Development paradigms, social policies and gender in Ecuador

Abstract

Social policies have dovetailed development models throughout history. The purpose of this study is two-fold: Firstly, to determine the different ways in which this articulation has taken place in Ecuador in the period encompassing the Import Substitution Industrialization (ISI) and the so-called Citizen’s Revolution Government. Secondly, this article aims to comprehend how the gender approach was embedded in the social policies of each historical period, with an emphasis on health policies. The State, the market, and the family have distributed amongst themselves the responsibility of providing welfare. Determining the type of articulation existing between social policies and development models allows a better understanding of this distribution. The most striking finding in this study has been that social and health inequalities increase in the population in general, and especially amongst women regardless of the adopted development model, the effort exerted by each stakeholder, the budget allotted or the implemented laws.