There are two main standpoints that propagate the
benefits of urbanisation. One is that cities are associated with
opportunities for wealth generation. Concomitant to this is the idea that
urban women supposedly enjoy greater social, economic, political
opportunities and freedoms than their rural counterparts. However, the
notable gender gaps in labour and employment, decent work, pay, tenure
rights, access to and accumulation of assets, personal security and safety
and representation in formal structures of urban governance, show that
women are often the last to benefit from the prosperity of cities.
The State of Women in Cities
2012/2013 Report focuses on Gender and the Prosperity of Cities. The Report
examines the gender dimensions of the defining characteristics of a
prosperous city- productivity, infrastructure development, quality of life,
equity and social inclusion and environmental sustainability. It provides a
conceptual framework for understanding the relationship between gender and
prosperity and also reviews policies and institutional framework relevant
for mainstreaming gender concerns in cities.
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