Women and Development (WAND)

In proclaiming the period 1976-1985 “The Decade for Women,” the UN called on all governments, nongovernmental agencies, international agencies, charitable organizations and philanthropies to support programs aimed at advancing opportunities for women in developing nations. In the Caribbean, a particular commitment had been made by governments and nongovernmental groups to help improve the situation of women and to facilitate their increased participation in the social and economic development of their countries. It was during this time that Carnegie Corporation made an initial grant of $225,000 to help the University of the West Indies create a special Women and Development Unit (WAND) to raise awareness of women's issues and to provide technical assistance to women and development programs and projects in the region. Headed by Peggy Antrobus, WAND also carried out research on women’s rights and on conditions affecting poor women; among the most important contributions of Antrobus and WAND was an increased understanding that many of the assumptions made about the conditions of poor women and their economic, social and cultural status were the result of outmoded patriarchal ideas about the place of women in Caribbean society.