This article explores the root causes of gender inequality in poor countries. Studies have shown that with equivalent income and power, a female head of household focuses more on the health and education of her children. the! In the 1960s and 1970s, the public sector was much larger and there were more women working in it. CEDAW) to defend and promote women’s rights in its broadest sense. In case of a choice between sending a girl or a boy to school, boys are often given precedence. The complexity of the legal situation, particularly in relation to personal law, has important implications for gender relations. During the last decade, the private costs of education have risen, putting many families under financial strain as evidenced by continued high dropout rates. The Agence Française de Développement uses cookies to gather statistics on visits. Inequality is still a major problem in today’s world. Young girls need to be informed of their rights very early on. The man, who is often less concerned about these issues, will tend to spend money on himself, or in certain Middle Eastern countries, on supporting another wife. Recent exercises in decentralization, the establishment of a new multi-party constitution and general elections, provide opportunities for women to participate more actively in the formal political process, but there is little evidence as yet to show clearly that this has occurred. But if we refine the analysis with a study of small groups, inequality increases between residents of rural areas and residents of urban areas, between those who have an education and those who do not. Gender equality, according to UNICEF, is meaning that girls and boys, and women and men, will be able to enjoy identical opportunities, protections, and rights. Educational disadvantage may be a major barrier preventing women from responding to adjustment induced incentives. Religion is not directly at issue: to my knowledge, religion does not prohibit women from working or impose fewer rights and more duties on them than on men. Becoming a lecturer was a choice. But I would like to draw attention to the fact that certain sectors are more attractive than others for women. It is not simply a question of social classes, but of culture. This is a record for Egypt! There is what we call the paradox of inequality in Arab countries. Of course, there are distinct biological and physical differences between girls and boys and women and men, and of course, these differences may lead to different roles, capacities, or needs for each group, but these differences in themselves should never result in or be used to justify any unequal rights or social status. Within Ghanaian households, in Customary Law, the husband is under an obligation to maintain his wives and children. I also work with international organizations on mainstreaming gender issues into access to water and food security. Gender inequality refers to unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on their gender. The parallel systems have operated largely to the detriment of women, who have been caught between the decline in traditional forms of security and the failure of the legal system to include or enforce provisions, which would provide them with some meaningful protection. But if we really want to be able to conduct effective policies to reduce poverty, we need to determine which social groups are vulnerable and target them precisely. We need to work on everything that can change the culture and stereotypes on women, in the media, in schools and universities. in! In many societies, these distinct differences in behaviors and roles defined for girls and women, and boys and men, are causing gender inequality, meaning there is a difference between girls and women, and boys and men that favor one group in a systematic way. If we use the Gini Index, the most well-known indicator for measuring inequalities, we see that they are generally declining. It has since grown smaller, which has affected the employment rate of women. whereas the girls are not given this privilege. Home Politics & Society Inequalities “The root cause of gender inequality is the role society assigns to women”. Power imbalance/unequal power relations Ghanaian women are effectively under the control or authority of men (initially their father or other male members of their kin group and later their husband) for much of their lives, although they may gain in status and influence with age. We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. Just read this post about inequality in sports. There’s a need for everyone concerned to work together: government, universities, civil society, but also the Muslim and Christian religions. They have trouble finding a job and when they do find one, it is often an informal or precarious job, or a position at a lower level and with a lower salary than a man’s. Traditional cultural practices reflect the values and beliefs held by members of a community for periods often spanning generations.