Table of Contents

Introduction * Part I: In the Village * Male and Female Farming Systems * The Economics of Polygamy * Loss of Status under European Rule * The Casual Worker * Part II: In the Town * Women in a Men‘s World * Industry: From the Hut to the Factory * The Educated Woman * Women in the Urban Hierarchy * Part III: From Village to Town * The Lure of the Towns * Urban Job Opportunities for Women * The Unemployment Scare * The Design of Female Education * Index

About the Author

Ester Boserup (1910-1999) was born in Denmark. A respected economist, she worked for many years as a researcher and consultant with the United Nations and other international organizations. Her other works include The Conditions of Agricultural Growth. Nazneen Kanji is Director of a Quality of Life assessment programme with the Aga Khan Development Network. Su Fei Tan is a Researcher at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) currently studying the linkages between decentralization and local management of natural resources. Camilla Toulmin is Director of IIED, an economist and co-editor of Towards a New Map of Africa (2005).

Reviews

'Boserup's contribution to our thinking on women's role in development cannot be underestimated. Her keen observations, her use of empirical data and her commitment to greater gender equality are still an inspiration to students, researchers and activists who are interested in a better and more equal world.' From the new Introduction by Nazneen Kanji, Su Fei Tan and Camilla Toulmin 'Women's Role in Economic Development has become a key reference book for anyone - student, scholar, or practitioner - interested in gender and development analyses. This book is important not only because it provided the intellectual underpinning of the Women in Development (WID) analysis, but also because of the lasting influence it had on the development of theoretical, conceptual, and policy thinking in the fields of women, gender, and development. The re-editing of Women's Role in Economic Development, with its new introduction, ensures students, academics, and practitioners continued access to an essential reference for those interested in the women and development literature.' - Gender and Development