Invisible agents for change by Perdita Huston Public affairs director with the International Planned Parenthood Federation, London, and author of "Third World Women Speak Out"
f sustainable development is the latest challenge to the international development community, then women, more than ever before, should be at the front and centre of all action strategies. This is not a matter of social justice, nor a feminist issue; it is simple common sense. Sustainable development, according to the Brundtland Commission, "is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.,. The complexities of sustainability suggest an equation with three essential components: wise use of natural resources and eco-systems + equibble development strategies + population policies and family planning service = sustainability of natural systems and socio-economic productivity. But if one of the three is eliminated, the chances of achieving sustainability are threatened. And if we examine the roles (productive and reproductive) that women play - on a daily basis - in most societies, women's involvement in all three components is clearly essential to success. The interaction of women with the natural resources upon which family livelihood are dependent (soil, water, forests), their role in family sanitation and waste disposal, and their contribution to natural resource management far exceed those of men in the non-commercial sector. In the case of energy consumption, women's role as fuel gatherers, tree planters and users of fuel-efficient stoves are critical elements in national energy policy and planning. And if 80 per cent of family food in Africa is produced by women, the implications for agricultural policy are also evident. But what about the third component of the equation - population policies and family planning? Very simply, without control over their health and fertility, women will not be able to participate fully in development efforts. Recent data demonstrate the enormous health benefits - for both mother and child - of family planning. One out of five infants' deaths in developing countries would be preven-
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ted if all births were separated by an interval of at least two years. The World Bank estimates that 500 million couples who do not want more children do not use modem contraceptive methods, due mainly to the unavailability of family planning services. Over one-third of the 140 million women in the developing world who have become pregnant in the last 12 months did not want to have another baby; 200,000 among them have died in that period from unsafe abortions. Millions more suffer from permanent disabilities or chronic illnesses. Malnourished, married too early, bearing children too soon after giving birth or too late in life and without adequate maternal health services, women continue on their tragic course. At the same time, with population growth rates overtaking economic growth and productivity , the government services are overstretched, unemployment soars and
A mother and her growing family in Thailand. "Without control over their health and fertility, women will not be able to participate in development
natural systems are over-exploited. At the individual and national levels, family planning thus becomes an essential element of development, social justice and the well-being of human and natural resources. Development strategies in the past, which relied heavily on measurements of gross national product (GNP), ignored the silent partners of development. Mother Nature's bounty had no monetary value: it was there to be exploited, sold, ploughed up, cut down or polluted. Until her wounds became visible to the naked eye or her despoliation resulted in natural disasters, we paid little attention to her sustainability. The other silent partners, the women, have also remained invisible. Worse still, they have been deprived of equitable participation in development and its benefits. In our search for sustainable development all partners become essential to success. Women, as productive agents for change must be empowered as equal partners. Empowerment means recognising the value of women's work - as well as their right to, and need for, family planning services. 'Excerpted from Panoscope, No. 14, September 1989.
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eHorts".
WORLD HEALTH .
April - May 1990