| Foreword: |
Women
and their role in development have increasingly
become the focus of international concern. There
are many facets of the concern, and this issue
of the INNOTECH Journal offers one perspective
-- that of gender analysis. It is an approach
which looks into the social roles of women and
men in a given context, and is premised on the
belief that through an understanding of these
roles, human resource development efforts may
achieve better results.
The
articles presented in this issue were among the
discussion papers of the "Participatory Conference
on Management Training for Women in the NGO Community."
The Conference convened thirty-five participants
from five countries and four international agencies
at SEAMEO INNOTECH from October 27 to 30,1992.
It was a collaborative undertaking of SEAMEO INNOTECH,
the Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science
and Technology (SIAST), and the Indonesian Planned
Parenthood Association (IPPA). Funding was provided
by the Asean Canada Centre.
Special
appreciation is expressed to the Canadian participants
who provided the impetus for the many stimulating
idea exchanges of the conference, including the
compilation of articles for this issue of the
INNOTECH Journal: Harriet Stanley, Project Coordinator,
International Education Office, Saskatchewan Institute
of Applied Science and Technology; Nancy Creighton,
Executive Director, Women's Enterprise Bureau
of New Foundland; Patricia Keays, Consultant,
Powell River, British Columbia; Mardele Harland,
Consultant, Regina, Saskatchewan; Marianne Weston,
Executive Coordinator, Women's Secretariat of
Saskatchewan; and Ila Sarkar, Consultant, Regina,
Saskatchewan.
Although
the focus of the conference was on training needs
of women, gender concepts were underlying threads
of issues discussed. The INNOTECH Journal shares
the concepts, methodologies, techniques and implications
of gender analysis with its readers, in order
to generate greater awareness of the important
role which women play in certain aspects of the
development process. The articles are essentially
compilations from many sources, and are intended
as starting points for clarifying what gender
analysis is all about, and why it is needed. Various
approaches in using gender analysis as a tool
for delineating gender roles and determining how
human resource development projects should be
directed are also presented. By using gender analysis
in planning and implementing development activities
to achieve intended results, it is hoped that
women may be empowered to perform their role more
effectively. |
