Debbie Budlender

The Women's Budget

Public spending goes little further than last year in reaching the poorest majority—black women. DEBBIE BUDLENDER critically reviews planned Government expenditure in the 1997/8 budget through a gender lens

The Political Economy of Women's Budgets in the South

Soon after the democratic elections of 1994, South Africa embarked on its first womens budget exercise, a collaborative venture between nongovernmental organizations and the South African parliament. Some time later the South African government initiated its own exercise in gender analysis of the budget. The South African initiative has attracted a lot of interest from around the world. In a number of other countries governments and civil society players have embarked on gender analysis exercises, often with strong support from international donors. This paper discusses the ways in which these exercises can assist in addressing gender issues, as well as some of the tensions involved.

Women and poverty

abstract This focus looks at aspects of poverty unrelated to paid work. The first section discusses a range of approaches to measuring poverty. The section on children and womens poverty builds on the first by looking in more depth at the impact of the care work done in respect of children, and at policy measures which do or could address the situation. Policy measures discussed include the child support grant, early childhood development, private maintenance and the expanded public works programme.

Gender budgets: What's in it for NGOs?

Over the last seven years, there has been increasing interest in gender budget work worldwide. Over 50 countries have had gender budget initiatives of one sort or another. There are, however, big differences between the initiatives in different countries. In particular, in some cases the initiatives have been located inside government; in other cases in Parliament; and in yet others within civil society. This article discusses what gender budgets entail, and why non-governmental organisations (NGOs) might be interested in engaging in them.

LOOKING AT OURSELVES

During 1994, an external evaluation of Agenda was carried out by Debbie Budlender, on behalf of Agendas primary funder, HIVOS. This summary of her extremely useful and insightful document highlights some crucial factors relating to the journals future

How many for and how many against? Private and public opinion on abortion

DAVID EVERATT and DEBBIE BUDLENDER argue that the framing of questions in opinion surveys on abortion tends to force respondents into a yes/no dichotomy

Has gender-based tax reform been good for all South African women?

IMRAAN VALODIA, TERENCE SMITH AND DEBBIE BUDLENDER write that although explicit gender biases in the tax system have been removed, South African women continue to be discriminated against by tax regulations

Threads of Solidarity: Women in South African Industry 1900-1980

Part I - gender industrialization: gender, community and working-class history dependency and domesticity - womens wage labour, 1900-1925. Part II - women in the new industrial unions: patterns of womens labour, 1925-1940 daughters of the depression commandos of working women a lengthening thread. Part II - a new working class and the challenge of diversity: nimble fingers and keen eyesight - women in wartime production a new working class, 1940-1960 a solidarity fragmented - garment workers in the Transvaal food and canning workers in the Cape - the structure of gender and race standing united never far from home - family, community and working women. Part IV - decentralization and the rise of independent unions: city and periphery, 1960-1980 repression and resistance.