Employment and social inclusion have been regular themes in the agenda of the European Union for the past fifteen years. From a soft coordinated approach mainly focused on the fight against unemployment, the European Union has moved towards a more coordinated but still voluntary strategy for its...

Much faith has been put in the increased supply of education as a means to promote national economic development and as a way to assist the poor and the disadvantaged. However, the benefits that nations can obtain by increasing the level of education of their workforce depends on the...

Human resources are central to economic development and can be increased in value and productivity by investment in human beings e.g. in their education and health. But for a considerable period in the past economists stressed the importance of the accumulation of man-made physical capital for...

In male dominated societies like Kenya, men's superior status leading to power over women and control of valued resources, is supported by laws and policies that spell out and legitimise men's privileged and dominant status and is justified by religious, traditional, moral, and/or...

Survey data on which this paper is based were collected in a rural district in Kenya between December 2000 and January 2001. The main objective was to identify the factors that determine female participation in household decision-making. Our results suggest that bargaining models and resource...

In 2000, household heads of three villages located in or near forests in the south of West Bengal, India, were interviewed using a structured questionnaire1. The questionnaire is attached as an Appendix to this paper. The questions asked were designed to provide information about the extent of...

Indicators of gender inequality, poverty and human development in Kenya are examined. Significant and rising incidence of absolute poverty occurs in Kenya and women are more likely to be in poverty than men. Female/male ratios in Kenyan decision-making institutions are highly skewed against...

Under pressure from external forces, involvement of Pacific Island nations in processes of globalisation and associated structural adjustment policies is being accelerated. Conditional aid and financial assistance from Bretton Woods' institutions and their 'relatives' such as the Asian...