Social Relations, Gender and Empowerment in Economic Development: Flores, Nusa Tenggara Timur

Abstract

This article reflects on commissioned research to assess gender impacts of a local economic development project on the island of Flores in Indonesia. The programme in Flores succeeded in raising household incomes and has become the basis for a model that has now been applied globally. Concurrently, however, the project witnessed the imposition of a narrow capitalocentric economic development vision and a failure to comprehend the nuance and richness of local, gendered, economic practices. The research results demonstrate that the benefits of increased cash income and new pathways for women to become leaders are accompanied by costs for individuals, households and communities, most acutely visible in the social economy. The international NGO that commissioned the research was pleased to hear of the benefits, but resisted the inclusion of any negative findings in the final report. This article suggests that this resistance reflects a broader refusal within the development sector to attend to research that has, for decades, been calling for more nuanced approaches to social and economic change, and more careful consideration of gender along the way.