GENDER EQUALITY: PROGRESS AND

CHALLENGES OF ECONOMIC GROWTH AND

POLITICAL CHANGESpecial Focus NoteRegional Update

Objectives of the note

• Highlight some of the advances that East Asia has made in closing the gender gap.

• Extract some evolving common trends.

• Draw attention to both old and new challenges for gender equality.

(only focus on selected issues: economy, health, education, political participation, institutions)

Participation in the EconomyThe progress:

Number of working women worldwide increased 22% in last 10 years, mostly in regions of high economic growth like East Asia.

Majority of the East Asian women still in agriculture.

Trend is for women to move out of agriculture and into manufacturing and services

Increase in internal and international labor migration, women mostly in the informal sector and men in formal

BUT……..New vulnerabilities and changing roles and relations

• Time poverty: Work outside the home has changed, work inside has not

• Vulnerabilities of migrant laborers: violence, extortion, isolation, abuse, and trafficking

• Labor standards and bargaining constraints• Job and income insecurity• “Sticky floor” and stereotypes• Changing power dynamics

The Social Sectors:Equality in Access to Health

Boys and girls have equal access to health care in most countries

Terrific improvements in most indicators – most before 1995

But……More boys than girls born in China and

S.KoreaWomen’s needs increase at

reproductive age, but needs not always met

Government or religious policies limit women’s reproductive choices in some countries.

MMR improved because:

General improvements in nutrition

Increased access to safe water and transport

More skilled staff to attend births

Falling fertility rates

Family planning0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

1990 1995 2003 MDG target 2015

CAMBODIA

CHINA

INDONESIA

LAO

MONGOLIA

PHILIPPINES

VIETNAM

THAILAND

East Asia High Income

Maternal Mortality Rates in East Asia (per 100,000 live births):

The Social Sectors: Equality in Access to Education

Primary Education: •Gap closed before 1990’s in most countries, and during 1990s in Lao PDR and Cambodia

Secondary Education: • China, Indonesia and Vietnam: equality achieved. • Cambodia and Lao: lagging behind. • Philippines and Mongolia: reverse gap.

Tertiary Education:•Largest gender gap in favor of girls in Mongolia•China lagging behind with Cambodia and Lao

Education: Ratio of Girls to Boys (2000)

0.00

0.20

0.40

0.60

0.80

1.00

1.20

1.40

1.60

1.80

Lao PDR

Cambodia

Viet Nam

Indon

esia

Thailand

Philipp

ines

China

Mongolia

PrimarySecondaryTertiaryLinear (parity )

Representation in Decision-Making

Only 1.6% increase in number of women in elected national bodies since early 1990s

Greater representation of women in single-party states

Women struggle to increase representation in democracies – but success in Timor-Leste

Democracies provide greater space for women’s civil society organizations which have proved very effective

Proportion of Women in National Assemblies Single-Multiple Party

(Last 3 Elections)

5

10

15

20

25

I election II election III election

% w

om

en

Single-party Multiple-party

Percentage of Women in Parliament 2004

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Decentralization and Civil Service

Trend for countries to move decision-making to lower levels but:

fewer women elected at local levels (exception: Mongolia).Appointed positions (e.g. governors) mostly male

Also:Civil service male dominated – especially at higher levels

Proportion of Women at National and Local Levels (2004)

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

Philippines Cambodia Vietnam Indonesia Mongolia

National

Provincial

District

Village

Legal and Institutional Mechanisms

LEGAL FRAMEWORKS: Most countries making good progress to put in place gender

sensitive laws on land, labor, violence against women, and trafficking

but: Implementation of the laws is still a long way off, particularly in

rural areas.

INSTITUTIONS: Departments for women elevated to Ministries, (Indonesia and

Cambodia) and high level inter-sectoral coordinating bodies formed.

Gender Equality policies and action plans formulated

but: The institutions are still weak, lack resources and capacity,

and are struggling to define their role

ConclusionsThere are still quick wins to reduce gender gaps:• Rural women

– Improve access to services in rural areas targeting rural women.– Provide more affordable and culturally appropriate forms of

services to ethnic minority women• Economic Participation

– Provide support for business women and female entrepreneurs.– Greater protection for women workers – especially migrant

workers.• Decision-making

– Increasing support for women’s civil society groups.– Work through community driven development programs to

increase women’s voice at village level.– Expansion of affirmative actions to strengthen women’s

representation.• Institutional

- Increase women’s access to justice through legal aid and awareness raising

- Better analysis to inform evidence based policy making e.g. pricing policies

- Review lessons learned on gender mainstreaming and rethink

THANK YOU!