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Recommended readings for PAGE II themes (1st round: 2016/2017) |
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| Theme 1 | Theme 2 | Theme 3 | Theme 4 | Theme 5 | |
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Theme 2: Gender and women’s economic empowerment
Economic
development
and
female
empowerment are
closely
related.
While
economic development
has the
potential
to
reduce
gender
inequality, which
is
of
intrinsic
value,
female
empowerment also has
instrumental
value
in
its
ability
to
benefit
development.
Three
main
areas
of
gender
inequality
are
evident:
(1)
human
capital
endowments
such
as
education
and health;
(2)
access
to
economic
opportunities
and
productive
resources;
and
(3)
agency,
or
the
ability
to make
choices
and
take
action.
These
aspects
of
inequality
work
together
to
prevent
women
from
achieving
economic
empowerment
on
par
with
men
(World
Bank,
2012).
Existing
evidence indicates
that
continuous
policy
commitment
is
needed
to bring
about
gender
equality
in
these
areas, and
that
policies
need
to
focus
not only
individuals and households, but
also
markets and
institutions,
both
formal
and
informal
(World
Bank
2011;
Duflo,
2012).
This
is especially
the
case when
focusing
on
closing gender
differences in
access
to
economic
opportunities and
the
ensuing
earnings
and
productivity
gaps
(World
Bank, 2011)
Earlier
studies
indicate
that
empowerment
of
women
is
multidimensional, and
its
outcomes
may
be
influenced
by individual,
household
and
geographical
characteristics
to
varying
degrees
(Mason,
2003; Wiklander,
2010;
Kahn
and
Awan,
2011).
Empowerment can
be
measured
through
improvements
in
their
capacities
and
options
to
access
various types
of
resources, to
participate
in
decision
making
process for
acquiring
and
using
those
resources,
and in turn to
improve
their quality
of
life
(Kabeer,
1999a).
Much
progress
has been
made
over
the
last
twenty
five
years
in
improving the
lives
of
women
and
reducing
gender disparities
in
the
developing world.
Significant
gains
have
been
recorded,
especially
in
terms
of maternal
health,
life
expectancy and
equal
access
to
education
for girls.
Female
life
expectancy
has
increased
from 67
in
1990
to
73 in
2015, with
proportionately
larger
increases
in least
developed
countries
exceeds male
life
expectancy in
every
region
in
the
world.
Maternal
mortality
has
declined
globally
from
380
in
1990
to
230 (per
100,000 live
births)
in
2015,
with
a larger
reduction
to 510 in
2015
from
1100
in
1990
(per 100,000
live
births).
Gender parity
in
primary
and
secondary
school
enrolments
is
closer
to
target
at
97
percent
globally,
and
94
percent
in low
income
countries. The
ratio
of
females to
males in
tertiary
education
has
increased
from 93
to
110
globally,
and
from
43
to 55
in
low
income countries.
However,
these
achievements in
improving
women’s
health
and
education
endowments
have
not necessarily
translated
into
more
equitable
access
to
economic
opportunities
and
productive
resources. Women
continue
to
have lower
labour
force
participation
and
earn
less
than
men
when
they
do
participate
in the
labour
force,
whether
as
employees, or
as
self-employed
entrepreneurs.
They
also
continue
to have inequitable
access
to
land,
capital,
and technology.
In
addition,
women
continue
to
bear
disproportionate
responsibility
for
domestic
(unpaid
family)
work and
they are
over-represented
in
the
informal
and
care economies.
In
many regions
in
the world,
they have
limited
ability
to
make
their
own
choices
in
important areas
that
determine their
economic
empowerment.
Gender disparities
in
the
labour
market
are
significant. ILO
(2015)
finds that
the
labour
force
participation rate is
77
percent
for
men
and
50
percent
for
women.
The
disparity
is eve
acute
in
certain
regions.
For
instance,
in
South
Asia,
the
corresponding
labour
force
participation
rates are 81
and
32
percent,
respectively. In North
Africa, the
corresponding
figures are
75
and
22
percent.
These huge
disparities are
carried
over
to
employment
rates. The
employment
rate
in
North
Africa for
men
is
92
percent,
much
higher
than
the 81
percent for
women.
These
rates reflect a
general
stagnation
or
decline
in
female
labour
force
participation
and
employment in the
last
two
decades
in
East
Asia,
South
East
Asia,
South
Asia,
and
Central
and South
Eastern
Europe
and
slow
growth in
the
same
in
Latin
America,
Middle East
and
Sub-Saharan
Africa (ILO,
2015).
Females
still
earn considerably
less
than
men in
similar
jobs,
according
to the
World
Economic
Forum’s
Gender
Gap
Report
2014.
Its
composite
indicator
of
economic
participation
and
opportunity
stands
at
60%
worldwide,
having
closed
by 4%
from
56%
in
2006
(World
Economic
Forum,
2014).
Wage
equality
survey
data
from
the
same
report
show
that
in a
sample
of
100 countries,
female wages
were more
than 80
percent
of male
wages in
only
five countries.
In
the bulk of
the sample,
gender
wage
gaps
were between
20
and 40
percent
of the
male
wage.
Gaps
in
estimated
earned income
were
greater,
with
women
in
India
earning
24
percent
of
average
male
earnings,
while
at
the
upper
end,
women
in
Botswana,
Kenya
and
Tanzania
earned
between
84-93
percent
of
the
male
wage.
All
over
the
world,
women
own
fewer
productive
assets than
men,
and
they
are
of
lower value. In
agriculture, there
are
significant
gender
differences
in
the
ownership
of land
and
livestock,
and
access
to
financial
services,
modern
inputs,
information,
extension
and
labour.
Interlinkages
in these
differences
explain,
for
example,
why women
farmers
do
not
benefit
from
extension
or use
less
technology
(FAO,
2011). Assets are
critical
to women’s
economic empowerment
on-farm as
well
as
in
off-farm
entrepreneurship.
However,
capital
alone may
not
be
sufficient
to grow
female
micro-enterprises,
and
may
need
to be
combined
with training
(Woodruff
and
McKenzie,
2014).
In
addition
to
individual
indicators, indicators
of
agency
are
few
and
imperfect,
with
political
empowerment
indicators
of
women
in
parliament being
the
most
commonly
used.
It
remains
low at
21%,
although
it has improved
vastly
since 2006
(World
Economic
Forum,
2014).
Social
security
measures
in many
developing
countries
tend
to
be
restricted
to the
small,
male-dominated section
of
the
workforce
employed
in
the
formal
state
and
private
sector.
While their
market
contributions have
become
more
important
within household
livelihood
strategies,
women
are concentrated
in
informal
and
labour
intensive
work, often
face
particular risks
and
vulnerabilities (e.g. health risks,
interrupted
and insecure
employment) and are
less
likely to
have been
able to
save
or
contribute
to
pensions.
In
most
regions
of
the
world,
women
live
longer
than
men
and
hence face
a longer
period
of
widowhood,
and
risk
of
decline
into
greater
poverty
and
insecurity
(Thakur
et al.,
2009). An
emerging
lesson from
global experience
is
that
cash transfers alone
are
not
as
effective
as
cash
plus
key
complementary
interventions
(Samson,
2008).
Gender-related
examples
include
providing
childcare support
for
working
mothers,
enhancing
recipients‟
access
to
the
labour
market
through
job
training,
and linking
to
agricultural input
support.
This type
of
integrated approach
responds
to
the
importance
of
recognising
women’s
needs
as
workers
as
well
as
their
needs
as
mothers
(Thakur
et al.,
2009)
While
there
are
policies
and
programmes in
place
to
foster
women empowerment,
further
enhancements are
still
needed
particularly in
terms
of
making
them more-responsive
to
women’s
needs
in the
context
of
changing
labour
market
environment. Further policy action
is
needed to
improve
women’s
capacities
to
achieve
higher benefits
from
their
work,
to
access
financial
services
and
to
promote
gender
sensitive
social
protection policies
(Kabeer,
2009).
On
the
other hand,
there
is a
need
to
further
examine
the
influence
of
providing
access
to
financial
services
on
empowerment as
its impact also depends
on
other factors such
as
the
individual’s capacities
(e.g. education,
networking,
political
participation)
and
environment characteristics
(Cheston
and
Kuhn,
2002;
Swain
and
Wallentin, 2008).
This
implies
the need
for
better
knowledge
to understand
the
existing
development
conditions and
potentials
of
the
target
women
beneficiaries.
Research
issues
Two
key
aspects
often dominate
the
analysis
of
gender
and
women’s
economic
empowerment.
(1)
Traditional
gender
roles
lead
to
a
gender
division
of
labour
in the
household
which
influences how
women
make
decisions
on the
type
and location of and
hours spent
at work
and
how
these
vary
over
the
life
cycle.
(2) Present
and
past
social
norms
may
also
determine women’s access
to
education,
capital,
and
training,
which
determine
their
productive capacity
to
be
economically
empowered. Thus,
reflecting
on
these
two
aspects,
the
analysis
of
policies
for
women’s
economic
empowerment
in
this
thematic
area
will
address
three broad
areas
of
research
focusing
on
household
labour
supply
decisions
and
female
employment;
the
role
of
education
on labour
market
opportunities
and
gender
inequalities;
and
the
linkage between
economic
growth,
informality and
labour
market policies.19 2.1
Household
labour
supply
decisions
and
female
employment
Gender
roles
have
often
determined
that
women
spend
more
time in
care-giving,
both
of
young
children
and
aged
parents.
To
design
successful
policy
interventions,
it
is
important
to
identify
the
key
institutional
barriers
that
prevent
mothers,
daughters
and
partners
from engaging
in
the
labour
market.
Institutional
barriers
may
take
the
form
of
social
norms
or
labour
market
policies
or
their
absence.
In
the first
case,
a
better
understanding
of
the mechanisms
that
form,
change,
and
transmit gender role
attitudes
is necessary.
In the
latter case, a
better
understanding
of the
impact
of
policies
such
as
child-support
programmes,
parental
leave
etc. is
important
(Del
Boca
and
Locatelli,
2006;
Mauro-Fazio et
al., 2011;
Campos-Vasquez
and
Velez-Grajales, 2013;
Klasen
and
Pieters,
2013).
In
order
to
understand
the
dynamics
of
intra-household
decision
regarding
labour
supply
and
female
employment,
some
relevant
research
questions
include:
19
Research
issues
discussed under
youth
employment
are also
pertinent to
the
research
agenda
for
gender
and
women’s
economic empowerment.
For example,
both groups
may be
constrained
to be
in
vulnerable
employment
for
they may
lack
productive
skills and
experience.
·
How
do women
make
decisions
on the
type
and
location
of
and
hours
spent
at
work?
·
How
does
it vary
across
their life
cycle?
·
What are
the
key
institutional
barriers
for
women
to
improve
their
capacity
to
balance
their
work
decisions
with
their
role
as
mothers,
partners
(and
daughters)?
All
around
the
world,
women
lag
behind
men
with
respect
to
employment
levels,
and
also
productivity
and
income
if
and
when
they
find
a
job.
This has
been
linked
to
the
fact
that
they
manage
smaller
firms
with
low
and
unstable
earnings
or
they
work
in irregular
and
insecure
wage
jobs.
This,
in
turn,
has
contributed
to
significant
productivity
gaps
between
men
and
women
(Doss
and
Morris,
2001;
Wagura
et
al.,
2014).
Moreover,
they
typically have
lower levels
of
human
capital
and
work
experience
(World
Bank,
2012;
Buvinic
and
Furst-Nichols,
2014).
With
education,
individuals
can
gain
entry
into
higher-earning
occupations
(Reyes
et al.,
2014;
Fasih,
2008),
and
returns
to
education
are
typically
high
for
females
(World
Bank,
2012)
although
in
some
cases,
there
may
be
threshold
effects
(Aslam
et al.,
2008).
However,
there
is
evidence
that
despite
higher
returns
to
education
for
females,
gender
wage
gaps
may
still
persist
(Gunewardena
et
al., 2009).
A
study
in India
shows
that
education
may also
reduce
female’s
participation
in
the
labour
force
when marginal
utility
of the female’s
earnings is
decreasing
and
overcompensated
by
an
increase
in
unearned
income
from
other
household
members,
particularly
the
well-educated
husbands
(Verick,
2014;
Klasen
and
Pieters,
2012; Klasen
and
Pieters
2013).
In
addition
to
formal
education,
business
and
job
training
programmes
have
been
two
of
the
main policy
responses
to
foster
women’s
labour
force
participation.
Several
rigorous
evaluations
of
such
programmes
have
been
conducted
to understand
their
role in
promoting
women’s
economic
empowerment
suggesting
mixed
or
poor
results
(see
the
Women’s
Roadmap
Project
Report,
Buvinic
et al.,
2014,
for
a
review).
Evaluations
of
business
training
programmes
find
slightly
positive
impacts
on
business
creation,
but
weak
results
when
it
comes
to
business
expansion
(see
McKenzie
and
Woodruff,
2014
for
a
survey
in
developing
countries;
Rosendahl
Huber
et
al., 2014
for
the
Netherlands;
and
Fairlie et
al.,
2014
for
the US).
Results
are also
mixed
for
vocational
training
programmes.
Studies
in
developed
countries
find
modest
effects
concentrated
in
the
adult
population
(Heckman
et al.,
1999
for
the
US;
and Kluve,
2010
for
Europe).
In
developing
countries,
where
the
skills
gap is
more
likely
to
be
a
binding
constraint,
field
experiments
find
slightly
more
positive
results
(for
a review
see
Buvinic
et al.,
2014
and
Grimm
and
Paffhausen,
2015).
Some
key
policy
research
questions
to
explore
the
influence
of
education
on
labour
market
opportunities
and
inequalities
include:
·
Is
female
education
an effective
tool
to
achieve
gender
equality
in
the
labour
market?
·
Does
reducing
gender
gap
in
education lead
to
lower
gender
gap
in
occupation?
·
How
business
and
vocational
training
can
support
formal
education
for
women
to
participate
in
labour
markets?
2.3
Economic
growth,
informality
and
labour
market
policies
Development
has
the
potential
to
create
more
and
better
jobs
for
women,
through
structural
change, as
well
as
increase
their
labour
force
participation
by
increasing
their
educational
attainment
and
reducing
fertility.
However,
the
empirical
evidence
for
this
hypothesis
is limited
(Gaddis
and
Klasen
2013).
Country
level
studies
indicate
that
as
development
leads
to
the
increase
of
male
incomes,
this may
have
the
effect
of
reducing
the
probability
of
females
working.
Evidence
points
to the
‘feminisation
of
informal
labour’,
or a
significant
increase
in
women’s
participation
in
the
informal economy
(IDS Policy
Briefing, January
2015). Women
tend
to
work
more in
sectors
such
as
home-based
work,
domestic
work,
construction
and
labour-intensive
manufacturing,
where
labour
regulations
and
social
protection
are
usually
inadequate.
Some
relevant
research
questions
which
address
the
linkage
between
economic
growth,
informal
employment,
and
labour
market
policies
include:
·
Have
the
recent
upsurges
in economic
growth
in
several
developing
countries
led
to
the
reduction
in the
gender
wage
gaps
or
the
patterns
of
sectoral
segregation
in
female
employment?
·
Why do
women
usually land a
job in
the
informal
economy?
·
What
labour
market
and
complementary
policies
can
increase
employment
opportunities
for
women? |
