Research has shown that when women in developing countries manage the household income, they spend money on the nutrition, health, and educational needs of their children, improving the family's chances of moving out of poverty. And educated women are more likely to make a productive contribution to the economy, representing a huge untapped economic potential in many places.
Given this potential and the contribution women make to sustainable development, Canada welcomes the World Bank Group's World Development Report 2012: Gender Equality and Development, which was launched in Canada on March 22.
Much progress has been made with increasing female life expectancy, closing the gender gap in girls' education relative to boys, and improving women's participation in the formal labour market. But critical gaps remain between men and women: far too many women—more than 900 million—live on less than one dollar a day, and the number of rural women living in absolute poverty has actually risen.
Women now comprise 43 percent of the world's agricultural labour force and 40 percent of the general labour force. They are also the majority of workers in the informal economy.
However, women continue to make less money than men—while carrying most of the responsibility for unpaid domestic work. Far too often, they have little or no access to education. They face discrimination in land ownership and have little access to loans or financial services. They continue to be under-represented in leadership. And women from rural, minority, ethnic, and marginalized communities are at an even greater disadvantage.
As the United Nations Millennium Development Goals acknowledge, maternal mortality continues to be devastatingly high, especially in rural areas. More than 350,000 women and girls die every year from preventable complications of pregnancy and childbirth.
As the World Bank report notes, gender equality is also smart economics. When women have more economic clout, they also have a stronger voice in their communities, their societies, and their governments. But to really transform society, women need to have the freedom to make choices that improve their lives.
The report recognizes the importance of gender equality by focusing on reducing women's mortality rates and closing gender gaps in education; improving women's access to economic opportunities; increasing women's voices in the household and in society; and by changing attitudes and actions, not passing inequality on to future generations. The report also offers guidance for policy makers, such as taking steps to improve women's control over land by promoting policies such as granting joint land titles to wives and husbands.
However, unless we address the barriers women face—whether for decent work, freedom from discrimination and violence, or inequality in decision making-economic growth will stall, and poverty will become entrenched. We need a comprehensive and coherent approach that pulls together institutions, policies, and legal frameworks to support women's leadership.
The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) has made women's economic empowerment a central focus of its efforts to help build sustainable economies. CIDA's Sustainable Economic Growth Strategy supports women's empowerment in areas such as business and employment laws, and economic decision making. We want women to be able to develop new skills, acquire knowledge, and grow viable businesses of all sizes.
Last October, Canada demonstrated this support when it co-hosted with UN Women the international Conference on Women's Economic Empowerment. As a result of the conference, CIDA committed to targeting initiatives that increase women's economic opportunities, strengthen their economic leadership, and advance the rights of women worldwide.
This report provides a vision for change. Gender equality should be a priority in every country, parliament, development meeting, and conference. Together with the World Bank, other donors, and partner countries, we can make this an achievable goal.
Beverley J. Oda
Minister of International Cooperation
