Gender is shaped by cultural context and varies significantly from one society to another. What may be considered acceptable or expected behavior for men or women in one community can be very different elsewhere. However, across most societies, a recurring theme is the division of roles and unequal access to resources and authority. Generally, men are seen as the primary actors in economic or public life, while women are associated with domestic responsibilities.

Sexuality, while related to gender, is a separate yet interconnected concept. It refers to how society shapes and interprets our sexual instincts. Rather than being purely biological, sexuality is influenced by cultural and social factors — including who someone is intimate with, the context in which this occurs, the reasons behind it, and the consequences. It’s not just about actions, but about identity, desire, and social norms, making it a complex and evolving aspect of human life.

Historical Perspectives on Gender in Development

Over time, four significant frameworks have shaped how gender has been approached in development work: Women in Development (WID), Gender and Development (GAD), Post-structuralism, and the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA). These approaches are not mutually exclusive; rather, each one adds to the discourse and builds upon the previous.

Women in Development (WID)

Emerging in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the WID framework was developed in response to growing awareness that women were being overlooked in development efforts. Its goal was to include women more actively in development projects, arguing that doing so would boost both economic growth and social effectiveness. In education, this translated into expanding opportunities for girls and women, with the idea that educating women leads to broader societal benefits — such as lowering infant mortality, reducing birth rates, and increasing national income. A core element of WID is the focus on gender parity — ensuring that boys and girls have equal access to education and complete their schooling in equal numbers.

Gender and Development (GAD)

By the late 1980s, the GAD approach took center stage, shifting the focus from simply involving women to addressing the root causes of gender inequality. Rather than just adding women into existing systems, GAD seeks to change the systems themselves. It emphasizes empowerment, aiming to give women the tools and confidence to make decisions about their own lives. This often involves targeted interventions like training, advocacy, and community education. GAD promotes gender equity, which means recognizing that fairness sometimes requires different treatment based on existing disadvantages, and pushing back against biased policies and practices.

Post-structuralism in Development

Post-structuralist theory brings a more critical lens to the discussion, questioning the very foundations of terms like “development,” “aid,” and even “women” in the context of the global South. Drawing heavily from post-colonial studies, these theories critique how power, identity, and language shape our understanding of gender and progress. Rather than seeing gender as a fixed category, post-structuralists treat it as fluid and context-dependent. From this viewpoint, education should not just transmit knowledge, but should also challenge rigid ideas of identity — including gender and other marginalized identities. Although this perspective is influential in academic and activist circles, it has had limited practical impact on policymaking and the work of NGOs.

Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA)

The HRBA is a comprehensive framework rooted in the belief that education is a basic human right connected to other essential rights. This approach insists that all people — especially those who have historically faced exclusion, such as women and girls, people with disabilities, indigenous communities, and linguistic or cultural minorities — must have equal access to education (UNICEF, 2007). Following the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action, gender mainstreaming became widely adopted. This principle commits institutions to consider both women’s and men’s experiences in every phase of policy-making and programming. The aim is to ensure equality in outcomes and prevent further marginalization.