ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews some development paradigms, the UN as the midwife of gender equity and human rights, and the obstacles to eradicating gender inequalities. An analytical understanding of gender dynamics and development agenda ownership requires a consideration of their influences on the social and economic relations resulting from the roles of men and women clearly spelling out class, age and generation. Gender and Development (GAD) became a new paradigm, advocating a holistic assessment of the needs and strategies of both women and men when planning and evaluating the success of development programmes and projects. GAD campaigns have sought to influence the agenda of institutions both in donor and recipient countries. According to GAD changes in the institutional decision making structures and cultures of national and international development agencies should reinforce the empowerment process of women's collective actions to gain effective voices and transform themselves into agents of social change.
