Rwanda Girl's Initiative is a women's development and empowerment organization that aims to educate and economically empower Rwandan girls. This programme was created to lift girls out of poverty and to reduce women's reliance on men. For a long time, men dominated most economic activities and education because society supported or favored them over girls (Cook 12). As a result, many organizations devised a program to lessen the societal divide between girls and boys or men and women. Consequently, the Rwanda Girls Initiative aims to educate girls in order for them to reach their full potential. Similarly, Bahia Street School in Brazil aims to break the cycle of poverty among young women by providing them with opportunities to achieve the highest education level. It is hoped that this will empower young women who have for a long time been to ignore and forced to early marriages and dependence on men (Duflo 14). The programs have since been expanded to some of the African countries.
There are a lot of similarities between Rwanda Girls Initiative and Bahia Street School approaches in helping girls to rise in these societies. The two programs take girls to school as the first step of developing them. They believe this is the basic foundation that is needed to overcome the present challenges facing women around the low-income families around the world. After basic education, the women are then taken to various training depending on their capability and talents. They are trained on various economic programs and how they can either start their own business or engages in community services that would benefit then and the society as well. Another similarity in the approach used for the two projects is that their focus is on the poor girls who cannot afford the basic education among other development that would stir them to their highest potential (Duflo). Poverty has made some families to focus their little resources on their boy child and thus ignoring girls who they believe would get married and will be taken care of by their husbands. However when the husbands pass on or when the marriage fails, the poverty cycle continues because the woman left behind cannot take care of their families. These two programs were founded on the same basic principles, to uplift the girl child out of poverty.
The differences between the two projects are that Rwanda Girls Initiative help girls in selected schools and colleges while Bahia provides the education services themselves by constructing temporary street schools and other eligible places to offer these services to girls.
Rwanda Girls Initiative sponsors girls in schools and also provides them with funds to cater for the needs of girls in the society (Elborgh-Woytek et al. 17). This means that Rwanda Girls Imitative does not directly provide the education services to girls rather than funding institutions that are providing these services to the Rwandan Girls. On the other hand, Bahia programs do not only provide funds to but also human resources regarding experts and structures like classrooms to have provided these services.
The best approach to education that will end gender and other social inequality among girls and boys in the society is to make education opportunities access to all without discrimination or any other hindrance based on their gender, race or ethnicity. The funds, programs as well as other resources that support education should be available to all, and those who are disadvantaged in any way in the society should be given high priority.
Question four
Masculinity can be defined as behaviors and roles that are associated with men that are believed to be differentiating them with female counterparts in the society. Traditionally, some functions and behaviors are only related to men in the society and not from girls. For example, men are associated with courage and thus can be relied upon by their female counterpart to provide security on the other hand; it is not a common thing for the women to ensure the safety of men. For these, men were taken to be superior to the society and dominant over the girls and women.
The patriarchal dividend is a priority and privileges that are granted to all men in the society. They are those privileges that favor men because of their gender. They are even embraced in nations that have women rights considered worthwhile. Several ways can be sued to change patriarchal dividend. First, the affirmative action should be adopted and directed towards women and leadership in the society (Diana Deere et al, 15). For example, if some favoritism is applied on women on the position of their leadership, the patriarchal dividend that gives men an upper hand in those positions would be reduced. Also, nations and communities can focus on the girl child; provide them with the needed education to realize their potential. These would ensure that they are well equipped to challenge men in the society where men have been for a long time considered superior. With proper education, women can now be taken through various training that focuses on leadership and development. In this way, those factors that are used to give men privileges would reduce because women will also be seen as potential people to handle those roles that have for a long time been associated with men.
Question five
Anti-global politics is a movement that is aimed at countering globalization. This movement was started to protest the idea of multinational corporations not being regulated due to the political powers that are exercised through trade agreements as well as deregulated financial markets. Some of the corporations usually maximize their profits in the expense of the work safety in the host nations and cannot be stopped due to the international trade agreements in those countries. The local decisions are being undermined due to such agreement and the profit benefits mostly the countries of origin for those corporations. This movement aims to put to an end the legal status of these corporations’ personhood and also disbandment of free market fundamentalism.
The model of growth and development worldwide which relies on globalization to bring together every part of the world more deeply into markets with the aim of higher economic growth is now in crisis because of the anti-global politics. However, if the issue of anti-global movement can be scrutinized well, there are reasons to believe that they are right. Some powerful nations are benefiting on this agreement than the states that are providing them with markets and resources to run their companies (Diana Deere et al. 13). Large corporations that have branches all over the world have some of the worst laws and working conditions. However, the host nation cannot do a lot to control them because of the political powers behind their operations. In such a situation, these nations are benefiting at the expense of those nations who provide them with labor and infrastructures which they are using to generate the huge profits. All these are happening because of globalization. There is a need to review such agreement if the globalization has to be allowed to continue further. The crisis of this global development model comes about because of lack of balance in the agreement. There is malice in the treaty as the host country benefits only a little but the huge benefit is for the home country. Also, they are prone to exploitation of the human resources that are in the host countries. Countries have come to the realization that globalization is not helping them that much but serves the interest of powerful nations. Such are the reasons why some nations have started the movement to protest against globalization.
Anti-globalization movement would ensure that all the countries involved in the same agreement benefit equally. Countries cannot be brought to the same development level if one still dominates the market and proceeds from their trade agreement.
Pluriverse does not oppose globalization but claims that the economic development in the world should result in living well. It views the development as a two-way matter that should benefit both sides involved but not exploitation. These views are similar to development opinions that were there six decades ago.
On views of gender inequality, universes believe that gender and social changes should be embraced to fit in the current society. It further claims that one of the limiting factors to economic development around the world. This shows that empowering women is the first step in achieving equal development in all the countries around the world.
Gender inequality makes development difficult because some part of the population that should be participating in developmental activities is being left behind and instead of being reliant on the other half or men.
In conclusion, gender equality and women empowerment are seen as important matters in achieving the highest form of development across the world. There will be over reliance on men if women are not empowered to participate in development. Thus it is a critical matter that any nation must consider for it to fit in the development requirement of the current century. Anti-globalization would also save the world development crisis as it will end exploitation by the powerful nations. They will realize that the world has changed and everyone knows their rights thus cannot be exploited. Also, it would force the world governments to come up with a new way of trading that would benefit everyone. Even though gender inequality has been a problem for a long time, some steps have been taken to ensure that it will finally end. Also, women who have been empowered have shown how well they can contribute to the economic development in the world through their leadership skills and positions.
Work Cited
Cook, Rebecca J., ed. Human rights of women: National and international perspectives. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2012.
Duflo, Esther. "Women empowerment and economic development." Journal of Economic Literature 50.4 (2012): 1051-1079.
Elborgh-Woytek, Ms Katrin, et al. Women, work, and the economy: Macroeconomic gains from gender equity. International Monetary Fund, 2013.
Diana Deere, Carmen, Gina E. Alvarado, and Jennifer Twyman. "Gender inequality in asset ownership in latin America: female owners vs household heads." Development and Change 43.2 (2012): 505-530.
