Gender equality matters for economic development and growth: Lessons for
MENA
Stephanie Seguino
University of VermontSOAS, University of London
October 2015
Enlarged framework in development economics
Gender now a key analytical element in inquiry into economic development;
Requires a shift in exclusive focus on markets to how humans provision for selves and family;
Considers totality of economic contributions –market work and unpaid work.
Two-way Causality Gender inequality affects macroeconomy
and vice versa
Gender Relations/Inequality
Economic Growth &
Development
Gender equality is multidimensional
• Capabilities• Gender gaps in education, health, and nutritional status.
• Opportunities• Gender differences in access to and control over resources;• Wages and employment, access to credit, land ownership.
• Empowerment and agency• Female economic and political representation in deliberative
bodies, e.g., women's share of parliamentary seats, share of managerial jobs.
A statistical regularity: Gender inequality in material well-being
Hierarchical gender systems influence the distribution of material resources and opportunities (masculinized occupations pay more);
Economic outcomes (income, wealth, access to education, etc) differ systematically by gender;
Norms and stereotypes legitimate unequal access to the preferred jobs, wealth, and power. World Values Survey
0.890.98 0.96
0.32
0.60
0.35
0.15
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
Gender Ratios in Well-Being: MENA Region
0.790.89
0.98
0.820.76
0.54
0.18
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
Gender Ratios in Well-Being: Africa Region
Macrostructure influences the degree of gender inequality
Inequality and conflict over distribution of resources exacerbated by the nature of the economic system.
Unequal, unstable systems provoke the emergence of hierarchies.
Macrostructure: structure of production; macroeconomic policies, social safety net, public expenditure, legal system, financial system, labor market policies.
Other sources of gender inequality? At the household level: Gender norms and
stereotypes that give women primary responsibility for unpaid caring labor limit female bargaining power.
In the cash economy and labor markets: Male as “breadwinner” in market economies, and “family head” in agric. economies gives men best jobs and access to and control over critical resources.
Norms & stereotypes can change
Strong + effect of women’s share of employment.
Structure of economy. Women & men’s actual economic roles
influence children’s behavior and attitudes. Programs to change men’s norms of
masculinity at micro-level show success. Political quotas lead to more acceptance of
women as leaders.
MENA World Values Survey:Men more right to job and University
more important for boys
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Perc
enta
ge t
jat a
gree
Men more right to job University education more important for boys
Unemployment rate and men’s greater right to job in MENA
0.0
2.0
4.0
6.0
8.0
10.0
12.0
14.0
16.0
18.0
20.0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Une
mpl
oym
ent r
ate,
201
2
Percent who agree when jobs are scarce, men have more right to job
YemenIraq
Bahrain
Lebanon
Kuwait
Morocco
Algeria
TunisiaEgypt
Jordan
How does gender equality affect economic growth?
Gender equality affects economic growth in: Short-run: through effects on investment, exports,
imports, and saving; Long-run: productivity effects.
Relationship between gender equality and growth depends on: Structure of economy; Gender division of labor; Macro-level policies.
Gender inequality and growth in SIEs
Gender job segregation with women in export industries
Low female wages Lowers unit labor costs on export goods
Lowers export prices relative to competition Stimulates export growth
Generates foreign exchange and lending Provides access to imported technologies and capital goods
Promotes technological advance Stimulates economic growth
Tunisia, Morocco, Jordan
Indirect Effects of Gender Inequality and Children Inadequately nourished mothers -> children suffer in
utero, and once born, from low birth weight, stunted growth, intellectual impairment.
Mothers with higher levels of education -> have healthier children (education of mothers has a much stronger effect on children's health than does the education of fathers).
Greater gender equality in education reduces fertility rate. This leads to improved outcomes for children’s well-being: quality vs quantity of children.
Nutritional status
• Mothers’ education, health, and income are key determinants of child nutrition in developing countries– Study that observed child malnutrition pattern from 63
countries between 1970 and 1995 – In Brazil, the positive impact on children’s nutritional
indicators of additional income in mother’ hands is 4-8 times larger than the impact of additional income in fathers’ hands.
The Long Run: Gender equality in capabilities, wages, and employment
Raise women’s bargaining power in the HH Reduce fertility Reduce dependency ratio Increase:
F labor force participation; Investments in children’s health and education, affecting
long-run productivity of labor force.
GDP Growth differences between East Asia – MENA
0.53
1.48
2.71
1.55
0.180.29 0.27 0.24
0.750.86
0.961.06
0.00
0.50
1.00
1.50
2.00
2.50
3.00
1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s
Growth difference East Asia - MENA Education Effect Employment Effect
Gender equality, growth, and Islam Braunstein (2014) finds no evidence that
Islam is not a good proxy for patriarchal institutions in explaining growth.
Seguino (2011) finds that Islam is no more likely to contribute to gender inequity in attitudes than other dominant religions.
Bandara (2012)
Closing gap in effective labor (education and labor force participation):Could raise output per worker 0.3 – 0.5
percent per year 1970-2010 in SSAAmounts to loss of $60b per year in SSAAnd $255b a year in all of Africa.
Gender equality in MENA
Key is increased access to employmentStimulates growth and development
Requires macroeconomic policies to stimulate full employment and growth.
And public investment to reduce women’s care burden.
Fiscal Space
Gender-equitable public spending creates fiscal spacePhysical infrastructure spending crowds in
private spending and reduces care burdenSocial infrastructure spending raises
productivity.
A Cautionary Tale: Trends in F/M Employment, 1991-
2010
-0.10
-0.05
0.00
0.05
0.10
0.15
0.20
0.25
0.30
0.35
0.40
-0.30 -0.20 -0.10 0.00 0.10 0.20 0.30
Cha
nge
in F
/M E
mpl
oym
ent R
atio
Change in Male Employment Ratio