434 research outputs found
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The politics of women's representation in Sudan: Debating women's rights in islam from the elites to the grassroots
Full text linkThe international discourse on gender and peacebuilding presupposes a common agenda among all women across religion, ethnicity and class in any given post-conflict situation. The literature seems to express the belief that as long as women are included in political decision-making institutions, their representation will ensure that the situation for all women, from the elite to the grassroots, will improve. Women’s political participation is regarded as not only desirable but vital to the advancement of gender equality. This report explores the validity of this position in the context of women’s representation in Sudan, a multi-religious country with a long history of civil war. The approach of this project is two-fold and multidisciplinary, examining attitudes towards gender equality among Muslim women both at the elite and at the grassroot levels. The findings from Sudan suggest that Muslim female activists are continuously and bravely putting women’s issues on the agenda, despite authoritarian constraints such as a weak parliament, lack of judicial independence and media censorship. It is however important to note that Sudanese Muslim women’s perception of gender equality is not unitary. Whereas liberal Muslim activists advocate for gender equality in all areas of law, conservative Muslim activists do not deem gender equality neither necessary nor desirable. They all frame their arguments within Islam, offering different interpretations of the Islamic law
Learning to build a sustainable peace: Ownership and everyday peacebuilding
Full text linkLack of local ownership is seen as a central explanation for why peacebuilding efforts often fail to yield sustainable peace dividends. But how is local ownership understood and acted upon by those who are engaged in peacebuilding efforts at the country level? Based on research in four countries – Afghanistan, Haiti, Liberia and Sudan – this study finds that the way ownership is operationalized by external actors at the country level is quite different from how it is defined in policy documents. The most prevalent operationalization is ownership as a conditional right with external actors seeing ownership as theirs to give to local actors when certain conditions (such as capacity or responsibility) are met. The result is often that reform efforts are unsustainable. This report suggests some concrete steps that can be taken to render ownership an operational principle
'Opitanha' revisited. Assessing the implications of PARPA II in rural northern Mozambique 2006-2009
Full text linkThis report is part of a larger exercise of monitoring and evaluating Mozambique’s poverty reduction strategy, focussing on three districts in Mozambique and using a combination of quantitative and qualitative data. It analyses the constitution and dynamics of poverty and well-being in the rural district of Murrupula in the Nampula Province, by revisiting four local communities and a total of 120 households three years after our first visit in 2006. While a number of improvements have taken place in local governance, physical infrastructure and agricultural marketing options, this has so far primarily benefitted the better-off with few if any implications for the very poorest
How banks assist capital flight from Africa: A literature review
Full text linkSystematic studies of the banking sector’s involvement in facilitating capital flight from developing countries are limited. This report was commissioned by Norad’s Anti-Corruption Project (ANKOR) for the purpose of summarising key lessons from the existing literature and to identifying knowledge gaps. The study focuses on capital flight from Africa. It is a desk study, based on a review of library and online literature databases and reports and documentation from national and international organisations. The review demonstrates that banks should not be disregarded as passive players when analysing capital flight. Banks play an active role in facilitating capital flight from Africa. However, to improve the regulation of the banking and finance sectors, there is a need for more detailed knowledge on how banks actually operate as facilitators and the mechanisms applied
The impact of wealth and female autonomy on fertility decisions in Nepal: An econometric analysis
Full text linkOver the last fifteen years, the fertility rate in Nepal has declined significantly. In the same period, the country has, despite political unrest and a civil war, experienced economic growth. In contrast with its neighboring countries, India and China, Nepal has not used legal action to limit its population growth. The fertility rate in Nepal is now below India’s and is reaching the replacement rate. In this thesis I explore the role of families’ wealth and female autonomy in determining individual fertility. Using cross-sectional household data from 2006, I test the effect of wealth, female autonomy and other socioeconomic factors on the number of children. Except for wealth and female autonomy, emphasis is put on the strong preference for boys in Nepalese society. Preference for boys is tested using the gender of the first child as a natural experiment. The theoretical foundation is based on Gary Becker’s work, which assumes a trade-off between the number of children and the human capital invested in them. My findings suggest that female autonomy is an important determinant of individual fertility, with households where the husband has relatively more power having significantly more children compared to other groups. Wealth and education are also important determinants, but the effect of female education is only significant for low levels of education. A preference for boys is present and this might have consequences, as sex-selective abortions are a potential threat when son preferences are accompanied by decreasing fertility
The role of the churches in poverty reduction in Angola
Full text linkThis study was carried out as a collaborative effort between the Center of Studies and Scientific Research (CEIC) of the Catholic University of Angola (UCAN), the Chr. Michelsen Institute (CMI) and Independent Policy Analysis. Its purpose is to critically review the role the churches in Angola play in relation to addressing poverty in the country. Central questions addressed are the kinds of interventions the churches undertake and to what extent the churches contribute to poverty reduction in Angola?
Churches have a long history in Angola, which is intertwined with the history of colonialism, the struggle for independence and the many years of civil war. This has forced churches to relate and adapt to radical changes in the political, social and economic environment.
The churches are the civil society actors in Angola with the most developed organizational structures and strongest international networks. Yet, the strength of this network is weakened by the lack of skilled human resources.
Making education available is perhaps the most significant contribution the churches make to development in Angola. Most of the churches also run health posts and hospitals in remote areas of the country
Afghan hydrocarbons: A source for development for conflict? A risk assessment of Norwegian involvement in development of the Afghan oil and gas industry
Full text linkNorad has been engaged in capacity building and provision of technical support to the Afghan Ministry of Mines since 2007. A part of this engagement relates to the development of the Afghan Hydrocarbons Law, and commercialization of gas and oil reserves through an international bidding process.
The Afghan oil and gas industry has been in production since the mid 1980s, but is in need of major investments. Afghans interviewed are of the opinion that oil and gas reserves are national property, to be used for the benefit of all Afghans.
The review has identified a range of risks and challenges to the further process, and Norad is advised to consider:
To await further engagement on policy matters until there is further clarity as to how the Government of Afghanistan aims to develop and utilize these resources. But consider to provide:
• Advice on the political/diplomatic process of negotiating agreements for utilization and division of underground natural resources;
• Assist in training and development of Afghan technical expertise in oil and gas exploration, production and management;
• Assist in the further development of the hydro power and alternative energy sector
Caste, local networks and lucrative jobs: Evidence from rural Nepal
Full text linkWe study how local connections to persons in influential positions affect access to lucrative international migrant jobs and attractive government employment. In rural Nepal, it would not be surprising if social status, captured by a household’s caste but also by wealth or
education, strongly influenced or perhaps even exclusively determined the access to attractive labour market opportunities. This is not the case. Although much of the variation in migration can be attributed to wealth, education and social identity, household networks have a separate impact on external employment. Well-connected households are more likely to get government jobs and appear to have favorable access to the manpower agencies and the
informal loans required to finance migration to the Persian Gulf or Malaysia
"A woman should not be the boss when a man is present": Gender and poverty in Southern Mozambique
Full text linkThis is the third and final report in the series “Gender Policies and Feminisation of Poverty in Mozambique”, revealing a curious incongruity between often broad and sweeping statements about gender inequality and the great variation and complexity in the lives of real men and women. The province of Gaza, which is the focus of this report, has seen profound socio-economic change, including an extensive male labour migration, a commodification and ‘feminisation’ of agriculture; and a very high HIV/AIDS infection rate. Important implications of these developments have been a very large proportion of female headed households; a high level of female participation in agriculture and the informal economy; and near gender equality in education enrolment. In fact, the main gender disparities in Gaza primarily seem to be related class, with poor women without economic independence being susceptible to continued control under the patrilineal system and patriarchal ideolo
Indigenous women's access to justice in Latin America
Full text linkThis paper gives an overview of the challenges which indigenous women in Latin America face in accessing both formal state justice and indigenous legal systems, including a focus on normative frameworks, legal awareness, access to appropriate justice forums and the achievement of satisfactory remedies. In addition, it highlights promising examples of how different actors within civil society and governments are taking steps to improve indigenous women’s access to justice in different contexts. Recognizing that each of these are likely to be very context specific, it draws out the key lessons and challenges from these approaches, making recommendations on how this work can best be supported