women's economic empowerment_ what is it, and why does it matter_ — sos children.pdf

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3/27/2014 Women's economic empowerment: What is it, and why does it matter? SOS Children

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SOS Children News Women's economic empowerment: What is it, and why does it matter?

Women's empowerment reduces poverty and spurs development

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Women's economic

empowerment: What is it, and

why does it matter?

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Women'seconomicempowerment: What is it, and

why does it matter?

Gender equality is a cornerstone of development.

When women and men are equal in a society poverty

is reduced, economies flourish, and the health of

children and mothers improves. Yet despite progress

in the last two decades women remain marginalisedacross the globe. This is true for the world of work,

where women are often restricted from fully taking

part in the economy. In the lead up to International

Women's Day, we explore why

women's economic

empowerment is important for

us all.

On this page...

Esther's story

What is economic empowerment?

Why is economic empowerment for women important?

How can more women become economically empowered?

Esther's story

Get free email updates

Millennium Development Goal #3: Promote gender equality and empower womenWomen's economic empowerment is: "The capacity for women to participate in, contributeto and benefit from growth processes in ways that recognise the value of their contribution,

respect their dignity and make it possible to negotiate a fairer distribution of the benefits of

growth - International Development Research Centre

The goal of women's economic empowerment is to end this unfair reality faced by half ofthe world's population.

Putting an end to gender discrimination requires community-level initiatives to alterattitudes, as well as national and international policies that promote women's rights and

ambitions.
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Today, Esther is a successful businesswomen with a steady income. At 25-years-old, she

recently ventured into business, and runs a tailoring and embroidering project in Dar es

Salaam, Tanzania.

Currently my family affords three meals a day - this is different from before - and I

manage to supply essential requirements for my family. I cant imagine that today I

am a family breadwinner, who can support my younger siblings to get what they

need.

Behind the current optimism is a

past pained by loss and poverty.

Esther became the main carer for

her five siblings when she was 13,

after their mother died. The

responsibility meant she

sacrificed her education. Esther's

father worked hard to earn an

income and support the

family. Sadly, he died severalyears after Esther's mother had

passed away, leaving the children

orphaned.

With no relatives, our

survival and hopes were

completely shattered when

our parents died. Our daily

survival was now dependent on good Samaritans. But as days went by, our lives

became more difficult.

With a lack of skills or work opportunities, Esther couldn't earn an income, and the whole family

went through a tough period. Her brothers, Deogratias and Geofrey, dropped out of school to

work and support the family. Her younger sister, Flora, sought to escape the poverty by

becoming a child bride. But when Flora's husband abandoned her and their newborn child, she

and the baby moved back in with Esther. While happy to be together again, the burden became

heavier than ever, and there was never enough food for the young family.

The family's fortune turned when Esther joined the SOS community outreach programme in Dar

es Salaam. She began vocational training classes, and developed skills which empowered her

to regain control of her life. Most importantly to Esther, she was able to work and provide for her

siblings. "The programme really supports people who had lost their hope" she says.

What is economic empowerment?

Economic empowerment includes having the opportunity and ability to work, as well as fair pay.

Yet it is also so much more than this.

Across the world, women contribute enormously to economies. Women work in businesses, on

farms, as entrepreneurs or employees, and do care and domestic work in homes. They are
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/our-work/outreachhttp://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/sponsor-a-child/africa/tanzania


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also essential to agriculture, and

in 2010 made up 43% of the

agricultural work force of

developing countries.

Yet women's economic

contribution often isn't

appreciated. Moreover,

discrimination, poverty andexploitation restrict women from

taking part equally in the

economy. Compared to men,

women:

are more likely to end up in

vulnerable, insecure and low-

paid jobs. This is particularly true

in Western Asia and Northern

Africa, where paid opportunities for women are limited.

struggle to gain access to financial services, or secure assets such as land and loans.

are less likely to be in senior positions. Globally, just over one in every five senior

management positions are occupied by women. Of the Fortune 500 companies, only 3%

have women as CEOs.

participate less in shaping economic and social policies.

are paid less, even after accounting for educational background and skills. In the majority of

countries, womens wages represent 70-90 % of mens, with even lower ratios in some

Asian and Latin American countries.

are often burdened with household work, and therefore don't have time to pursue work

opportunities.

These inequalities are repeated across the world, though figures vary between countries. The

graph below shows the ratio of female to male of the working-age population (ages 1564) that

engages in the labour market, by either working or actively looking for work.

Countries that have achieved gender parity in labour market engagement have a score of 1; forevery 10 men engaged in the economy there are 10 women. On the other hand, if a country has

a score of 0.5, it means that for every 10 men who who are engaged in the labour market, only

5 women are. Countries on the right-hand side of the graph are more equal in terms of men and

women involved in the economy. Feel free to explore the data yourself, and press the play

button to see how different countries have fared over the past two decades.


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Labour force participation rate, female-male ratio Country

0

0.5

1

2011

Explore data

Data from Human Development Report 2013, United Nations Development Programme- Pow ered by

Syrian Arab Republic

India

BrazilUnited Kingdom

China Malawi
https://www.google.com/url?q=http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/&sa=D&usg=AFQjCNFaR3DhGPCbfGJ22Ag90fdESNjN2whttps://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=kthk374hkr6tr_&ctype=c&strail=false&bcs=a&nselm=s&met_y=indicator_48906&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&idim=country:20203:9203:22003:4103:12203:2703&ifdim=country&tunit=Y&pit=1299283200000&hl=en_US&dl=en_US&ind=false&icfg


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was eliminated, productivity per worker could soar by up to 40%. Companies could increase

their profits if more women were in management positions. One study found that companies

with the greatest representation of women in management roles delivered a profit 34% higher

than companies with the lowest representation.

Fairer access to services and tools would help women to succeed in business, which has

widespread benefits. For example, if women working in agriculture in 34 developing countries

had equal access to vital resources such as seeds, fertilisers and tools, their agricultural output

would rise by an average of up to 4%. This might not sound like a huge difference, but it couldreduce the number of undernourished people in those countries by as much as 17%. That's

about 150 million people not going hungry.

Children given a better chance at life

Children reap a range of benefits from women being economically empowered. Evidence from

several countries shows that when women control more of the household income, either through

their own earnings or cash transfers, the family's spending habits change in a way that benefits

children.

A step to becoming economicallyempowered is to receive an

education. A study that collected

data from over 200 countries

found that for every additional

year a woman is in education,

child mortality decreased by

9.5%. At least 4.2 million children

survived between 1970 and

1990 as a result of womens

increased education. A finalimpressive figure, is that a child

born to a mother who can read is

50% more likely to survive.

Beyond facts and figures...

Statistics are what frequently

impress and persuade people

about the importance of women's economic empowerment. But behind these facts are the

individual women whose lives are transformed by having the resources and opportunity to work.

Women like Esther in Tanzania, who can now ensure her younger siblings go to school andreceive three meals a day.

Participating in an economy gives a woman dignity and purpose, greater security, higher

income, and better access to and control over resources. She becomes a role model to others

and is able to provide for her family. To restrict women's path to work is limiting not only for her,

but also her family, her community and her society.

How can more women become economically empowered?

Women's role in the economy varies between countries, and there has been progress in recent


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years. Womens share of paid employment outside the agricultural sector has increased slowly

from 35% to 40% between 1990 and 2010, though it remains under 20% in Western Asia,

Northern Africa and Southern Asia.

To understand how more women can become economically empowered, we must begin by

looking at what currently restricts their full participation in the economy. Barriers to the economy

for women include cultural and social norms which have expectations of a woman's role. This

could include being a mother, but not a business women. Changing attitudes and behaviours in

a society often takes many years.

Governments, companies and civil

society can develop policies

which advocate women's

economic empowerment. This

could include safe-guarding

women's access to loans and

financial services, developing

opportunities for vocational

training for women, and ensuringwomen's current contribution to

the economy is valued and

respected. Among other

initiatives, UN Women advocates

measuring womens unpaid care

work, which will help women and

men to more readily combine this

work with paid employment.

It's important that economic empowerment initiatives reach out to women who are most inneed. This includes women belonging to marginalised groups, such as rural women, domestic

workers, migrants and low-skilled women.

Financially self-reliant

Through our community outreach programmes, SOS Children supports vulnerable women

around the world to gain employable skills and receive an education. We run workshops on

business skills, how to set up an enterprise, and keep a family budget. Like Esther, women are

able to transform their lives with new opportunities and become financially self-reliant.

By having access into the economy, women can earn an income and thrive. Development andwell-being also flourish when women are economically empowered. Globally, we all need to do

what we can to address the current inequalities, and ensure that women are fairly represented

in the workplace. The benefits will be reaped by all of us.

Learn more about our community outreach work, which supports women to gain

vocational skills and set up businesses. With their increased income and purpose,

they can help their family to thrive.
http://www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk/our-work/outreach


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