Engendering Socio-Economic Rights

Sandra Fredman argues that the mere extension of socio-economic rights to women is insufficient to achieve equality. In order for those rights to be meaningful, they need to be 'engendered' or infused with substantive gender equality. This better addresses the ability of women to exercise their rights. She argues that socio-economic rights should be re-conceptualized; rather than viewing rights as extending 'bundles of goods' in fixed amounts, socio-economic rights should be understood as capabilities. A capabilities approach focuses on the choices that people are in a position to make and the institutional structures that limit these choices. Fredman posits that a gendered approach to socio-economic rights should be implemented when interpreting international and regional conventions that protect these rights. She explores how this approach has already been adopted in some provisions of CEDAW and the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women.