Spartan Daily, March 17, 2022

Volume 158, Issue 22https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartan_daily_2022/1022/thumbnail.jp

SJSU ERFA News, Spring 2018

Volume 31, Number

Spartan Daily, February 11, 2020

Volume 154, Issue 8https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartan_daily_2020/1007/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily, February 11, 2020

Volume 154, Issue 8https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartan_daily_2020/1007/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily, February 11, 2020

Volume 154, Issue 8https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartan_daily_2020/1007/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily March 7, 2013

Volume 140, Issue 22https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/1389/thumbnail.jp

Spartan Daily, November 18, 2020

Volume 155, Issue 38https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartan_daily_2020/1080/thumbnail.jp

'Good' state vs. 'bad' warlords? A critique of state-building strategies in Afghanistan

The current Afghan government, having weak social roots has been forced to rely on the support of ‘warlords’ to stay in power. But a high price had to be paid. Despite the predominant stress in much current analysis on the issue of regional warlordism, the limited reform achievements in the Kabul ministries and the enduring domination by the militias of some key ministries are potentially much more threatening to the reform and re-establishment of the Afghan state. Widespread corruption is preventing some key ministries from achieving the minimal effectiveness required. Even within Kabul, the focus of the international community has been misplaced. In particular, the pressure of donors on the Ministry of the Interior has been nowhere near as strong as that exerted over the Ministry of Finance. The international community also failed to support adequately the attempts by ‘civil society’ to change the corrupt practices of the state administration

Spartan Daily, March 24, 1999

Volume 112, Issue 40https://scholarworks.sjsu.edu/spartandaily/9397/thumbnail.jp

GAD and Gender Mainstreaming: A Pathway to Sustainable Development?

In recent years there has been increased attention to the importance of gender in securing long-term development goals. Consensus has now been reached that increasing the social status and economic capacity of women is an effective way of improving outcomes. The subject of this paper is the viability of the ‘Gender and Development’ (GAD) paradigm as a means of establishing socially and politically sustainable gains for women in developing countries. The author examines the GAD paradigm using the case study of ‘Gender Mainstreaming’ in the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan since 2001. Through an analysis of some of the problems encountered so far, the author questions whether such an approach is likely to actually result in long-term, sustainable improvement in that country. Three key issues include: marginalization of ‘Gender Mainstreaming’; lack of state capacity; and failures to fully integrate programs into social and cultural contexts. Though reconstruction efforts have clearly resulted in some improvement, it is argued that it is unclear whether such an approach will lead to long-term progress. Rather, there is strong evidence that GAD can actually contribute to the further politicization of gender and result in a backlash against reforms. Ultimately, the goals that the GAD paradigm attempts to achieve are extremely difficult to translate into effective practice, especially in highly volatile and politicized situations. In conclusion, the author finds that sustainable and transformative change may be elusive if one simply applies new aims to old models of aid provision