Beyond "Adding Women" to International Humanitarian Assistance: The Value of a Critical Feminist Perspective

Feminist incursions into the international humanitarian assistance (IHA) agenda are increasingly apparent in the contemporary era. Drawing on the policy initiatives of "gender and development”, international humanitarian assistance has adopted many of the buzz words of its more mature relative - taking on board ideas of gender mainstreaming, gender-focused programming and, in some cases, gender-equality conditionality. Yet despite burgeoning gender considerations in the humanitarian policy world, little serious critical reflection has occurred about the specific consequences of transporting the "gender agenda" from development to humanitarianism, either within academia or outside. This paper investigates the potential contribution of critical feminist theory in achieving more effective gender-sensitive aid delivery for the humanitarian industry. Following from the extensive works of critical feminist theorists in the field of development, it will move away from the liberal orthodoxy and instead suggest that a more contextualised approach to gender needs is required for ideal results to be seen in alleviating gendered insecurities in humanitarian crises. Drawing an on an a brief case-study of gender-focused international humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in the post-Taliban era, the paper argues that critical feminist theory has an important role to play in the achievement of these results.