Women's Economic Freedom And Equality

Women’s battle for equal rights under the law has progressed significantly in a number of countries, but many other nations still have much room for improvement to establish societies that uphold women’s equality and dignity. What’s the solution to remove this gender gap worldwide? One of the foundations for economic freedom is the upholding of a just rule of law, which includes the protection of property rights and judicial effectiveness.

In countries that have a strong rule of law, such as Ireland and New Zealand, women are more inclined “to leverage assets for economic gain, increasing their financial security and providing them with the collateral needed to start a business,” according to the Women, Business and the Law 2021 report. A strong rule of law that includes protection of physical and intellectual property not only grants a woman the autonomy to establish her own business, but also gives her the ability to fairly and equally compete in the market.

Unfortunately, in countries where property rights are ignored and the law fails to justly protect its people, a woman is usually the first to be given the short end of the stick. She is discouraged from contributing to the market because there do not exist laws that protect her entrepreneurial ability or grant her entrepreneurial liberty.  While a strong rule of law proves essential to women’s equality, so do regulatory efficiency, including business, labor, and monetary freedom; and open-market policies, such as trade, investment, and financial freedom.

The Challenge

Women in India represent 29 percent of the labor force, down from 35 percent in 2004. More than half of the work done by women in India is unpaid, and almost all of it is informal and unprotected. Women are not well represented in most sectors, including business leaders. Though they comprise almost 40 percent of agricultural labor, they control only 9 percent of land in India. Women are also shut out of the formal financial system. Nearly half of India’s women do not have a bank or savings accounts for their own use and 60 percent of women have no valuable assets to their name. It is unsurprising then that at 17 percent, India has a lower share of women’s contribution to the GDP than the global average of 37 percent.

The Opportunity
The economic impact of achieving gender equality in India is estimated to be US$700 billion of added GDP by 2025. The IMF estimates that equal participation of women in the workforce will increase India’s GDP by 27 percent. More than half of India’s women don’t have cell phones, and 80 percent don’t use them to connect them to the internet. If as many women as men had phones, it could create US$17 billion in revenue for phone companies in the next 5 years. Globally, women make or influence 80 percent of buying decisions and control US$20 trillion in spending. There are also social benefits to empowering women. Women spend 90 percent of their income on their families, and economically empowered women boost demand, have healthier and better-educated children, and raise human development levels. One in three private sector leaders reported that profits increased as a result of efforts to empower women in emerging markets. The Government of India’s MUDRA scheme to support micro and small enterprises and direct benefit transfers under the Jan Dhan Yojana seeks to empower women. Women entrepreneurs account for about 78 percent of the total number of borrowers under MUDRA.

Potential Areas of Focus

The private sector and business community will be crucial in helping bridge the gap between skills and jobs and enable access to decent work for women. Vocational and technical training, life skills and financial literacy programmes for women to help them develop marketable skills and better decision-making abilities cannot be undertaken in a meaningful way without the involvement of industry. Companies can also invest in women entrepreneurs through microfinance, and bring their goods and services into supply chains. Enhancing women’s access to the internet and ICT can create a merging market of connected women who can be linked to business opportunities.



Writer: Sonu Jain