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172. Women and the Law
- Author:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Council on Foreign Relations
- Abstract:
- The connection between women’s economic participation and global prosperity is undeniable. Over the past two decades, international organizations and world leaders have increasingly recognized how critical women’s economic empowerment and financial inclusion are to economic prosperity and growth. Analyses from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank, and other leading institutions demon- strate the growth potential of women’s increased economic partici- pation. UN frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals recognize the relationship between economic opportunity for women and development, and include time-bound targets—such as equal access to financial services, natural resources, and technology, and equality in property ownership and inheritance—to advance women’s economic participation. However, despite growing awareness that women’s economic empowerment is critical to women, their families, and broader eco- nomic prosperity, many countries still legally undermine women’s economic participation and undervalue women’s work. Of the 189 economies surveyed in the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law 2018 report, 90 percent have at least one regulation that impedes wom- en’s economic opportunities. More than one hundred economies still prevent women from working in certain jobs; fifty-nine economies provide no legal recourse to women who experience sexual harassment in the workplace; and in eighteen countries, men can legally prevent their wives from working outside the home. An array of other legal barriers—from limitations on access to finance to laws restricting women’s agency and mobility—prevent women from fully participat- ing in the economy. Even in 2018, the legal landscape for women in the economy fails to reflect the value women’s participation adds to eco- nomic growth. But change is on the horizon. Over the last decade, several countries have enacted legal reforms that significantly advance women’s rights. Today, all but thirty-two countries legally guarantee gender equality in their constitutions, and a record number of countries now have laws prohibiting discrimina- tion or violence against women. While these gains—rightfully cel- ebrated—show that progress is possible, proposals to eliminate the critical barriers that limit women’s economic potential remain absent from mainstream discussions on international and national economic policy, and barriers to female economic enfranchisement persist in every region of the world. In order to realize the economic potential of 50 percent of the world’s population, nations need to do more to level the legal playing field for women. This volume collects in-depth analysis and commen- tary on legal barriers to women’s economic participation, with a focus on five areas in which the greatest obstacles to women’s economic par- ticipation endure: financial inclusion, identification laws, land rights, workplace discrimination, and family law. In the opening essay, I make the economic case for eliminating legal barriers that inhibit women’s economic participation. Closing gender gaps in the workplace could add an estimated $12 trillion to the global economy. Countries simply cannot afford to waste this economic poten- tial—and governments from Saudi Arabia to Japan are taking notice and enacting policies to promote women’s workforce participation. A web of discriminatory laws impedes women’s access to financial services and undermines their capacity to borrow, save, or obtain insur- ance. In an essay on financial inclusion, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) Senior Fellow Jamille Bigio highlights how banks stand to ben- efit economically by ensuring women’s access to and use of financial services, by sharing the experience of a Nigerian woman who employed digital tools to save for her daughter’s school fees. CFR Senior Fellow Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, reporting on a successful financial inclusion program in Tanzania, explores how education can help women over- come legal and social barriers to opening bank accounts. The economic case for legal reform to promote women’s financial inclusion is strong: when women can use financial services without spousal consent and have control over where they live, and when unpaid work is recognized in marital property regimes, gender gaps in financial inclusion are nar- rowed. Legal reform needs to be a central component of any strategy to advance women’s access to and use of savings, credit, and insurance.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Women, Feminism, and Participation
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
173. HeForShe #GetFree Tour Columbia: Gender Equality in STEM and Academia
- Author:
- Elizabeth Nyamayaro, Mary Boyce, Helen Lu, Carol Mason, and Dennis A. Mitchell
- Publication Date:
- 10-2018
- Content Type:
- Video
- Institution:
- Columbia University World Leaders Forum
- Abstract:
- A discussion on women and equality in academia with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) in conjunction with the UN's global HeForShe movement for gender equality.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Science and Technology, United Nations, Women, and Inequality
- Political Geography:
- New York, United Nations, and Global Focus
174. Elsie Initiative for Women in Peace Operations: Baseline Study
- Author:
- Marta Ghittoni, Léa Lehouck, and Callum Watson
- Publication Date:
- 07-2018
- Content Type:
- Case Study
- Institution:
- Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance (DCAF)
- Abstract:
- The proportion of female police and military peacekeepers remains well below UN targets. Research suggests that the main reason behind the small numbers seems to be a variety of challenges and barriers to uniformed women deploying to PKOs. This baseline study compiles and analyses research published to date on the topic. The study was commissioned by Global Affairs Canada (GAC) in the framework of the Elsie Initiative for Women in Peace Operations. The main objectives of this study are to describe the current situation as concerns women’s participation in military and police roles in United Nations peacekeeping operations, document international good practice to increase such participation, and identify challenges and barriers to the recruitment, training, retention, deployment and promotion of uniformed women in peacekeeping operations.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, Peacekeeping, Military Affairs, and Women
- Political Geography:
- Geneva, Canada, United Nations, and Global Focus
175. Gender-inclusive governance for e-commerce
- Author:
- Amalie Giødesen Thystrup
- Publication Date:
- 07-2018
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for Trade and Economic Integration, The Graduate Institute (IHEID)
- Abstract:
- United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals' SDG 5 places gender equality front and centre for sustainable development. The Joint Declaration on Trade and Women's Economic Empowerment on the Occasion of the WTO Ministerial Conference in Buenos Aires in December 2017 brings gender equality to the forefront of trade policy. In the intersection of trade policy and digital technologies, this paper examines how electronic commerce can work towards gender equality, filling a knowledge gap about gender-inclusive governance. Legal-empirical analysis of key regulatory and policy challenges facing women in e-commerce, and identification of vehicles for gender equality at the regional and multilateral level are followed by policy options for promoting women participation in e-commerce. The paper presents a framework for understanding the multiplicity of gender gaps as they manifest themselves in e-commerce models, suggesting potential but also concerns, and advances a multi-level approach to incorporating gender-inclusive e-commerce regulation into trade policy.
- Topic:
- Economics, Gender Issues, International Trade and Finance, Women, Digital Economy, and Sustainable Development Goals
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
176. Gender Parity in Peace Operations: Opportunities for U.S. Engagement
- Author:
- Luisa Ryan and Shannon Zimmerman
- Publication Date:
- 03-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Women In International Security (WIIS)
- Abstract:
- At the UN Peacekeeping Defense Ministerial Conference, Canada announced the launch of the Elsie Initiative on Women in Peace Operations. Through tailored technical support, the initiative aims to help troop-contributing countries recruit and retain female soldiers. It is one of the first initiatives to directly address the lack of female personnel at the deploying country level. As one of the co-hosts of the 2017 UN Peacekeeping ministerial, the United States is in a strong position to partner in the work of the Elsie Initiative. By so doing, it can entrench the concept of gender parity in its current UN peacekeeping training programs and deployments and better lead knowledge-sharing efforts with partner militaries. The Elsie Initiative also gives the United States an opportunity to reinforce partnerships that enhance global security while bolstering its leadership in gender parity and UN reform. Efforts such as the Elsie initiative to improve the effectiveness of peace operations will directly benefit US national interests by strengthening alliances and enabling recipient countries to take an increasing role in providing for collective and regional security.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, United Nations, Peacekeeping, and Women
- Political Geography:
- United States and Global Focus
177. Improving Gender Training in UN Peacekeeping Operations
- Author:
- Velomahanina T. Razakamaharavo, Luisa Ryan, and Leah Sherwood
- Publication Date:
- 02-2018
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Women In International Security (WIIS)
- Abstract:
- United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 expressed a global commitment to the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda. Many policy statements and guidance on gender mainstreaming have followed in the 17 years since UNSCR 1325’s passage, yet peace operations on the ground appear little affected. They continue to overlook the many roles women play in conflict and conflict resolution, fail to engage fully with women’s organizations, and fail to include women fighters in reintegration and security sector reform programs. They even perpetrate exploitation: Sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) continues to be widespread within peace missions themselves, despite increased SEA and conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) training for operation forces. Further, peace operations have failed to address the more inclusive Gender, Peace and Security (GPS) agenda and the broader role gender plays in conflict dynamics. For example, while missions may seek to address the effects of conflict-related sexual violence on women and girls, they may miss similar impacts for male victims and their families. Improved gender training could help ameliorate this mismatch between policy rhetoric and practice. This policy brief outlines current gender training practice, identifies gaps, and recommends ways to strengthen training in order to help peace operations personnel better understand how to apply a gender lens to their missions.
- Topic:
- Political Violence, Gender Issues, United Nations, Peacekeeping, Women, and Gender Based Violence
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
178. Missing Figures: The Cybersecurity Gender Gap
- Author:
- Spencer Beall
- Publication Date:
- 02-2018
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Women In International Security (WIIS)
- Abstract:
- While the cybersecurity industry will require approximately six million workers to meet its projected job demand by 2019, many positions will remain unfilled without more female cybersecurity professionals. Currently, women comprise only 11 percent of global cybersecurity professionals. Women’s underrepresentation in cybersecurity is not just an economic workplace issue, but also has a profound impact on the type of technologies being developed and hence impacts everyone in the digital age. The report will explore some of the main barriers that impede women’s entry, professional advancement, and retention in cybersecurity, including the pervasive gender discrimination in technology professions. Next, I will examine three core reasons why it is essential to get more women in cybersecurity, namely (1) to maximize innovation potential; (2)to expand usability of digital products to meet the needs of all consumers; and (3) to strengthen the global economy by fulfilling the cybersecurity industry’s rapidly growing job demand. Recommendations on how to dismantle the gender gap in cybersecurity and how to create in the digital age a global workforce that is safer, more efficient, and more prosperous are presented.
- Topic:
- Gender Issues, International Security, Women, and Cybersecurity
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
179. #16DAYS: ELIMINATING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
- Author:
- Marie Berry
- Publication Date:
- 11-2018
- Content Type:
- Commentary and Analysis
- Institution:
- Political Violence @ A Glance
- Abstract:
- Last Sunday marked the start of #16days of Activism, a global campaign against gender-based violence. Championed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Women, and many other groups, the campaign is designed to generate momentum towards eliminating the pervasiveness of all forms of gendered violence, including the physical and sexual violence that one-third of women across the globe will be subjected to in their lifetime. This campaign comes at a time when thousands of Central American migrants are attempting to cross the US-Mexico border, where they have been met by militarized border police and tear gas. These refugees are fleeing from myriad forms of violence—including forcible recruitment to gangs, targeted assassinations, and widespread abuse and sexual violence from community members, security forces, and intimate partners alike. Many have continued to face tremendous levels of violence along their route to the US from smugglers, other migrants, or government officials—women in particular face gender-based abuse in transit or upon arrival, including high rates of sexual assault.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, United Nations, Women, and Gender Based Violence
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus
180. 2018 Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs
- Author:
- Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
- Publication Date:
- 08-2018
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Women's Foreign Policy Group (WFPG)
- Abstract:
- WFPG's Guide to Women Leaders in International Affairs highlights women shaping foreign policy around the world and the role that they play as leaders, diplomats, and policymakers. The Guide provides an index of prominent women from across the international community, including heads of state and government, government ministers and diplomats, and leaders of international organizations and corporations.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Government, United Nations, Women, Leadership, and NGOs
- Political Geography:
- Global Focus