In this issue there are two papers which deal directly with the Informal Sector debate: in the first, by Bienefeld, the assumptions behind the debate are examined, as are the links between the struggles of those unable to achieve formal employment and of women trying to free themselves from social oppression.

In the second, Banerjee questions whether the Informal Sector is an economic category at all, and suggests that it belongs more to the realm of politics. Heyzer, looking at women's participation in the Informal Sector sketches a possible framework for analysis, while Greenstreet indicates the crucial importance of discrimination in access to education in shaping women's limited economic options.

Other articles provide detailed case histories of the form that work for women takes, and either how this is directly organised by capital or how it is patterned according to women's life cycle and the ways in which women can organise despite being involved in fragmented and isolating enterprises.

In a final article, the editors of the Bulletin look at some of the factors that influence both the form women's work takes and the factors structuring their participation. They point to where future research is urgently needed.