In Mainstreaming Gender in Social Protection for the Informal Economy Naila Kabeer explores the gendered dimensions of risk, vulnerability and insecurity and hence the need for a gender perspective in the design of social protection measures. Her emphasis is on the informal economy because that is where the majority of women, and indeed the poor, are to be found while also being where official efforts for social protection are most limited.
The book will enhance understanding of the constraints and barriers that confine women to more poorly remunerated, more casual and more insecure forms of waged and self-employment, and of what this implies for women’s ability to provide for their families and cope with insecurity.
Kabeer develops a framework of analysis that integrates gender, life course and livelihoods perspectives in order to explore the interactions between gender inequality, household poverty and labour market forces that help to produce gender-differentiated experiences of risk and vulnerability for the working poor. She then examines and assesses examples of social protection measures – from child allowances to pensions – in order to illustrate the necessity for a gender-analytical approach. She also stresses the importance of an organised voice for vulnerable and marginalised workers.
Finally, the author synthesises the main lessons that emerge out of the discussion and identifies gaps and exclusions in the social protection agenda.
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