Ebook Gender Mainstreaming in Macroeconomic Policies and Poverty Reduction Strategy in Kenya
High levels of poverty, characterized by a poor record of economic growth and high inequality in income and asset ownership, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa have become major development challenges. Kenya’s economic performance has been declining and poverty has increased. The country has not been able to generate the growth necessary to reduce the social and economic inequalities. The key challenges facing the country at the moment are deteriorating economic performance and high levels of poverty, with more than one half (56% by 2000) of the population living below the poverty line. Consequently, the twin objectives of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) are poverty reduction and economic growth. These are based on two broad objectives: to reduce poverty levels in half by the year 2015 and to achieve a ‘Newly Industrialized Country’ status by 2020 (GOK 2001). The PRSP is a short-term strategy that seeks to implement these objectives.
Since the idea of equity is central to the poverty reduction initiatives as indicated in the PRSP, gender equality should also be central to the PRSP. Without women’s empowerment and advancement through promotion of gender equality, poverty cannot be reduced (UNDP 1998). Similarly, it is difficult if not impossible to reduce poverty without addressing the gender imbalances reflected in the different dimensions of poverty. This calls for the incorporation of gender in the formulation of policies at the macro and sectoral levels, expenditure allocations as well as monitoring and evaluation.
A favourable and stable macroeconomic environment is essential for economic development. The three main types of policy objectives at the macro level are attainment of price stability, full employment, and foreign sector balance. In pursing these objectives, policy makers use the traditional policy instruments: fiscal policy, monetary and exchange rate policies. The general assumption is that these policy objectives and the instruments are both gender neutral. This assumption has widely been contested. Macroeconomic policies have implications at the micro-level. Similarly, activities at the micro and meso levels have implications at the macro level. There are gender implications involved at both the micro and meso levels. For instance, at the meso level, there is a growing understanding of markets as social institutions, encompassing relationships that embody social values. Often, imbalance of power along gender is one form of social differentiation that shapes such relationships/imbalances (Elson 1993; Baden 1996). Various macroeconomic problems emanate from gender inequalities at the micro and meso levels (Çagatay 1998).
The gender debate is not something that is entirely new. However, previous efforts have mainly focused on involving women in development in the form of Women in Development (WID) analysis as opposed to gender dimensions. Initial efforts to integrate women in development were primarily with national planning bodies and sectoral departments, particularly education, health and agriculture, which dealt with women in their traditional gender roles (Corner 2002). The gender dimension, rather than treating women in isolation, is a relational concept that also means that men are to be explicitly brought into the analysis. Despite a long history of lobbying by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and women’s organizations, policy makers traditionally see gender as essentially a social issue with little relevance to the macroeconomy (Evers 2001).
Consequently, their attempts to incorporate gender perspectives are limited to taking account of women’s needs in social sectors such as social welfare and health. However, Gender is an issue for economic policy and not just for social policy (Evers 2001). Trade, investment, competition and macroeconomic policies are not gender-neutral. They have tremendous implications for women’s employment, poverty, social burden and ultimate societal well-being.
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
1. INTRODUCTION
2. BACKGROUND-STYLIZED FACTS ON GENDER
2.1 ENGENDERING MACROECONOMIC POLICY
- 2.1.1 Institutional and legal framework
2.1.2 The invisible women’s work and the ‘reproductive’ sector or care economy
2.1.3 Engendered economic behaviour
3. GENDER PROFILES AND THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC INDICATORS IN KENYA
3.1 OPPORTUNITY
3.2 EMPOWERMENT
3.3 CAPABILITY
3.4 SECURITY
4. INTEGRATING GENDER IN THE PRSP
4.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
4.2 GENDER ANALYSIS OF THE PRSP SECTORS
- 4.2.1 Opportunity and the PRSP sectors
4.2.2 Capability: the role of human resource development and infrastructure sectors
4.2.3 Security and the PRSP sectors
4.2.4 Promoting empowerment
5. INTEGRATING GENDER IN THE MACROECONOMIC FRAMEWORK
5.1 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK AND GENERAL ASSESSMENT
- 5.1.1 Trade/ commercial policy
5.1.2 Exchange rate policy
5.1.3 Budget deficit and domestic debt
5.1.4 Privatization
5.2 KENYAN MACROECONOMIC FRAMEWORK
6 GENDER AND FISCAL POLICY
6.1 OVERVIEW OF THE BUDGETARY PROCESS IN KENYA
6.2 TAXATION AND GENDER
6.3 EXPENDITURE ANALYSIS
6.4 INTEGRATING GENDER IN ECONOMIC MODELS
REFERENCES
ANNEXES
ANNEX I: KIPPRA-TREASURY MACRO MODEL
ANNEX II: BUDGET NEGOTIATION FRAMEWORK
ANNEX III: SOCIOECONOMIC INDICATORS BY GENDER AND PROVINCE
ANNEX IV: ANALYSIS OF THE RECURRENT BUDGET 2002/2003 FOR GENDER-RELATED EXPENDITURE
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