Gender and Human Development

Abstract

The chapter presents an intersectional analysis of women’s human development outcomes through the lens of gender and social relations on the one hand, and the nature of public policies implemented on the other. Against the backdrop of women’s movements, this chapter explains women’s marginalization process, wherein critical gaps in the formation of basic capabilities across men and women in the society are identified. Differences in human development outcomes are not only due to differences in access and opportunity freedoms, but also in endowments and entitlements. Thus, real concerns about women’s human development achievements are regarding capability deprivation and inequalities in access to labour markets, social opportunities, political participation, and social protection. It is argued that purely entitlement transfers through state policy will not be able to resolve the issue. The numerous efforts to assess human development outcomes of both women and men in terms of quantitative and qualitative dimensions have been able to capture only some part of this multi-layered phenomenon.