With the full effects of the Great Recession still unfolding, this collection of essays analyses the gendered economic impacts of the crisis. The volume, from an international set of contributors, argues that gender-differentiated economic roles and responsibilities within households and markets can potentially influence the ways in which men and women are affected in times of economic crisis. Looking at the economy through a gender lens, the contributors investigate the antecedents and consequences of the ongoing crisis as well as the recovery policies adopted in selected countries. There are case studies devoted to Latin America, transition economies, China, India, South Africa, Turkey, and the USA. Topics examined include unemployment, the job-creation potential of fiscal expansion, the behavioral response of individuals whose households have experienced loss of income, social protection initiatives, food security and the environment, shedding of jobs in export-led sectors, and lessons learned thus far. From these timely contributions, students, scholars, and policymakers are certain to better understand the theoretical and empirical linkages between gender equality and macroeconomic policy in times of crisis.

Delve into the complex landscape of the informal economy with the Routledge Handbook of the Informal Economy, a groundbreaking volume that transcends conventional economic analysis by contextualizing it within a broader regulatory and social framework. This comprehensive handbook offers cutting-edge categorical, thematic, and regional analyses of the informal, or shadow, economy. An esteemed international ensemble of contributors draws on diverse economic perspectives, exploring a spectrum of definitions and measures, including household, firm-level, and employment-based metrics, alongside perceptional and model-based estimates. Employing a variety of econometric and methodological approaches, the volume provides both regional and global estimates of the informal economy's extent. Beyond conventional boundaries, it unveils various facets of informality, from child labor, tax evasion, and self-employment to precarious and undeclared work. In-depth examinations of the determinants and consequences of informality enhance the volume's robust analysis. As a forward-looking compendium, the handbook also offers insights into the future trajectory of the informal economy as we journey further into the 21st century. This definitive and up-to-date reference work is indispensable for readers in labor economics, development economics, political economy, policy studies, and sociology, offering a nuanced understanding of the multifaceted dimensions and dynamics of the informal economy.

The world is grappling to come up with alternative imaginations for transformation despite repeated crises, inequalities and immiseration caused by the increasing dominance of the neo-liberal capitalist framework and the collapse of twentieth-century socialist models. This book looks at concepts that form the core of development economics and political economy and brings together perspectives that explore the inextricable relationship between development and human rights, social movements and the call for social transformation. The essays in this volume honour the massive corpus of work across a large number of areas around development issues by the eminent economist Jayati Ghosh. The book includes contributions by academics, activists and practitioners and attempts to understand the socio-economic causes of inequality, poverty and oppression. Divided into five parts – corresponding broadly to key areas of Ghosh’s work – the book explores capitalism, inequality and development, gender and development, political economy of trade and financial systems, human development and human rights, and music. The volume situates Ghosh’s work within a heterodox and broad-based understanding of development processes and provides many insights towards a new vision that sets an agenda for further research as well as mobilisation. This volume will be of great interest to students, researchers, practitioners and scholars working on the issues of development, transformations, political economy, social science, economics, macroeconomics, international economics, politics and development studies.

This volume aims to provide critical and current materials on gender justice in Asia; a very much needed conversations given how much the region is integrated globally, and is rapidly changing economically and geo-politically. Shaped very much by economic, political and social development in the region, women’s condition and position in Asia, have seen marked improvements, but underlying the chapters are also inquiries into the slow and hampered progress towards Asian women achieving substantive justice and equality. The significance of the debates and discussions presented here is that they are the results of research-based efforts by gender academics and activists of all stages and levels of expertise across the Asian region. They seek to make sense of different contexts of continued gender-based discrimination and injustice that women face. In the discourse setting, the author stresses the importance of understanding gender justice as integral to both macro- and micro-economic, and social policies. The other chapters delve into interrogating indigenous feminisms as resistance, reinforcing the emerging knowledge that feminism exists in all cultural contexts; issues of low female labour force participation and the need to recognize the informal sector as work; violence against women with a focus on attitudes towards intimate partner violence, as well interrogating the link between empowerment and microcredit. The other chapters look at women in politics from the perspective of democratization process among grassroots women in Indonesia, and the muslimat in Malaysia. Given that Asia is a hotbed for migration, three chapters cover interestingly different groups of women from differing perspectives. The volume is, therefore, of great utility to academics, activists, students and policy makers alike in providing a fresh outlook in dealing with gender justice issues in Asia.

Gender, Development, and Globalization is the leading primer on global feminist economics and development. Lourdes Benería, a pioneer in the field of feminist economics, is joined in this second edition by Gunseli Berik and Maria Floro to update the text to reflect the major theoretical, empirical, and methodological contributions and global developments in the last decade. Its interdisciplinary investigation remains accessible to a broad audience interested in an analytical treatment of the impact of globalization processes on development and wellbeing in general and on social and gender equality in particular. The revision will continue to provide a wide-ranging discussion of the strategies and policies that hold the most promise in promoting equitable and sustainable development. The authors make the case for feminist economics as a useful framework to address major contemporary global challenges, such as inequalities between the global South and North as well as within single countries; persistent poverty; and increasing vulnerability to financial crises, food crises, and climate change. The authors’ approach is grounded in the intellectual current of feminism and human development, drawing on Amartya Sen’s capability approach and focused on the importance of the care economy, increasing pressures faced by women, and the failures of neoliberal reforms to bring about sustainable development, reduction in poverty, inequality, and vulnerability to economic crisis.

This report provides a picture of where we stand and what we have learned so far about maternity and paternity rights across the world. It offers a rich international comparative analysis of law and practice relating to maternity protection at work in 185 countries and territories, comprising leave, cash benefits, employment protection and non-discrimination, health protection, breastfeeding arrangements at work and childcare. Expanding on previous editions, it is based on an extensive set of new legal and statistical indicators, including coverage in law and in practice of paid maternity leave as well as statutory provision of paternity and parental leave and their evolution over the last 20 years. The report also takes account of the recent economic crisis and austerity measures. It shows how well national laws and practice conform to the ILO Maternity Protection Convention, 2000 (No. 183), its accompanying Recommendation (No. 191) and the Workers with Family Responsibilities Convention, 1981 (No. 156), and offers guidance on policy design and implementation. This report shows that a majority of countries have established legislation to protect and support maternity and paternity at work, even if those provisions do not always meet the ILO standards. One of the persistent challenges is the effective implementation of legislation, to ensure that all workers are able to benefit from these essential labour rights.

On 28-30 September 2009, the Asian Development Bank, the governments of the People's Republic of China and Viet Nam, and the ASEAN Secretariat jointly organized a high-level Asia-wide conference in Ha Noi on the social and environmental impact of the global economic crisis on Asia and the Pacific, especially on the poor and vulnerable. The conference also served as the 3rd China-ASEAN Forum on Social Development and Poverty Reduction and as the 4th ASEAN+3 High-Level Seminar on Poverty Reduction. It was supported by various development partners. This book features selected papers from the Ha Noi conference. It is designed with the needs of policy makers in mind, utilizing field, country, and thematic background studies to cover a large number of countries and cases.

The purpose of this handbook is to assist Canadian non-government organizations to increase the effectiveness and the equity of international development work.