Evolving meanings of “the social” in the international development agenda

Abstract

This paper argues that while social policy as an explicit aspect of policy discourse has relatively recent origins within the international development agenda, concerns with “the social” have featured from its very early days seeking to challenge the conflation between growth and development. The paper focuses on key international conferences and policy documents to analyse contestations over the meanings of “the social” within development policy discourse and their efforts to rethink its boundaries with “the economic”. It suggests that these contestations have helped to spell out the basic outlines of an alternative policy agenda in which concerns with “the social” have come to define both the means and ends of development.

Keywords:

• gender
• growth
• development
• social policy

Acknowledgements

I would like to acknowledge Dr Robin Dunford's support in preparing this paper. I would also like to thank Drs Stefan Kuehner and Nakray Keerty Professor James Copestake and the two anonymous referees for their comments on the earlier draft.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Naila Kabeer is Professor of Gender and International Development at the Gender Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science. Her research focuses on poverty, labour markets and livelihoods, social protection and citizenship. Her most recent publications are “Can the MDGs provide a pathway to social justice: the challenge of intersecting inequalities” and “Organizing women in the informal economy: beyond the weapons of the weak”.

Notes

1. The phrase comes from Palmer (1991), p. 163.

2. http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/DRIPGA.pdf

3. https://www.imf.org/external/np/speeches/2014/052714.htm, downloaded 29 November 2014.