What We Can Do To Improve Women’s Economic Opportunities
IMF Blog, March 8, 2013
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Bibliographic details
- Authors: Christine Lagarde
- Published: March 8, 2013
Overview and key findings
- Women play a growing role in economic life and increasingly hold high positions in the private sector and public office.
- Across the globe, fewer women than men are in paid employment, with only about 50 percent of working-age women participating in the labor force.
- Women conduct most unpaid work in households and fields; many face legal, regulatory, and social constraints on seeking paid employment.
- Women who get paid earn less than male colleagues doing the same work (gender wage gap). Across the advanced and emerging economy countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the gender wage gap is about 16 percent.
- Many women take career breaks or work part time to care for children and elderly family members, leading to lower pensions and implications for public finances.
- Tax regimes often impose a higher tax on so-called “second earners,” reducing incentives for women to work.
- The economic crisis has worsened prospects for some women:
- In developing economies, girls' school completion rates have dropped more rapidly than those of boys.
- In advanced economies female unemployment has been on the rise—for instance in Portugal and Spain.
Economic potential of increased female participation
- In many countries, growth could be much higher if more women were in paid employment.
- Japan example: raising the female labor force participation rate to Northern European levels would permanently raise per capita GDP by 8 percent.
- Entrepreneurship: women-owned companies represent between 30 and 40 percent of formal small and medium-sized enterprises in emerging markets.
- Raising women’s incomes improves education outcomes because research shows women spend a larger share of their income on the welfare of their children.
Examples and evidence of policy impacts
- Rural South Africa: access to electricity increased women’s labor force participation by about 9 percent by reducing household work and enabling outside work.
- Mexico: a federal daycare program for working mothers has helped low-income mothers.
- Sweden: parental leave and affordable child care correlate with a labor force participation gap between men and women of only 6 percentage points.
- Japan: the difference in labor force participation rates between men and women is 25 percentage points.
- Netherlands: the female labor force participation rate increased from about 35 percent in 1980 to more than 80 percent in 2008, largely due to more attractive part-time work options.
Policy recommendations and actions
- Legal and regulatory reforms:
- Change legislation to provide equal opportunities for women to own property, get credit, and work outside the home.
- Human capital and services:
- Ensure equal access to health services, education, and vocational training to prepare women for paid employment.
- Infrastructure and support services:
- Improve infrastructure, transportation, and child care to allow more women to seek paid work.
- Labor market reforms:
- Expand parental leave and affordable child care in advanced economies.
- Break down barriers between part-time and full-time work contracts.
- Promote flexible work arrangements to help women balance responsibilities.
- IMF role:
- Continue dialogue with member countries on stability and growth that includes women’s labor force participation.
- Use fiscal expertise to assess whether tax regimes and public resource allocation contribute to gender equality and better opportunities for women.
- Flag issues and draw on external expertise; support access to financing for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Final perspective
- Despite remaining challenges, there has been amazing progress and reasons for optimism that future generations will have even better opportunities.
- When women develop their full potential, benefits accrue broadly beyond women themselves.
Source: Christine Lagarde, March 8, 2013, "What We Can Do To Improve Women’s Economic Opportunities" (IMF).
Content in this bundle
- iMFdirect 博客: 如何改善妇女们的经济机遇, 2013年3月8日
- ユア・アイズ・オンリー: 女性の経済的な機会の向上のために私達にできること, 2013年3月8日
- Appendix I. Additional Tables and Figures
- Что можно сделать для расширения экономических возможностей женщин, 8 марта 2013 года