Women Empowerment in National Development

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Problem Statement

As I have explained above, it needs to thrash out that in contrast to the centuries long settled social structure, why is the need of Women empowerment in the national development. The apparent reasons giving air to this need are the existing depleted social conditions of women, the extent of poverty and the worsened educational and health conditions. A woman being in mainstream has contributed to almost every field of life in the last century and has proved their worth from science to literature fields, but these women are few in numbers. The major portion of the feminine population, in many parts of the world, are not only out of mainstream but also incapable of any participation in the mainstream. Yet we have another example from other parts of the world, or more precisely the countries which have brought women to mainstream and have progressed a lot on the economic indicators. On the contrary, the countries which haven’t facilitated women to bring them on equal footing, have been suffering and are part of the third world. So there is definitely some something which is making difference in the socio-cultural and political system of the whole world. The gathering of the whole world to sort out and settle this issue is another eye opening factor necessitating the need to look into the depth of this issue.

Hypothesis.

Apparently on the face of the facts available throughout history and the peculiar social structure, also keeping in view the religious aspects of the case, I have reasons to believe that the empowerment movement being considered through the International conferences on women and MDGs need to be extended to every woman in the world, impeding to local cultural and religious requirements. I have further reasons to believe that the issues pertaining to basic rights should be extended to everyone in the world including women and discrimination should not exist on the basis of gender. However this empowerment in no way should damage the culturally, traditionally and religiously settled issues. Secondly I further believe that the biological difference created by nature and the conventional roles should not be altered. This empowerment movement should not disrupt the course of nature but whilst simultaneously be facilitating for women and not a detrimental to them.

Questions

In order to look into the depth of this issue, we will have to seek answers to some questions.

- What are the natural roles of male and female counterparts in the eyes of nature?

- What the women empowerment actually means?

- What are the meanings of national development?

- How the services of women can be used to improve and enhance the physical national development?

- What could be the possible fields of development in which we can expects women to contribute if they are empowered to do that?

- What should be the ultimate extent or limit of women Empowerment?

- Is the Women Empowerment being required commensurate with the causes, requirements and limitations of nature?

Literature Review

For seeking the questions to these answers I will review the literature available on the subject. This would include the basic definitions, already settled issues and the already done work on the subject.

To start with I would like to find out the exact version of women development being mentioned internationally so loudly. The final shape of the version was settled, agreed and announced in the 4th Women conference held in Beijing. The declaration of the Conference can be summarized as;

- Women should be fully empowered to participate in all spheres of society on the basis of equality. This should also include their involvement in decision making processes and right to power because without this empowerment the equality, development and peace cannot be achieved.

- The right being recommended for women should be part of the Human Rights.

- Equality in the household between men and women and a harmonious partnership between them are necessary factors for the stabilization of a family;

- Annihilation of poverty through a stabilized economic growth, social growth, environmental protection and natural justice requires the intrusion of women’s support in a natural developing society;

- A women should be allowed to monitor all aspects to her health including fertility and the choice of pregnancy which would in turn truly empower women;

- Women should be exposed to the aspects of leadership, peace keeping and public policy matters in order to impact society at its core;

- Gender-sensitive policies should be introduced to educate future generations of women about their rights;

- Non-Government organizations are much needed and appreciated for their ability to work harmoniously with the government to bring about some real change in society regarding different perspectives of women;

- In order to implement these changes and empower women, international conferences are much needed to make governments aware about the seriousness of women rights which are all too easily ignored in third world countries.

The declaration is expressive and vivid in nature. The United Nations in its Millennium summit in 2000 approved the eight internationally recognized goals in the United Nations Millennium Declaration which was approved by all 189 nations at that time and the third of the eight goal was goal was to” promote gender equality and empower women”. The targets for this goals were determined as under.

“Eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by 2005, and at all levels by 2015

- Ratios of girls to boys in primary, secondary and tertiary education,

- Share of women in wage employment in the non-agricultural sector.

- Proportion of seats held by women in national parliament.”

The concept of the women development has also some other definitions. The CARE an international NGO defines the women empowerment basing it on three dimensions, Individuals, structure and change. The exact definition floated by this organization is Individuals should gain power