Abstract
If benefit sharing is about justice, then it needs to be fair for both sexes. This chapter provides a gender analysis of benefit sharing. Five cases are presented, from Kenya (Nairobi sex workers), Nigeria (NIPRISAN), southern Africa (San/Hoodia), India (Kani people), and Iceland (deCODE biobank), to show the ways in which women are politically marginalized, and the implications of this for genuine fairness in benefit sharing. In the light of international commitments to women’s rights, international guidelines on benefit sharing are examined for the extent to which they protect such rights. Seeing how gender-based power imbalances on the ground can work against the implementation of guidelines and policies demonstrates the importance of strategies, processes and mechanisms that are sensitive to power dynamics in local contexts. The chapter concludes that all guidelines and policies for benefit sharing should explicitly require women’s meaningful participation in all phases of decision-making, and should include examples of the kinds of mechanisms that will enable women to have an effective voice.
Keywords
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsNotes
- 1.
A ‘hierarchically sexist society’ is equivalent to a patriarchal society, as defined by Karen Warren: ‘As I use the term, “patriarchy” is the systematic domination of women by men through institutions (including policies, practices, offices, positions, roles), behaviors, and ways of thinking (conceptual frameworks), which assign higher value, privilege, and power to men (or to what historically is male-gender identified) than to that given to women (or to what historically is female-gender identified) …. What characterizes the position of women under patriarchy is not that women have no power, valued status, prestige, or privilege; they do…. What characterizes women’s position is the varying degrees and ways women, as a group, are excluded from political and economic institutions of power and privilege …. [W]hat women under patriarchy have in common, as a group, is less institutional power and privilege than men’ (Warren 2000: 64).
- 2.
This analysis is based on Alvarez Castillo and Lucas (2009: 141).
- 3.
Personal communication from Dr Joshua Kimani, November 2010.
- 4.
Personal communication from Charles Wambebe, June 2008.
- 5.
- 6.
Apart from the trust fund, the Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute has also implemented capacity building for women. This includes an entrepreneurship development programme, the establishment of cooperative societies and self-help groups, and marketing strategies (personal communication from Dr Sachin Chaturvedi, October 2007).
- 7.
Data provided by Gardar Arnason, GenBenefit project meeting, Paris, 7 July 2008.
- 8.
In Iceland’s 1997 election, the percentage of women elected to parliament was 25.4% http://data.un.org/Data.aspx?d=MDG&f=seriesRowID%3A557.
- 9.
- 10.
- 11.
The emergence of a specific mode of production in early societies was influenced by the interactions of factors such as the natural environment, the food sources, climate, technology, population size, material culture and social organization.
- 12.
For example, in a study regarding gender, consent and research participation in Pakistan, 44% of respondents believed it was important or essential for the researcher to involve the family members or elders of an adult potential study participant in the process of obtaining informed consent. If the research participant was a woman, 60% of the respondents felt it was essential that the father’s or, in the case of a married woman, husband’s permission be sought before approaching the woman. Where there was a difference of opinion between the study participant and the father or spouse, 74% felt that the opinion of a male participant should prevail, but if the study participant was a woman, then only 53% of respondents felt that her opinion should be honoured. There was no significant difference in the opinions expressed between male and female respondents (Jafarey 2006).
- 13.
The protocol was adopted on 30 October 2010 at the tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the CBD (2010).
- 14.
Personal communication from Victoria Haraseb, July 2008.
- 15.
- 16.
‘A critical 30% threshold should be regarded as a minimum share of decision-making positions held by women at the national level. Few countries have reached or even approached this target, recommended in 1990 by the UN Commission on the Status of Women ….The Report recommends that each nation identify a firm timetable for crossing the 30% threshold in some key areas of decision-making. The 30% threshold should be regarded as a minimum target, not as the ultimate goal’ (UNDP 2005).
- 17.
By 2011 this figure was 40.2% (Lord Davies of Abersoch 2011: 24). Several EU member states have recently started to act in this area and have introduced legally binding quotas for company boards. This includes Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain, with Denmark, Finland, Greece, Austria and Slovenia adopting rules on gender balance for the boards of state-owned companies. The European Commission is currently considering whether or not to impose quotas and legislation across European Member States. The European Commission Vice-President for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, Viviane Reding, launched a public consultation in March 2012 to identify possible action at EU level (Reding 2012). A 2011 report Women on Boards (Lord Davies of Abersoch 2011) for the UK Government published a roadmap for UK plc businesses to achieve 25% female representation on boards by 2015, relating this clearly to questions of corporate governance.
- 18.
The Platform for Action outlines 12 critical areas of concern where the violation of women’s rights and gender inequality persist, and proposes strategic objectives and actions for each (see UN 1995).
- 19.
For a discussion of appropriate strategies to facilitate women’s participation in practice, see Alvarez-Castillo and Feinholz (2006: 117–118). Such initiatives can have unanticipated benefits. For example, when GenBenefit researchers met the women’s leaders in Majengo, Nairobi, in September 2007, they noted a sense of empowerment and solidarity among the women. During the meeting one of the authors (Fatima Castillo) shared with them a problem faced by women in sex work in other countries, which is that customers refuse to use condoms – and women who insist on condoms often lose their customers because the men simply go to other women who agree to sex without a condom. The Majengo women said that in their group, customers like these were refused, and there was an agreement among the women in Majengo that not one of them would cater to such a customer. The result is that sex workers’ customers in Majengo have to use condoms, which reduces the risk for women of contracting sexually transmitted infections. See also Lavery et al. (2010).
- 20.
- 21.
We are grateful to Jack Beetson for this point (GenBenefit Dissemination Conference: Montreal, 6 November 2009).
- 22.
Personal communication July 2008 in relation to the skills building needs of San women.
- 23.
See NGO Forum 1995.
- 24.
For an interesting discussion see Lavery et al. (2010).
- 25.
For example the European Commission includes an optional ‘consideration of gender aspects’ in research funding applications under Framework 7, currently expressed as ‘an indication of the type of actions that will be undertaken during the course of the project to promote gender equality in the project, or in the specific research field…. The gender dimension of the research content should also be considered’ (EC 2010: 31).
These kinds of mechanisms could be used more widely to consider research content in more detail. For example, the Research Council of Norway regards it as ‘essential that gender perspectives are given adequate consideration in the research projects’ it funds, and states that ‘consideration will be given to whether the research projects have taken such perspectives adequately into account’ (Research Council of Norway 2003).
In a recent development, point 4 of the Manifesto for Integrated Action on the Gender Dimension in Research and Innovation (2011) launched at the 1st European Gender Summit in November 2011, wishes to: ‘Consider “whether, and in what sense, sex and gender are relevant in the objectives and methodology of the project” to ensure excellence in research. This key question must be asked by researchers, research funders, evaluators, reviewers and journal editors. Evidence demonstrates that the assertion that science is gender neutral is not the case. When gender is not taken into account, research often results in different health and safety outcomes for women and men. Researchers also need to question how to ensure that the products and services they help develop benefit both women and men.’ The Manifesto is the product of extensive public consultation and discussion and was presented to the EC Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, Maire Geoghegan-Quinn on December 16th, 2011.
References
Alliances for Africa (2006) Women in governance and decision making initiative in Imo State, south east Nigeria. http://www.alliancesforafrica.org/editorial.asp?page_id=63
Alvarez Castillo F, Lucas JC (2009) Fairness and gender in benefit sharing: Learning from the Kani, San, Nigerian, Kenyan and Icelandic cases for moving forward. UP Manila J Special Issue. University of the Philippines Manila, Manila. http://www.uclan.ac.uk/schools/school_of_health/research_projects/files/health_genbenefit_gender.pdf
Alvarez-Castillo F, Feinholz D (2006) Women in developing countries and benefit sharing. Dev World Bioeth 6(3):113–121
Alvarez-Castillo F, Lucas JC, Cordillera Castillo R (2009) Gender and vulnerable populations in benefit sharing: An exploration of conceptual and contextual points. Camb Q Healthc Ethics 18(2):130–137
Andanda P (2009) Vulnerability: Sex workers in Nairobi’s Majengo slum. Camb Q Healthc Ethics 18(2):138–146
Andanda P, Lucas JC (2007) Majengo HIV/AIDS research case. A report for GenBenefit. http://www.uclan.ac.uk/schools/school_of_health/research_projects/files/health_genbenefit_nairobi_case.pdf
Becker H (2003) The least sexist society? Perspectives on gender, change and violence among southern African San. J South Afr Stud 29(1):5–23
Bonn Guidelines (2002) The Bonn Guidelines on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of the Benefits Arising out of their Utilization. Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Quebec. http://www.cbd.int/doc/publications/cbd-bonn-gdls-en.pdf
Canadian Heritage (2007) Canada’s new government supports Aboriginal women in British Columbia. News release, 19 January. http://www.pch.gc.ca/pc-ch/infoCntr/cdm-mc/index-eng.cfm?action=doc&DocIDCd=CR061264
CBD (1992) Convention on Biological Diversity. http://www.cbd.int/convention/text
CBD (2004) Akwé: Kon voluntary guidelines for the conduct of cultural, environmental and social impact assessments regarding developments proposed to take place on, or which are likely to impact on, sacred sites and on lands and waters traditionally occupied or used by indigenous and local communities. Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Quebec. http://www.cbd.int/doc/publications/akwe-brochure-en.pdf
CBD (2010) Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity. http://www.cbd.int/abs/doc/protocol/nagoya-protocol-en.pdf
Chennells R (2007) San Hoodia Case. A Report for GenBenefit. http://www.uclan.ac.uk/schools/school_of_health/research_projects/files/health_genbenefit_san_case.pdf
CIOMS (2002) International ethical guidelines for biomedical research involving human subjects. Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences. http://www.cioms.ch/publications/layout_guide2002.pdf
CPWP (2007) Promoting women’s participation in decision making at the commune level in Cambodia. Report to the World Bank. CPWP Secretariat, SILAKA, Phnom Penh. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTEAPREGTOPSOCDEV/Resources/502632-1170188546240/KH-Commune-Counclors2007.pdf
Davis MJ (2008) Indigenous women’s representation and the proposal for a new national representative body. Indig Law Bull 7(4):6–9. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1398584
EC (2008) Women and men in decision-making 2007: Analysis of the situation and trends. Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, European Commission, 2008. http://www.ifuw.org/uwe/docs/2008-uwe-ep-women-men.pdf
EC (2010) Structure of annex I to the grant agreement (description of work): FP7 collaborative projects, networks of excellence, coordination and support actions, research for the benefit of specific groups (in particular SMEs). Version 17/05/2010. European Commission Community Research. ftp://ftp.cordis.europa.eu/pub/fp7/docs/negotiation_en.doc
Felton S, Becker H (2001) A gender perspective on the status of the San in southern Africa. Regional assessment of the status of the San in southern Africa report series. Report No. 5 of 5. Legal Assistance Centre, Windhoek, Namibia
Francisco G, Antrobus P (2009) Mainstreaming trade and Millennium Development Goals? In: Salleh A (ed) Ecosufficiency and global justice. Pluto Press, London, pp 157–164
Gale F (1990) The participation of Australian aboriginal women in a changing political environment. Polit Geogr Q 9(4):381–395
Gillon R (1985) Philosophical medical ethics. Wiley, Chichester
Goetz AM (2007) Gender justice, citizenship and development: Core concepts, central debates and new directions for research. In: Mukhopadhyay M, Singh N (eds) Gender justice, citizenship and development. Zubaan, an imprint of Kali for Women and International Development Research Centre, New Delhi, pp 15–57
Hitchcock R, Johnson M, Haney C (2004) Indigenous women in Botswana: Changing gender roles in the face of dispossession, and modernization. In: Hitchcock R, Vinding D (eds) Indigenous peoples’ rights in southern Africa. International Working Group for Indigenous Affairs, Copenhagen, pp 166–183
HUGO Ethics Committee (2000) Statement on benefit-sharing, 9 April. http://www.eubios.info/BENSHARE.htm
IFAD (2004) Gender issues in IFAD projects in western and central Africa: A stock-taking exercise. International Fund for Agricultural Development, Rome. http://www.ifad.org/gender/progress/pa/stock/index.htm
IUCN (1988) Proceedings, 17th session of the General Assembly of International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and 17th Technical Meeting, San José, Costa Rica, 1–10 Febr. http://data.iucn.org/dbtw-wpd/edocs/GA-17th-011.pdf
Jafarey A (2006) Informed consent: views from Karachi. East Mediterr Health J 12(suppl 1). http://www.emro.who.int/Publications/EMHJ/12_s/article8.htm
Kelkar G, Nathan D (1991) Gender and tribe: Women, land and forests in Jharkhand. Kali for Women, New Delhi
Kipuri N, Ridgewell A (2008) A double bind: the exclusion of pastoralist women in the east and Horn of Africa. Minority Rights Group International. http://www.minorityrights.org/download.php?id=593
Kungala Wakai (2003) Submission to review of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, 38. Kungala Wakai ATSIC Committee on Women’s Issues. As cited in Davis (2008)
Lavery JV, Bandewar SVS, Kimani J, Upshur REG, Plummer FA, Singer PA (2010) ‘Relief of oppression’: An organizing principle for researchers’ obligations to participants in observational studies in the developing world. BMC Public Health 10(384). http://cts.vresp.com/c/?McLaughlinRotmanCent/fefe2bf0cd/e85788d284/6b918c4e68
Leacock E (1983) Interpreting the origins of gender inequality: Conceptual and historical problems. In: McGee J, Warms R (eds) Anthropological theory: An introductory history, 2nd edn. Mayfield Publishing Company, London, pp 429–444
Lord Davies of Abersoch (Chair of Expert Committee) (2011) Women on Boards http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/business-law/docs/w/11-745-women-on-boards.pdf
Mahowald MB (2000) Genes, women, equality. Oxford University Press, New York
Manifesto for Integrated Action on the Gender Dimension in Research and Innovation (2011). http://www.gender-summit.eu/index.php?Itemid=42&id=278&option=com_content&view=article
Menon V (1999) The politics of maternity and fertility control: The case of the forest dwelling Kani women of Kerala. In: Indira R, Behera DK (eds) Gender and society in India, vol 2. Manak Publications, New Delhi
Molyneux M, Razavi S (2002) Gender justice, development and rights. Oxford University Press, London
Mukhopahyay M (2007) Gender justice, citizenship and development: An introduction. In: Mukhopadhyay M, Singh N (eds) Gender justice, citizenship and development. Zubaan, an imprint of Kali for Women and International Development Research Centre, New Delhi, pp 1–14
NGO Forum (1995) Beijing Declaration of Indigenous Women. NGO Forum, UN Fourth World Conference on Women, Huairou, Beijing, 7 September. http://www.ipcb.org/resolutions/htmls/dec_beijing.html
OAU (2000) African model legislation for the protection of the rights of local communities, farmers and breeders and for the regulation of access to biological resources. Organization of African Unity, Algeria. http://www.grain.org/brl_files/oau-model-law-en.pdf
Reding V (2012) Women on Top, Parliament Magazine, 16 April 2012
Research Council of Norway (2003) Personal overseas research grant. http://www.forskningsradet.no/en/Personal_overseas_research_grant/1195592883183
Schroeder D (2009) Informed consent: From medical research to traditional knowledge. In: Wynberg R, Schroeder D, Chennells R (eds) Indigenous peoples, consent and benefit sharing: Lessons from the San Hoodia case. Springer, Berlin, pp 27–51
Schroeder D, Gefenas E (2009) Vulnerability: Too vague and too broad? Camb Q Healthc Ethics 18(2):113–121
Shanthi (1999) Women in tribal societies: an overview. In Indira R, Behera DK (eds) Gender and society in India, vol 2. Manak Publications, New Delhi, pp 135–147
Simonelli J, Earle D (2003) Meeting resistance: Autonomy, development and ‘informed permission’ in Chiapas, Mexico. Qual Inq 9(1):74–89
Suneetha MS, Pisupati B (2009) Learning from the practitioners: Benefit sharing perspectives from enterprising communities. United Nations Environment Programme, October
Sylvain R (2006) Drinking, fighting and healing: San struggles for survival and solidarity in the Omaheke region, Namibia. In: Hitchcock RK, Ikeya K, Biesele M, Lee RB (eds) Updating the San: Image and reality of an African people in the 21st century. Senri Ethnological Studies 70, pp 131–150
UN (1979) Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Adopted by General Assembly resolution 34/180 of 18 Dec. http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/cedaw.htm
UN (1995) Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Fourth World Conference on Women. Beijing, 15 Sept. http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/beijing/pdf/BDPfA%20E.pdf
UN (1997) Report of the Economic and Social Council for 1997. United Nations General Assembly A/52/3. http://www.un.org/documents/ga/docs/52/plenary/a52-3.htm
UN Women (2004) At a glance: Securing indigenous women’s rights and participation. UNIFEM fact sheet. http://www.unifem.org/materials/fact_sheets.php?StoryID=288
UN Women (2008) Women, poverty & economics. http://www.unifem.org/gender_issues/women_poverty_economics/
UNDP (2005) Human Development Report 2005: Gender and human development. Overview: The revolution for gender equality. United Nations Development Programme. http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/hdr_1995_en_overview.pdf
Wambebe C (2007) NIPRISAN Case, Nigeria: A report for GenBenefit. http://www.uclan.ac.uk/schools/school_of_health/research_projects/files/health_genbenefit_nigerian_case.pdf
Warren KJ (2000) Ecofeminist philosophy. Rowman and Littlefield, Oxford
Watanabe H (1968) Subsistence and ecology of northern food gatherers with special reference to the Ainu. In: Lee RB, DeVore I (eds) Man the Hunter. Aldine, Chicago, pp 69–77
WMA (2008) Declaration of Helsinki: Ethical principles for medical research involving human subjects. Adopted by the 18th World Medical Association General Assembly, Helsinki, Finland, June 1964, latest revision by the 59th WMA General Assembly, Seoul, Korea, October. http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/index.html
YACWI (2008) Strong women, strong communities: Furthering aboriginal women’s equality. Yukon Aboriginal women’s summits: priorities and key messages. Government of Yukon Women’s Directorate and Yukon Advisory Council on Women’s Issues. http://www.womensdirectorate.gov.yk.ca/pdf/yaws_final_recommendations_key_messages.pdf
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Lucas, J.C., Alvarez Castillo, F. (2013). Fair for Women? A Gender Analysis of Benefit Sharing. In: Schroeder, D., Cook Lucas, J. (eds) Benefit Sharing. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6205-3_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6205-3_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-94-007-6204-6
Online ISBN: 978-94-007-6205-3
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)