A Feminist Social Contract Rooted in Fiscal Justice An Outline of Eight Feminist Economics Alternatives for Intersectional Justice Bhumika Muchhala Publisher: Third World Network Year: 2023 No. of pages: 42

About the Book

The fiscal consolidation framework underpinning economic policy across much of the world has led to the erosion of critical public services and social infrastructure. These cutbacks have disproportionately affected women, who face diminished access to essential services, suffer loss of livelihoods and bear an increasing burden of unpaid care work as a result. In light of the baleful impacts of gendered austerity, this paper puts forward a set of strategies spanning policy and practice - from progressive taxation to social movement building - aimed at advancing gender-equitable fiscal justice.

CONTENTS

1. Economic structuralism is at the foundation of a feminist social contract

2. The erosion of the public: From structural adjustment to current fiscal austerity

3. Gendered austerity enables fiscal austerity: Absorbing shocks while sustaining life
The social-reproductive economy

4. Eight feminist economics alternatives through systemic and decolonial change
Reformulating fiscal policy: a paradigm shift for gender equality
Progressive taxation: redistribute for gender equality
Debt justice: dismantling colonial legacies
Universal social protection: a human right
Human rights impact assessments: going beyond social impacts
Decolonising economics: how we think is at the root of our crises
Dialogue within accountability and transparency
Feminist justice movement building: the power of disruption

Endnotes