art-e-conomy _ reader - marko stamenkovic

48
marital status and language. However, the possibilities of using the benefits offered by
information technologies are highly limited by the above divisions themselves. Generally
speaking, women have fewer possibilities to use information technologies compared
to men, owing to usual gendered reasons: money, time, education opportunities, lower
literacy. Moreover, these factors also contribute to the expansion of inequality among
women themselves.
4. It is a myth that privatisation will lead to increased efficiency of social services and
enhance the response of the public sector to the needs of the poor. Namely, neo-classical
theory implies that privatisation will benefit consumers because ultimate competition,
provided that there are no barriers to the market mechanisms (such as, for example,
the availability of goods) pushes prices downward. One of the rare such sectors where
privatisation is carried out on a par with sufficient competition levels, without hindrances
to market processes and with enhanced access for female workforce and lower retail
prices, is the telecommunications sector. However, these conditions do not apply to
many other sectors, especially the social services sector. Privatisation often means
turning from public to private monopoly with increased prices, loss of employment and
low quality of services.
5. Finally, it is a myth that macroeconomic policy must be evaluated by market-based
criteria. The role of the state is very important in the development process. Namely,
macroeconomic policy does not necessarily have to be a neo-liberal one. Moreover, neoliberal
policy is often inefficient in the realisation of macroeconomic goals. In such cases,
women’s safety network and their actions are of no help. What is needed is gendered
macroeconomic policy. For example, the aim of a balanced budget needn’t be achieved
only by focussing on cost cuts. Alternative to this can be increased state revenue, or
redistribution of revenue within the budget. Namely, those budget expenditure items that
are supported by strong political interest, such as defence budget, tend to be reduced less
than, for example, expenditures aimed at meeting the needs of the poor and women.
Even more significant is the domination of neo-classical idea of choice between
equality and efficiency. And although even some neo-classical economists acknowledge
the positive correlation between equality and efficiency, this paradigm still has significant
analytical inconsistencies. It is therefore necessary for macroeconomic variables such
as the growth of GNP, export, productivity and others to be brought into connection not
only with the activities related to the market, but also to those related to equal access to
resources, human development, reduction of existential insecurity. It is only possible if
one accepts that there is a correlation between equality and efficiency.
Can the impacts of globalisation be changed?
Exploitation does not have to be the price of economic growth and development. It is the
government that makes choices in the patterns of organising economy and redistributing
social wealth. Also, international organisations make choices as to how they will implement
development programmes and formulate a set of conditions under which they will be
giving loans. Finally, civil sector also plays a significant role in this process. Numerous
studies have demonstrated the existence of strong correlation between an increase of
literacy rate among women and economic growth. Investing in the education of women,