WUNRN
EMPOWERING WOMEN POWERS NATIONS
Women
in
By
ROBERT B. ZOELLICK*- |9/18/11
Imagine if a city of
almost four million people disappeared every year. A
Yet it goes largely unnoticed
that almost four million girls and women “go missing” each year in developing
countries when compared to their female counterparts in developed countries.
About two-fifths are never born; a sixth die in early childhood, and more than
a third die during their reproductive years.
High
mortality rates are just one of many barriers to equality between men and
women, as argued in the World Bank’s new report. Equality is not just the right
thing to do. It’s smart economics. How can an economy achieve full potential if
it ignores, sidelines or fails to invest in half its population?
The world has taken
significant steps over the past 25 years toward narrowing the gaps between men
and women in education, health and labor markets.
Today, girls and boys
participate equally in primary education in most developing countries; a third
have more girls in secondary school than boys. At the university level, women
now outnumber men in more than 60 countries.
Women are using their
education to participate increasingly in the labor force, diversify their time
beyond housework and childcare and shape their communities, economies and
societies. Women now make up more than 40 percent of the global labor force —
including a large share of the world’s entrepreneurs and farmers.
This pace of change
has been remarkable: For example, what took the
Other dimensions of
equality, however, portray a more disturbing picture.
Girls who are poor,
live in remote areas or belong to minority groups still cannot attend school as
easily as boys. Women are more likely than men to work in low-paying
occupations, to farm smaller plots and to manage smaller firms in less
profitable sectors.
Whether workers,
farmers or entrepreneurs, women earn less than men: 20 percent less in
Leveling the playing
field for women would offer huge potential.
Talk to Julian
Omalla. This Ugandan business woman had trouble getting a loan in 2007. She was
not alone. Ugandan women owned nearly 40 percent of registered businesses, our
research showed, but got less than 10 percent of commercial credit. Since
Omalla gained access to credit, thanks to
Much more can be done
to stop women from being economically marginalized.
Equalizing access to
fertilizers, and other inputs for female and male farmers, for example, could
increase agricultural yields in much of
Putting resources in
the hands of women has shown to be good not just for them, but also for their
children. It increases a child’s chances of survival, health and nutrition and
school performance.
Empowering women to use their talents and skills
can boost countries’ competitiveness and support growth —a valuable, under-used
resource in an uncertain global economy. During the 2008 financial crisis,
women’s incomes helped keep many families afloat —hence the importance of
ensuring that women’s productivity and incomes are not held down by market or
institutional barriers, or overt discrimination.
This challenge is not just about developing
countries. Around the world, one in 10 women will be sexually or physically
abused by a partner, or someone she knows, over her lifetime.
The World Bank’s new report calls for
action in four areas:
• addressing human capital issues, like the higher
mortality of girls and women, through investment in clean water and maternal
care and persistent disadvantages in education through targeted programs;
• closing the earning and productivity gaps
between women and men — by improving access to productive resources; water and
electricity, and childcare;
• increasing participation by women in decisions
made within households and societies; and
• limiting gender inequality across generations,
by investing in the health and education of adolescent boys and girls, creating
opportunities to improve their lives and offering family planning information.
We have seen that focused policy attention can
make a difference. Sustainable solutions are best grounded in partnerships
including families, the private sector, governments, development agencies and
religious and civil society groups.
Even in the most traditional societies and poorest
villages, I have seen that when women gain opportunities to earn more for their
families, it quickly overcomes men’s suspicions — or even initial hostility.
But people often need a project that sparks a
changed outlook. The poorest countries can accomplish much more with financial
help. The World Bank will invest, in part, because the economic payoffs are
large.
Gender equality is the right thing to do. And it
is also smart economics.
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*Robert B. Zoellick
is the president of the World Bank Group.