Empowerment through participatory budgeting : The case of the Commune 1, in Medellín, Colombia

There is substantial research that highlights the relative exclusion and lack of voice of women in local government decision-making processes, particularly in the allocation of financial resources, traditionally controlled by men. This is particularly so for women from marginalised communities, who are disadvantaged by power relations prevailing in the intersectionalities of class, ethnicity, caste and sexuality, and perpetuated by gender. These women also often experience and are confronted by social and symbolic processes and practices, as well as power relations in specific contexts that continue to hamper gender equality and their political inclusion. Participatory budgetary programmes (PBP) hold the potential for grassroots women to be involved in the priority setting and decision-making processes regarding the allocation of financial resources in local government. This research explores and analyses the participation, empowerment (and disempowerment) trajectories of grassroots women involved in the PBP in the Commune 1, in Medellín, Colombia, in a setting of poverty, conflict, cultural, economic and political exclusion, and persistent gender inequalities.