Abstract
The objective of this study is to explore the plight of Afghan women during the Taliban era, and how they managed to overcome gender-specific barriers through cooperative initiatives thereby developing and empowering each other. For this study, a literature search was undertaken by using various electronic research databases to understand the Gender and Development (GAD) paradigm in the context of Afghan women in Afghanistan, as well as to examine how two decades of war, invasion, and violent conflict has affected the lives of these women. The literature search determined that despite the horrific conditions for women in Afghanistan, they were still able to organize gender-related survival strategies and, in the process, become aware of more gender-specific concerns. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA), the Identities of Women Framework (IWF), and bottom-up development initiatives were just some of the useful tools that were utilized to appropriate quantitative and qualitative analyses of the needs of rural women in Afghanistan. As such, women collaboratively worked together, in groups and organizations, to generate networks, norms, and trust in their communities. This was established not only through aid/assistance but also through partnerships with national and international women's organizations, women's media, and non-government organizations (NGOs). This review thus aims to inform that joint ventures have enabled rural Afghan women to feel more empowered and break taboos, thereby working towards changing gender relations and perceptions at a much deeper level.
Highlights
The area of gender and development (GAD) has been the site of many debates, discussions and critical contributions to the field of development studies in the past few decades [1]
The GAD paradigm emerged in the 1970s, during a time when socialist feminists critiqued liberal feminist efforts to create a greater role for women in development [2]
Some early development planners considered women as a symbol of traditional culture and an economic and developmental liability [4]. It was up until the1970s that the prevailing policy, which addressed women primarily in their roles as wives and mothers was what was known as the 'welfare approach' [3]. It was during this time that a shift to women in development (WID) approaches transpired, which was informed by feminist theory and the women’s movement; it was further associated with the UN Women’s Decade (1976-1985)[5]
Summary
The area of gender and development (GAD) has been the site of many debates, discussions and critical contributions to the field of development studies in the past few decades [1]. The GAD paradigm emerged in the 1970s, during a time when socialist feminists critiqued liberal feminist efforts to create a greater role for women in development [2]. Some early development planners considered women as a symbol of traditional culture and an economic and developmental liability [4]. It was up until the1970s that the prevailing policy, which addressed women primarily in their roles as wives and mothers was what was known as the 'welfare approach' [3]. The GAD paradigm acquired a central place in many studies regarding the impact of development and modernization on women in developing societies [6]
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