Why Investing in women economic empowerment is Important

Most countries continue to lag behind the rest of the world on women’s participation in development, in large part due to deeply entrenched, discriminatory views about the role and position of women and girls in society, which relegate women to an inferior position relative to men and result in unequal power relations between men and women.

Women make enormous contributions to economies, whether in businesses, on farms, as entrepreneurs or employees, or by doing unpaid care work at home. Investing in women’s economic empowerment sets a direct path toward gender equality and respect for women’s rights, poverty eradication and inclusive economic growth.

Women around the world are resilient and resourceful economic agents, overcoming persistent, gender-based barriers to advance the health, education, and economic security of their families. Evidence shows that women’s full participation in the economy drives better performing and more resilient businesses and supports economic growth and wider development goals for nations.

Yet, significant gender inequalities in economic participation and the distribution of economic resources persist globally. Women also remain disproportionately affected by poverty, discrimination and exploitation. Gender discrimination means women often end up in insecure, low-wage jobs, and constitute a small minority of those in senior positions.

Investing in women’s economic empowerment is crucial for gender equality and women’s rights, poverty eradication and inclusive economic growth. The realization of economic justice and equality will be crucial for governments to achieve Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Below are the basic steps to push for women economic empowerment;

·         Ensure all women have the tools to fully participate in the economy through increased access to comprehensive and equitable financial services, including credit, loans, savings, and insurance.

·         Invest in and be inclusive of women’s organizations and cooperatives to strengthen their visibility and representation; prioritize asset development, including capital, securing land and inheritance rights, and skill building programs, including financial literacy and management skills.

·         Invest in policies and social protection systems to create an enabling environment for women to enter and thrive in the formal and informal labor markets, such as family leave, daycare, flexible work hours, and social security.

·         Champion the tenets of decent work for women, including equal access to employment, benefits, training, and leadership positions; equal pay; and a safe and harassment-free work environment.

·         Create economic policies that recognize and financially support girls and women’s unpaid household and care work, while reducing and redistributing its burden.

·         Invest in women’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and women entrepreneurs through inclusive financing and comprehensive training.

·         Incorporate gender-based violence prevention and response strategies into women’s economic empowerment initiatives.

·         Tackle adverse gender norms and promote positive role models amongst both women and men.

Further progress will require a sustained effort to ensure that women around the world have greater economic rights, including the right to own property, as well as security to ensure they are protected from violence. Establishing these conditions will hinge on international development processes making women’s empowerment and gender equality pivotal to their efforts.

While notable progress has been made to reduce gender inequality and improve women’s empowerment globally, efforts need to be sustained and intensified, particularly at the national level.

Governments that have not yet enacted laws and/or put in place policies, plans, and programs to ensure equal access to education, healthcare, economic opportunities, and leadership for girls and women should do so. But beyond this, there is a need to ensure the enforcement of laws and implementation of policies, plans, and programs if progress is to be achieved.

To enable women to escape poverty, development policies should place more emphasis on women contributions to the economy through labor force participation or entrepreneurship. Policies should also facilitate the process of obtaining basic opportunities for women and actively thwarting attempts to deny those opportunities.

Therefore, governments must work in partnership with communities and must allocate the necessary financial and human resources and tools for successful implementation, including gender sensitive data collection and reporting tools. Notably, governments can learn from each other about what works and what does not work in the region.

Finally, Investing in girls and women creates a ripple effect that yields multiple benefits, not only for individual women, but also for families, communities, and countries. Increasing women’s control over household income improves their children’s access to school and healthcare; gives women greater control over their reproductive health; improves women’s ability to make environmentally friendly choices; boosts women-run businesses; and improves their status within families, communities, and entire countries .