Januelle C.

Rontos BAPS 4 2005-22408 PS 183 Background Theories that explains most of the issues in the International Political Economy tends to universalize big issues such as peace and economic security which generally look on state-to-state relations. Such universalized ideas are assumed to be the general goal of every state and its members; regardless of what purpose and how they will attain such goals. However, this universalized ideas tend to overlook the underlying relations brought about by basic distinctions which contribute to the failure of these goals, precisely because these distinctions contribute to a lot more disparity among members. Gender is one of the basic distinctions in every society and to define it briefly, gender refers to socially learned behaviours that distinguish between masculinity and femininity. Social expectations are also based and the ultimate indicator is the roles given to each. Most of the cultures exhibit similarity in terms of assigning women in childcare, giving the outdoor activities to men. These gender roles fundamentally shape production, distribution and consumption activities, in micro-level projected in macro-level. Access to work, income, wealth, leisure, education, health, political power, and decision making are some

of the aspects in the political economy that have a gender factor. Feminist discourses provided a framework of analysis with regards to how gender differences leads to disparity and among all strands of feminist discourses there are two points of agreement. First is that gender differences are also differences of power and these differences permeate all aspects of social life. By looking at this, we can see how the women play their role in the productive and reproductive relationships. (emphasis added) Second is their commitment to make a difference. Therefore, whether the change is just an incremental change or emancipatory, feminist scholars recognize the close connections between activism, policy-making and academic research. (emphasis added) Feminist scholars in the International Relations also established that the field is gendered by masculinist assumptions and that the dominant approach ignores both womens realities and their active contributions to political and economic life. Failure to examine gender obscures the inter-related social construction of male and female identities and roles. Theoretical perspectives: GPE as if gender matter The three paradigms (realism, liberalism and Marxism) are gender blind and excluded considerations of women and gender issue.

Realism, which focuses on state activities, is incapable of theorizing social relations of power. Liberalism, though admitted the existence of actors aside from the state, focused on state interaction and separation of state and market. Marxist approach to class conflict did not develop gender as an analytical category. The exploration of the gendered nature of the global political economy is important for four reasons: (1) It enables analysts to focus on a more holistic political economy; (2) it uncovers important subjects and brings these new topics to attention; (3) it brings concern with development and poverty alleviation from the margins to a more central position; (4) it remaps the conceptual landscape. Feminist economics challenged neoclassical economics. Economic analysis cannot assume that all economic agents react exactly the same fashion to price signals. The issue is that societal institutions are not neutral, and therefore do not provide the same starting point or incentive structures for men and women. (Methinks that women cover much of the unpaid work means that they cannot respond to the price signals because they dont have the capacity to buy at the first place.) Conventional economics takes unpaid reproductive labour as a given and therefore disregards the full value of womens labour and economic contribution. This also masks the real cost of reproducing labour is given. (Women cannot own the income because it is their responsibility as tagahawak ng supot to re-

distribute the income from the role of the husband (even them) as the breadwinner maximizing the budget in favor of husband (to help him work properly) and children) Women in the world economy: employment trends and prospects It is certain that there is a growing womens participation in the economy and the integration of women boosts the economy. However, we must also take account several aspects before we can conclude that women is truly gaining a significant difference. -Nature of work -Security of employment -Working condition -Benefits and incentives earned Devalorization Feminine characteristics, compared to those of masculine, are valued-less and when something is feminized, it is devalued. Although the labor market caters women, some of its attributes are pinned into what was thought to be appropriate for female work casual, insecure, part-time and low-waged employment. Glass Ceiling This term refers to the situation where senior management positions are predominantly occupied by men and wage differentials between men and women.

Usually, wage differentials is attributed in promotions, thus studies in glass ceiling tend to focus on failure of women to progress to the top. Gender and global public policy The integration of women in the international agenda is a result of a conscious action. It is because they must be recognized and incorporated, therefore, public policies are instrumental in pushing further. The full incorporation of gender equality into all stages and at all levels of planning was a slow and evolutionary process. However, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for action set impressive commitments for governments and international organizations. Normative and institutional change. Although the interests of the women are now catered, the end of discrimination doesnt follow. But incorporating gender issues automatically in policy (planning, implementation and monitoring) is a significant difference rather than placing gender issues as an afterthought. Features of mainstreaming of gender in policy and practice First is the normative commitment to gender equality. Emergence and advancement of a norm of gender equality can be perceived in the ways in which international development policy is framed. (e.g. MDG Goal #3 Promote gender equality and empower women)

Second is the increasing institutionalization of Gender Issues within UN system. Gender analysis is now common in the specialized agencies of the United Nations. [e.g. Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANWGE)] Third feature is that gender has been mainstreamed within many international organizations (e.g. establishment of gender departments). The concern is not just the institutionalization but also the normalization of gender as a framework of analysis. Key Issues Feminization of Poverty -the main contention is the continued existence of intra-household inequalities and systematic bias against women and girls; and the impact of neo-liberal economic policies. Globalization of reproductive work (The private is public.) The reproductive economy is the economy of families and the private sphere where human life is generated, daily life maintained and socialization reproduced. -Prostitution and militarization -Mail order brides -Domestic work and childcare (Legal and illegal) Because First World women has the opportunity to pursue their professional career (taking over some of their household responsibilities) one solution is to hire domestics.