Women’s Experience and Perception of Their Participation in the Development Process: An Interpretive Inquiry

Abstract

Following the promulgation of the Constitution of Nepal 2015 and the federal restructuring of the state, local-level governments have emerged as fundamental bodies for comprehensive development. While legal backgrounds such as the Local Government Operation Act 2017 authorize women’s proportionate participation, a substantial inequality remains between policy commitment and practical realism. This study explores women’s perceptions and lived experiences of participation in the local development process within a Rural Municipality in the Lalitpur district. Stranded in an interpretive paradigm, the research employs an Interpretive Inquiry methodology to uncover the subjective meanings twelve purposively designated women, including elected representatives and community members associated with the local development activities, allocate to their participation. The data produced through in depth interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. This study inserts two theoretical lenses: Participatory Development Theory to examine the quality and process of engagement, and Gender and Development theory to examine structural power exercise. The findings of the study uncover that while women’s numerical attendance has been increased to meet the current legal requirements, their participation remains symbolic and tokenistic. Women contend with a continuum of disempowerment determined by interlocking barriers, encompassing deeply rooted patriarchal norms, attitudes and practices of the burden of household work, social responsibilities, and institutional negligence that arranges physical structure over human capital. Regardless of these limitations, the study identifies an optimistic unfolding of women’s inherent agencies, where members are increasingly transitioning from submissive presence to deliberate expression of their justices. The study concludes that succeeding in meaningful participation requires transferring further than organizational fulfillment to fundamental transformation. It indicates that local governments must institutionalize gender-approachable budgeting, market-linked economic empowerment, and behavioral transformations to demolish the informal masculine gatekeeping that presently controls women’s independent power, which can hinder women’s access to resources and decision-making processes in their communities.