women hold a key position in economic growth

8/8/2019 Women Hold a Key Position in Economic Growth

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WOMEN HOLD A KEY POSITION IN ECONOMIC GROWTH

INTRODUCTION

A recent comprehensive review of statistics on womens and mens position inBritain finds that differences between men and women are getting smaller overa wide range of areas from employment to education and health. Women livelonger than men on average, although the gap is expected to narrow slightlyover the next 25 years. There are more older women in the population: over 60per cent of those aged 70 or over are women. Womens labour marketparticipation has increased over recent years and their employment rates haverisen, whereas mens participation in the labour market has declined slightly.Flexible working patterns have increased for both men and women in recent

years, and around six million people in employment now work flexibly.Girls now perform better than boys in education and in getting qualifications.Educational performance of both boys and girls improved in the late 1990s.

The Office for Women contributes to national policies and strategies thatpromote gender equality for women and enhance women's status.

The Office provides gender expertise and specialist policy analysis and adviceon appropriate and effective treatment of women by the law and the legalsystem, and access to the legal system.

The Office actively participates in national forums on the status of women andreports on obligations to eliminate discrimination against women..

More women are in paid work than ever before. In October 2005, 64.8 per centof women aged 15-64 were in paid work. While the gap is closing, there is stilldisparity between rates of pay for men and women. In November 2005, womenearned 84.8 per cent of men's full time average earnings.

The Statistics publishes a wide range of statistics on the labour force and itsterms and definitions are generally used by commentators in Australia.

y SuperannuationRetirement planning is important in an ageing populat ion structure.Typically, today's retired women are living on lower retirement incomesthan their male counterparts. Planning and saving for retirement can helptomorrow's female retirees to achieve better retirement incomes.


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y Work and FamilyBalancing work, family and caring responsibilities is a major issue formany parents and carers and it has been found that regardless of whetherthey work full-time or part-time, women in Australia undertake the

majority of housework and care of children and other relatives.

Sustained investment on women's health and education may spur the economicgrowth in BRIC nations, especially in a country like India that has themaximum potential, investment banking giant Goldman Sachs says.According to a book released by Goldman Sachs, there is a significant upsidepotential to its growth projections for BRIC nations if innovative and sustainedinvestments towards the women's health and education are made there.

The term 'BRIC' refers to the world's four fastest growing emerging economiesBrazil, Russia, India and China and had been first coined in 2001 by GoldmanSachs. The book titled BRICs and Beyond is a compilation of Goldman Sachs'recent research reports on the four nations and the changing nature of the globaleconomy.

In a chapter related to women of the region, 'Women Hold up half the sky', theinvestment bank has said India has the worst relative performance on nearly

every measure the book evaluated. "Indian women have the lowest labour -force participation rate, the lowest share of parliamentarians, the lowest life

expectancy, the lowest literacy rate, the lowest level of enrolment in tertiar yeducation, and the highest maternal mortality rate," the research found.

The research paper said addressing these problems would require significantinvestment and innovative policies.

"If India can achieve this, we could see considerable upside to our currentBRICs projections, " the Goldman Sachs research paper said.

According to Goldman Sachs since 2001 the four countries' equity markets haveseen a remarkable increase in womens value.


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INDIRA GANDHI:

PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA

Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (19 November 1917 - October 31, 1984) was the

Prime Minister of the Republic of India for three consecutive terms from 1966

to 1977 and for a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in 1984. She was

Indias first and to date only female Prime Minister.

Born in the politically influential Nehru dynasty, she grew up in an intensely

political atmosphere. Returning to India from Oxford in 1941, she became

involved in the Indian Independence Movement.

PRESIDENT OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS

During 1959 and 1960, Gandhi ran for and was elected the President of the

Indian National Congress. Her term of office was uneventful. She also acted as

her father's chief of staff. Nehru was known as a vocal opponent of nepotism,

and she did not contest a seat in the 1962 elections.Nehru died on May 27,

1964, and Gandhi, at the urgings of the new Prime Minister Lal Bahadur

Shastri, contested elections and joined the Government, being immediately

appointed Minister for Information and Broadcasting. She went to Madras whenthe riots over Hindi becoming the national language broke out in non -Hindi

speaking states of the south. There she spoke to government officials , soothed

the anger of community leaders and supervised reconstruction efforts for the

affected areas. Shastri and senior Ministers were embarrassed, owing to their

lack of such initiative. Minister Gandhi's actions were probably not directly

aimed at Shastri or her own political elevation. She reportedly lacked interest in

the day-to-day functioning of her Ministry, but was media-savvy and adept at

the art of politics and image-making."During the succession struggles after 1965

between Mrs. Gandhi and her rivals, the central Congress party leadership inseveral states moved to displace upper cas te leaders from state Congress party

organizations and replace them with backward caste persons and to mobilize the

votes of the latter castes to defeat its riva ls in the state Congress party and in the

opposition. The consequences of these interventions, some of which may justly

be perceived as socially progressive, have nevertheless often had the

consequences of intensifying inter-ethnic regional conflict.While the Indo-


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Pakistani War of 1965 was ongoing, Gandhi was vacationing in the border

region of Srinagar. Although warned by the Army that Pakistani insurgents had

penetrated very close to the city, she refused to relocate to Jammu or Delhi and

instead rallied local government and welcomed the media attention.

APPOINTED AS A MEMBER OF THE RAJYA SABHA

In the 1950s, she served her father unofficially as a personal assistant during his

tenure as India's first Prime Minister. After her father's death in 1964, she was

appointed as a member of the Rajya Sabha by the President of India and became

a member of Lal Bahadur Shastri's cabinet as Minister of Information and

Broadcasting.

Indira Gandhi soon showed an ability to win elections and outmaneuver

opponents through populism. She introduced more left-wing economic policies

and promoted agricultural productivity.

She had twice imposed President's Rule under Article 356 of the Constitution by

declaring states ruled by opposition parties as " lawless and chaotic", and thus

seizing control. In addition, elected officials and the administrative services

resented the growing influence of Sanjay Gandhi, who had become Gandhi's

close political adviser at the expense of men like P. N. Haksar, Gandhi's

previous adviser during her rise to power.


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P.T. USHA:

Pilavullakandi Thekkeparambil Usha (born June 27, 1964), popularly known as

P.T. Usha is an Indian athlete from the state of Kerala. Regarded as queen ofIndian track and field, P.T. Usha has been associated with Indian athletics since

1979. Her initials stand for her family/house name, according to tradition in

many parts of Kerala. She was nicknamed Payyoli Express.

In 1976 the Kerala State Government started a Sports School for women, and

Usha was chosen to represent her district. In 1976 the Kerala State Government

started a Sports School for women, and Usha was chosen to represent her

district. Usha has won 101 international medals so far. She is employed as an

officer in the Southern Railways. In 1985, she was conferred the Padma Shriand the Arjuna award. she created new Asian Games records in all the events

she participated.

During the 1985 Asian Track & Field Meet at Jakarta, Indonesia, Usha secured

5 gold medals in the 100, 200, and 400 meter sprints, the 400 meter hurdles, and

the 4 x 400 meter relay. She also earned a bronze medal in the 4 x 100 meter


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relay. This is the current record for most gold medals earned by a female in a

single track meet.

KALPANA CHAWLA:

Kalpana Chawla(17 March 1962 1 February 2003), was an Indian-Americanastronaut and space shuttle mission specialist. She was one of seven

crewmembers killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.

Chawla joined the NASA astronaut corps in March 1995 and was

selected for her first flight in 1998.Her first space mission began on November

19, 1997 as part of the six astronaut crew that flew the Space Shuttle Columbia

flight STS-87. Chawla was the first Indian-born woman and the second person

of Indian origin to fly in space, following cosmonaut Rakesh Sharma who flew

in 1984 in a Soviet spacecraft.

Kalpana Chawla was born in India's Karnal district of Haryana. Herparents had seen great hardships and were in dire straits during partition but hadstruggled to pull themselves up. However, they were able to provide goodeducation to Kalpana and her two siblings.

In everything that Kalpana did, she broke stereotypes. She was the only girlat that time to join the aeronautical engineering stream at the PunjabEngineering College. She fought and overcame opposition from her parents andmigrated to USA for further studies. Here, she joined the University of Texas topursue her Masters and later, University of Boulder, Colorado for her doctorate.This was admirable, since few children at such a young age are so clear -mindedabout their ambitions. Furthermore, even fewer have the will to pursue themwith such single-minded dedication that Kalpana did.


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PRATIBHA PATIL:

President of India on July 25, 2007, succeeding Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Patil, a

member of the Indian National Congress (INC), was nominated by the ruling

United Progressive Alliance and Indian Left. She won the presidential election

held on July 19, 2007 defeating her nearest rival Bhairon Singh Shekhawat by

over 3,00,000 votes.

Patil represented Edlabad constituency in Jalgaon District, Maharashtra as a

member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly and was deputy chairwoman

of the Rajya Sabha, Member of Parliament from Amravati in the Lok Sabha and

the 24th, and the first woman Governor of Rajasthan. Pratibha Patil began her

political career in 1962 at the age of 27. Under the mentorship of senior

Congress leader and ex-Chief Minister Yashwantrao Chavan,she became a

deputy minister for education after re-election in 1967. In November 2004,

eight years after she had completed her term in the 10th Lok Sabha, Pratibha

Patil was recalled from political hibernation to become the first woman

Governor of Rajasthan.


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SONIA GANDHI:

Sonia Gandhi, born on 9 December 1946, is an Indian politician, the President

of the Indian National Congress and the widow of former Prime Minister ofIndia, Rajiv Gandhi. She is the Chairperson of the ruling United Progressive

Alliance in the Lok Sabha, and the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party .

She was named the third most powerful woman in the world by Forbes

magazine in the year 2004 and currently ranks 6th.She was also named among

the Time 100 most influential people in the world for the years 2007 and

2008.She was returned to Parliament by a margin of over 4,00,000 votes in the

by-election for Rae Bareilly after the office of profit controversy.

She holds a record of serving as Congress President for consecutive 10 years.

On May 18, she recommended noted economist Dr. Manmohan Singh for the

Prime Minister's post.


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SANIA MIRZA:

Sania Mirza (born November 15, 1986) is an Indian tennis player. She was born

in Mumbai, brought up in Hyderabad. Coached by her father, Imran Mirza, (as

well as her other family members) she began playing tennis at the age of six,

turning professional in 2003. She is the highest ranked female tennis player ever

from India, with a career high ranking of 27 in singles and 18 in doubles. She

was ranked 31st in the singles category and 21st in the doubles category in the

WTA rankings of April 7, 2008.

After a decent showing in the Australian open Sania Mirza climbed up 3 placesin the Womens Tennis Association (WTA) rankings to go under 30 for the firsttime. This now means she is the only Asian under that rank becoming the topwomens player in Asia.

The closest competition to Sania is Na Li from China who is currently ranked32nd in the world 49 points behind Mirza who has a tally of 931 points.

Sania lost in the Aussie open in a good match again Venus Willia ms providinggood competition atleast in the first set which she took to the tie -break.

Her best performance came in the Mixed doubles with Mahesh Bhupathi butfailed to win in the Finals getting beaten in straights sets.


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Sania Mirza has now notched up a total prize money over a million us dollars.

Sania Mirza holds the distinction of being the first Indian woman to be seededin a Grand Slam tennis tournament when she was seeded 26th in the 2007 U.S.Open. Earlier in 2005, she had become the first Indian woman to reach the

fourth round of a Grand Slam tournament at the 2005 U.S. Open, defeatingMashona Washington, Maria Elena Camerin and Marion Bartoli. In 2004, shefinished runner up at the Asian Tennis Championship. In 2005, Mirza rea chedthe third round of the Australian Open, losing to eventual champion SerenaWilliams. On February 12, 2005, she became the first Indian woman to win aWTA singles title, defeating Alyona Bondarenko of Ukraine in the HyderabadOpen Finals.

Mirza won the 2003 Wimbledon Championships Girls' Doubles title, teamingup with Alisa Kleybanova of Russia. Mirza does not enjoy playing on clay. Herbest performance in French Open singles was a second round appearance in2007. As of September 2006, Mirza has notched up three top 10 wins againstSvetlana Kuznetsova, Nadia Petrova and Martina Hingis. At the 2006 DohaAsian Games, Mirza won the silver in the women's singles category and thegold in the mixed doubles partnering Leander Paes. She was also part of theIndian women's team that won the silver in the team event. Mirza had the bestresults of her career during the 2007 summer hardcourt season, finishing eighthin the 2007 U.S. Open Series standings. She reached the final of the Bank of theWest Classic and won the doubles event with Shahar Pe'er, and reached thequarterfinals of the Tier 1 Acura Classic. At the 2007 U.S. Open, she reachedthe third round before losing to Anna Chakvetadze for the third time in recentweeks. She fared much better in the doubles, reaching the quarterfinals in mixedwith her partner Mahesh Bhupathi and the quarterfinals in the women's doubleswith Bethanie Mattek, including an impressive win over number two seeds LisaRaymond and Samantha Stosur. She represented India at the 2008 SummerOlympics in Beijing, in the women's singles and doubles events. In singles, sheretired in the round of 64, while she was trailing 1 -6, 1-2 against Iveta Benesovaof Czech Republic. She teamed up with Sunitha Rao for the doubles event.They got a walk-over in the round of 32, but lost to Russia's Svetlana

Kuznetsova and Dinara Safina by 4-6, 4-6, in the round of 16. She has statedthat two of her best friends are fellow WTA tour players, Anna Chakvetadze andBethanie Mattek.


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Global citizen

Kalpana's sights were so completely focused on her goals that even her smalltown trappings were no constraint for her. She crossed continents and high seasto an alien culture. She was truly a global citizen, an earth person who wantedto explore her neighbourhood, the outer space!

Making the impossible possible

From a very young age, JRD Tata and his maiden flight had captured herimagination. She too dreamt of flying and reaching out to the stars and planets.Her fondness for flying saw her joining the local flying club. She acquired acertified flight instructor's license and commercial pilot's license for single - andmultiple-engine land and seaplanes. She also became skilled in aerobatics.Finally in 1994, her efforts paid when out of 2962 applican ts for a spacemission, NASA chose 19 and Kalpana's name figured in it.

Kalpana had worked hard towards it. She would say: "If you look up to the topof the mountain, then climbing it may seem an impossible task. But if you focus

on the next step and take it one step at a time, then you certainly will be able todo it." That is exactly what she did. She very dedicatedly charted out her course,stuck to the path and took it in stride, one step at a time.

Spacewoman par excellence

In 1994, Chawla began her career as an astronaut with NASA. In 1997, shewent on her maiden sortie in the space shuttle STS - 87 Columbia as a missionspecialist. She got embroiled in an unfortunate controversy. She was blamed for

letting go of a science satellite during an exp eriment that had to be retrievedlater. But upon subsequent investigations, she was honourably absolved of thesecharges. This was underscored when she was chosen for the second time round,for the next Columbia mission STS- 107 as a flight engineer and missionspecialist.

In all she logged 30 days, 14 hours and 54 minutes in space.


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For the second mission, she had carried with her CDs of her favourite artisteslike Abida Parveen, Pt. Ravi Shankar and Deep Purple, among others. Sheplanned to autograph them in space and gift it as mementoes to these artistes.But that was not to be. Sixteen minutes short of the scheduled landing, KalpanaChawla became one with the cosmos she so loved.

The ultimate tribute

In her memory, the Indian Prime Minister, Mr. A .B.Vajpayee renamed theweather satellite launched in 2002, Metstat as Kalpana -1. Deep Purple scriptedand sang, 'Contact Lost' as a tribute to her. These and many such small gesturesround the world have kept her memory alive. But the real tribute, the yo ungsterscan pay her, is to enliven the 'Kalpanas' (imagination) in them.

MOTHER TERESA:

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began to

open in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the UnitedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York. Mother Teresa gainedworldwide acclaim with her tireless efforts on behalf of world peace. Her workbrought her numerous humanitarian awards, including : the Pope John XXIIIPeace Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. In receiving this award, MotherTeresa revolutionized the award ceremony. She insisted on a departure from the

ceremonial banquet and asked that the funds, $6,000 be donated to the poor inCalcutta. This money would permit her to feed hundreds for a year.

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began toopen in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the UnitedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York. In 1966, the

Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began to open in Rome,Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the United States wasestablished in the South Bronx, New York.


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ny homes for the dying and the unwanted froIn 1966, the Missionaries ofCharity Brothers was founded. Homes began to open in Rome, Tanzania, andAustralia. In 1971, the first home in the United States was established in theSouth Bronx, New York.

m Calcutta to New York to Albania. She was one of the pioneers of establishinghomes for AIDS victims. For more than 45 years, MothIn 1952 the first Homefor the Dying was opened in space made available by the City of Calcutta. Overthe years, Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity grew from 12 to thousandsserving the "poorest of the poor" in 450 centers around the world. MoIn 1952the first Home for the Dying was opened in space made available by the City ofCalcutta. Over the years, Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity grew from 12to thousands serving the "poorest of the poor" in 450 cen ters around the world.Mother Teresa created many homes for the dying and the unwanted fromCalcutta to New York to Albania. She was one of the pioneers of establishing

homes for AIDS victims. For more than 45 years, Mother Teresa comforted thepoor, the dying, and the unwanted around the world.

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began toopen in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the UnitedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York.


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Mother Teresa gained worldwide acclaim with her tireless efforts on behalf ofworld peace. Her work brought her numerous humanitarian awards, including :the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. Inreceiving this award, Mother Teresa re volutionized the award ceremony. Sheinsisted on a departure from the ceremonial banquet and asked that the funds,

$6,000 be donated to the poor in Calcutta. This money would permit her to feedhundreds for a year.

She is stated to have said that earthly rewards were important only if theyhelped her help the worlds needy.

Beginning in 1980, homes began to spring-up for drug addicts, prostitutes,battered women, and more orphanages and schools for poor children around theworld. In 1985, Mother Teresa established the first hospice for AIDS victims inNew York. Later homes were added in San Francisco and Atlanta. Mother

Teresa was awarded Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award.

In 1991, Mother Teresa returned for the first time to her nat ive Albania (knowknown as Serbia) and opened a home in Tirana. By this year, there were 168homes established in India.

On February 3, 1994 at a National Prayer Breakfast, sponsored by the U.S.Senate and House of Representatives, in Washington, DC, Mo ther Teresachallenged the audience on such topics as family life and abortion. She said,"Please dont kill the child. I want the child. Give the child to me."

Mother Teresa traveled to help the hungry in Ethiopia, radiation victims atChernobyl, and earthquake victims in Armenia. Her zeal and works of mercyknew no boundaries.In November of 1996, Mother Teresa received the honorary U.S. citizenship.

ther Teresa created many homes for the dying and the unwanted from Calcuttato New York to Albania. She was onIn 1952 the first Home for the Dying wasopened in space made available by the City of Calcutta. Over the years, MotherTeresas Missionaries of Charity grew from 12 to thousands serving the"poorest of the poor" in 450 centers around the world. Mother Teresa created

many homes for the dying and the unwanted from Calcutta to New York toAlbania. She was one of the pioneers of establishing homes for AIDS victi ms.For more than 45 years, Mother Teresa comforted the poor, the dying, and theunwanted around the world.

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began toopen in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the Un itedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York.


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Mother Teresa gained worldwide acclaim with her tireless efforts on behalf ofworld peace. Her work brought her numerous humanitarian awards, including :the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize and the N obel Peace Prize in 1979. Inreceiving this award, Mother Teresa revolutionized the award ceremony. Sheinsisted on a departure from the ceremonial banquet and asked that the funds,



Beginning in 1980, homes began to spring-up for drug addicts, prostitutes,battered women, and more orphanages an d schools for poor children around theworld. In 1985, Mother Teresa established the first hospice for AIDS victims inNew York. Later homes were added in San Francisco and Atlanta. Mother

Teresa was awarded Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award.

In 1991, Mother Teresa returned for the first time to her native Albania (knowknown as Serbia) and opened a home in Tirana. By this year, there were 168homes established in India.

On February 3, 1994 at a National Prayer Breakfast, sponsored by the U.S.Senate and House of Representatives, in Washington, DC, Mother Teresachallenged the audience on such topics as family life and abortion. She said,"Please dont kill the child. I want the child. Give the child to me."


e of the pioneers of establishing homes for AIDS victims. For more than 45years, Mother Teresa comforted the poor, the dying, and the unwanted aroundthe world.

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began to

open in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the f irst home in the UnitedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York.

Mother Teresa gained worldwide acclaim with her tireless efforts on behalf ofworld peace. Her work brought her numerous humanitarian awards, including :the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. Inreceiving this award, Mother Teresa revolutionized the award ceremony. Sheinsisted on a departure from the ceremonial banquet and asked that the funds,


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Beginning in 1980, homes began to spring-up for drug addicts, prostitutes,battered women, and more orphanages and schools for poor children around theworld. In 1985, Mother Teresa established the first hospice for AIDS victims inNew York. Later homes were added in San Francisco and Atlanta. MotherTeresa was awarded Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award.

In 1991, Mother Teresa returned for the first time to her native Albania (knowknown as Serbia) and opened a home in Tirana. By this year, there were 168homes established in India.



er Teresa comforted the poor, the dying, and the unwanted around the world.

In 1966, the Missionaries of Charity Brothers was founded. Homes began toopen in Rome, Tanzania, and Australia. In 1971, the first home in the UnitedStates was established in the South Bronx, New York.

Mother Teresa gained worldwide acclaim with her tireless efforts on behalf ofworld peace. Her work brought her numerous humanitarian awards, including :the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize and the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. Inreceiving this award, Mother Teresa revolutionized the award ceremony. She

insisted on a departure from the ceremonial banquet and asked that the funds,$6,000 be donated to the poor in Calcutta. This money would permit her to feedhundreds for a year.



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Beginning in 1980, homes began to spring-up for drug addicts, prostitutes,battered women, and more orphanages and schools for poor children around theworld. In 1985, Mother Teresa established the first hospice for AIDS victims inNew York. Later homes were added in San Francisco and Atlanta. MotherTeresa was awarded Medal of Freedom, the highest U.S. civilian award.

In 1991, Mother Teresa returned for the fi rst time to her native Albania (knowknown as Serbia) and opened a home in Tirana. By this year, there were 168homes established in India.



CONCLUSION:

This article has outlined the wealth and depth of information on women inBritain collected by the Key Indicators study and has explored current trends in

gender equality. These baseline indicators have been disseminated widely andare available for public use and scrutiny, and they provide a basis for publicdebate and policy development. The richness and diversity of the informationpresented here means that there is no single main conclusion, but looking attrends over time it would appear that gender differentials have been decliningacross a wide range of areas and that there is certainly an indication that womenand men in Britain are becoming more equal.

women hold a key position in economic growth

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