology for a sustainable future. The
Sri Lanka, Sudan, and Zimbabwe. concerns of the many organisations
involved range from reforming curricula, to
International Women's Tribune Centre interest girls in science and technology, to
(IWTC) networking among women scientists.
77 UN Plaza, New York, NY 10017, USA.
Tel: +1 (212) 687 8633; fax: +1 (212) 661 Programme for Appropriate Technology in
2704; website: http://www.igc.org/ Health (PATH)
beijing / ngo / iwtc.html PATH, 4 Nickerson Street, Seattle, WA
IWTC is an information and commu- 98109-1699, USA.
nication support group for women's and Tel: +1 (206) 285 3500; fax: +1 (206) 285
community organisations in Africa, Asia, 6619; website: http:/ /www.path.org
Resources 85
Among PATH'S goals are improving who want to share their knowledge and
the availability and use of appropriate experience. Emphasis is on practical, small-
diagnostic technologies, of appropriate scale, innovative technology projects in
protective/ preventive technologies, developing countries, small-scale enter-
improving women's health, and addressing prises, innovation processes, environ-
the special needs of girls. Their website has mentally sound technologies and the
many case studies. position of women. Tool is will soon be
transferring its activities to other organi-
Servicios Multiples de Technologias sations. TOOL'S question-and-answer
Apropiadas (SEMTA) service will move to Agromisa, also in
Casilla 15401, La Paz, Bolivia. Wageningen. The major part of TOOL'S
Tel: +591 (2) 360042; fax: +591(2) 391458 documentation centre will move to the
This national NGO is involved in techno- Uganda Rural Development and Training
logy development and dissemination with Programme (URDT).
rural women, using participatory metho-
dologies with specific attention to women's The Third World Organization for Women
indigenous technologies, and local agricul- in Science (TWOWS)
tural and ecological systems. South-South Enrico Fermi Building, Room 109, Via
technology transfer, women's ownership of Beirut 6, 34014 Trieste, Italy. Web site:
technology development initiatives, and http: / / www.ictp.trieste.it / -twas / TWOWS
support of women's own innovations, .html
constitute the main focus of SEMTA's work. TWOWS is an independent, not-for-profit
NGO based at the offices of the Third
Swiss Centre for Appropriate Technology World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) in
(SKAT) Trieste, Italy. TWOWS is the first
Vadianstrasse 42 CH-9000 St. Gallen international forum to unite eminent
Switzerland. Tel: +41 71 228 54 54, fax: +41 women scientists from the South with the
71 228 54 55, web site http://www.skat.ch/ objective of strengthening their role in the
SKAT is a leading Swiss consultancy firm development process and promoting their
and documentation centre working representation in scientific and
internationally in the areas of water and technological leadership.
sanitation, architecture and building,
transport infrastructure, and urban Gender Advisory Board, UN Commission
development. Since 1978, SKAT has on Science and Technology for
collected relevant information on Development (UNCSTD)
appropriate technologies, documented http: / / www.wigsat.org / gab / uncstd.htm
lessons learned, and disseminated them in The Gender Advisory Board was
partnership with institutions and established by UNCSTD to ensure that
individuals in developing countries. gender issues are adequately addressed in
all its future deliberations. The topic
TOOL 'Gender, Science, Technology and
TOOL Foundation, Sarphatistraat 650, 1018 Sustainable Human Development' was
AV Amsterdam, The Netherlands. selected by UNCSTD in 1993 as one of three
Tel: +31 20 626 44 09, fax: 31 20 627 74 89; topics relating to the science and technology
web site: http://www.tool.nl/ components of major UN Conferences held
Tool's main objective is to facilitate infor- in 1995. The Fourth World Conference on
mation exchange between organisations Women and Development, held in Beijing
and individuals in developing countries in 1995, was one such major conference. A
86
United Nations Research Institute for Social The British Library for Development
Development (UNRISD) Studies at IDS, University of Sussex
Gentech, Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10 http: / / www.ids.ac.uk / bids / index.html
Switzerland; website: http://www.unrisd. Europe's largest and most comprehensive
org / engindex / research / rescurr3.htm# research collection on development. Its
(UNRISD) is an autonomous agency extensive collection of government publi-
engaging in multi-disciplinary research on cations, journals, and the published outputs
the social dimensions of contemporary of NGOs and research institutes worldwide
problems affecting development. The is supplemented by substantial holdings of
Institute attempts to provide governments, UN and WTO publications (for which
development agencies, grassroots BLDS has deposit library status).
organisations and scholars with a better
understanding of how development Eldis
policies and processes of economic, social http://ntl.ids.ac.uk/eldis /gender /gen_lele.htm
and environmental change affect different Eldis is a means of accessing on-line
social groups. One of its current research information on development and the
programmes is 'Technical Co-operation and environment. Eldis focuses on countries of
Women's Lives: Integrating Gender into the South and structures the selection of
Development Policy'. The overarching materials for easy access. It is hosted by the
objective of the project has been to enhance Institute of Development Studies, Sussex
the gender sensitivity of development (see above for the website address of its
policies, with a particular focus on macro- gender section).
economic policies.
The Gender Advisory Board of the UN
Commission on Science and Technology for
Development (UNCSTD)
Internet resources http: / / www.wigsat.org / gab / uncstd.htm
The Gender Advisory Board was
Africa Online established by UNCSTD to ensure that
http:/ / www.africaonline.com gender issues are adequately addressed in
Africa Online provides internet all its future deliberations, and as part of its
communications services throughout mandate the Gender Working Group
Africa. Information can be searched for, (GWG) was asked to review the perfor-
country by country or under the site's mance of UN agencies in the domain of
various service areas. The women's area gender, science, and technology. This site
has links to a large number of African and contains its recommendations and links to
international women's organisations. other organisations and policy documents.