Gender and trade

This report highlights two approaches to catalyzing women’s economic empowerment. The first is supporting women-led businesses through greater access to credit and other financial services. The second is supporting women’s access to secondary and tertiary education and vocational skills development so that they can effectively compete for high-quality work in the labour market. Women’s work, either paid or unpaid, must be made visible. Women’s contributions to economic processes matter, not only to women but also as a means of achieving broader development outcomes. No single initiative alone can independently fulfill conditions for empowerment, and not all strategies will fit to all contexts. The most effective programs will be those that listen to the needs of potentially impacted women and carefully evaluate their resources, strengths, and vulnerabilities. This report illuminates the need for further partnerships -- those that support the world’s women in achieving the economic empowerment that can lead to better lives.

Women, business and the law 2018 is the fifth edition in a series of biennial reports measuring the legal obstacles to women who engage in economic activity around the world. Since the World Bank started this study a decade ago, our understanding has increased about how laws influence women’s decisions to start and run businesses or get jobs. The analysis draws on newly-collected data across seven indicators: accessing institutions, using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, going to court, building credit, and protecting women from violence. The study expands coverage to 189 economies around the world. The data show the challenge many women face in the quest for economic opportunity. One hundred and four economies still prevent women from working in certain jobs, simply because they are women. In 59 economies there are no laws on sexual harassment in the workplace. And in 18 economies, husbands can legally prevent their wives from working. By informing politicians about the legal obstacles to women’s economic opportunities, women, business and the law contributes towards promoting gender equality. The study celebrates the progress that has been made while emphasizing the work that remains to ensure equality of opportunity.

This publication seeks to demonstrate that there are both internal and external benefits of measuring and reporting on progress towards the WEPs. Looking to the future, momentum is gathering as various stakeholders’ increasingly demand gender disclosures or information on gender impacts as part of wider corporate disclosures on social performance. As businesses seek to demonstrate that they are serious about operationalizing their commitment to gender equality, it is predicted that reporting on gender performance will become increasingly mainstream and align with the reporting principles and the tools outlined in this publication.

This brief explanatory note explains the relationship between the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs), the UN Global Compact and the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. The UN Global Compact focuses on corporate sustainability of which respect and support for human rights is one key part. The WEPs elaborate the gender dimension of corporate sustainability, including the corporate responsibility to respect and corporate commitment to support women’s rights. And the Guiding Principles elaborate the state duty to protect against human rights abuses (including of women’s rights) by third parties, including business; the corporate responsibility to respect human rights (including women’s rights); and the need for more effective access to remedies for such abuses. The Guiding Principles elaborate on the policies, processes and actions required of all businesses to meet their responsibility to respect human rights, including women’s rights.

This document presents a paper on promoting gender equality and empowerment of women and girl. The paper, a contribution to the African Regional Forum on Sustainable Development, assesses progress in the implementation of Goal 5 of the Sustainable Development Goals, together with that of Goal 17 and aspiration 6 of Agenda 2063. The paper outlines the challenges and opportunities, then spells out key policy messages and policy recommendations designed to ensure that both agendas do not end up as missed opportunities for the continent.