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Gender Research Programme

The programme on gender research is designed to fill the gap in research on gender in Pakistan. The overarching theme of the programme is women, work and poverty. Financial assistance for this five-year programme (2008-2013) is provided by the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Pakistan. Objectives of the research programme are as following:

  1. To put gender on the map of policy making in the country by raising awareness of the gender implications of the social and macroeconomic economic policies with a particular focus on women’s work and poverty.
  2. To develop quantitative and qualitative data, including gender disaggregated statistics and indicators that map changes in gender roles and access to equal rights and opportunities in social and economic policies and programmes.
  3. To add to the technical research in Pakistan on the gender aspects of social and macroeconomic policies.
  4. To factor in gendered perspectives in ‘hardcore’ economic issues as well as social ‘progress-engine’ concepts of development in the research and policy analysis.
  5. To broadly disseminate the findings in a way to enhance awareness of the government, donors, academia and media about the gender issues identified through research and policy analysis.

The following research studies will be undertaken under the programme:

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The Working and Living Conditions of Female Domestic Workers in Pakistan:
The primary aim of the study is to undertake a qualitative and quantitative analysis of the socio-economic profile of domestic female workers. The study will highlight the existing challenges/problems faced by women and factors that determine their wages. Domestic service occurs in an environment that is highly personalized, and where there is extraordinary dependence between employer and employee. Formal laws or informal social norms governing employer-employee relations have less significance than traditional and familial norms of behaviour within the private domain. Therefore, domestic workers are highly vulnerable to coercion and abuse. In many countries including Pakistan, young women migrants constitute the vast majority of domestic workers. They are particularly vulnerable to abuse by employers and/or the authorities (if) they are illegal workers. It is therefore necessary to analyze the constraints and conditions within which these women work. This will develop a better understanding of the existing work environment of domestic female workers and will also help ensure their overall well being. Women’s well-being is not measured merely in terms of access to resources but also in terms of their sense of worth and dignity. Forms of employment, quality of employment and access to social safety nets are also invariably linked to women’s wellbeing.
Gender Dimension of Development Induced Displacement and Resettlement: A Case of Lyari Expressway Karachi:
The primary aim of this research is to measure the level of overall well-being of displaced women in the case of Lyrai Expressway Karachi, by using the Impoverishment Risk and Reconstruction (IRR) Model. The study will identify parameters that need to be taken into account while planning and designing a development project. The secondary objective of the research is to facilitate a process of dialogue among stakeholders such as local and provincial governments and women from affected communities in order to address gender related displacement issues of the Lyari Expressway. The research would be based on qualitative and quantitative methods of inquiry. The application of the IRR model is a qualitative method of inquiry, in which all the indicators reflect certain behaviour about risks and resettlement. However, the survey design could measure some quantitative indicators as well, such as loss of income due to loss of employment.
Gender Issues in Rural Non-farm Employment:
This research project will evaluate the nature, determinants and extent of gendered participation in rural non-farm sector using a primary household survey. The role of gender will be investigated in non-farm rural sector by evaluating household income, employment, time-use pattern, and other aspects of human and social development. One of the aims of the research is also to evaluate financial, cultural and other constrains, especially for women, for expanding non-farm rural sector.
Violence against Women with focus on the Cost of VAW: A case study of Karachi:
The study would primarily focus on establishing the linkages between violence and slow economic development. The study, being a pioneer work in Pakistan, would help calculate the economic cost of violence. It would help build a comprehensive understanding of the various forms and manifestations of VAW being experienced in Pakistan. The literature produced globally primarily focuses on the issues vis-à-vis women’s human rights, women in conflict and domestic violence perpetrated against women. To understand the phenomenon several theories have been floated, such as, Resource Theory, Learned this Behavior theory, Learned Helplessness theory, Queer theory, Power and Control Wheel and culture of violence theories. These are some amongst several other socio-cultural theories that can be paired with family-relationship conflict matrix. The study in one component would look into ‘the impact of the multiple factor’ and the difference that exists at the difference levels of society besides ‘examining the multiple dimensions of the attitude’ towards the issue prevalent (both) at the governmental and societal level. The two elements are diverse and have different implications for the socio-eco-political development.
Evaluating Gender Dimensions of Social Safety Nets Programmes in Pakistan:
The primary purpose of this research is to examine social safety nets programmes in Pakistan in terms of: 1) gender aspects of the transfer/credit recipient; 2) impact of transfers on the welfare of individuals within the household and; 3) shocks and gender differentiated effect of shocks. The secondary aim is to provide research based advice to policy makers for improving efficiency and effectiveness of interventions regarding social protection through making them gender sensitive. The designs of various kinds of Social Safety Nets (SSN) in Pakistan are still based on an implicit assumption of family structure—that is, one wage earner with dependents and transfers that are pooled for the benefit of the family. Empirical evidences show that undue focus on the household or family (without attention to intra-household dynamics and inequities and processes that generate these) compromise the efficiency, equity, and effectiveness of SSN.
A Study of Socio-economic Characteristics of Female-Headed Households in Pakistan:
The primary aim of the research is to analyze the diversity in the characteristics of Female-Headed Households (FHH) in Pakistan and the contextual factors that contribute to their formation. The study would also try to explore the question relating to the overall well being of FHHs, by investigating some pertinent questions regarding level of deprivation when compared to males and non-poor females. The study would also focus on the issue of provision of basic social service/welfare indicators like, health, education, nutrition, labor force participation, and- Time -Use among FHH, and its impact on their decision-making process. Allocation of resources among family members would provide an insight about the question related to un-biased decision making of FHH. The study of preferential treatment will be conducted from the female perspective by looking at girl’s enrollment, and the extended role of girls in FHH when compared to males. To strengthen the findings of the research the male child of FHHs would be studied, to analyze whether boys in FHH are unable to continue school because they have to supplement family income or other factors contribute to the dropout of boys. The study of expenditures pattern of FHH would provide an understanding of level of deprivation and resource allocation mechanisms. The study will be conducted in two phases – baseline study and a follow up study after three years of baseline survey.
Trade Liberalisation and Gender Dynamics of Employment in Pakistan.
The overall objective of this research report is to analyze the changing structure of economy and employment during the period of trade liberalisation and to estimate the effect of trade liberalisation and other relevant socio-economic characteristics on female participation in the labour force in Pakistan. Findings projecting the changing pattern of composition of GDP help in understanding the dynamics of male and female employment in Pakistan. It also indicates a limited effect of trade liberalisation on female participation in the labour force. The growth in the production of agriculture and manufacturing sector is found to be significantly influencing women labor force participation in Pakistan. The findings of the research report would help all tiers of the government in building a comprehensive and a proper set of policies that ensures gender balance in employment opportunities as well as those which economically empowers the female workforce.
Public Spending on Education and Health in Pakistan: A Dynamic Investigation through Gender Lens
The study has three distinct objectives. First, it investigates income groups which benefited from the government's subsidized education services during 1998-99 and 2004-05 and health services in 2004-05. Second, it examines how these benefits are distributed between males and females during the same period. Third, it looks at the changes that occurred in the distribution of education expenditures between males and females in different income quintiles during the same period. The methodology employed to assess gender differentials in public service provision for this study is based on a 'benefit incidence analysis.' The technique usually involves a three-step process. First, estimates are obtained of the unit cost of providing a particular service. These are usually based on officially reported public spending on the service in question. Second, unit costs are imputed to households, which are identified (usually through a household expenditure survey) as users of the service. Households, which use a subsidized public service in effect, gain an in-kind transfer, the size of which depends on the unit subsidy involved and the number of units consumed by the household. Finally, aggregated estimates of benefit incidence are obtained in groups arranged by income and sex. Hence, the benefit incidence analysis measures the distribution of in-kind transfers across households.

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