Dynamics of gender inequality in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia
Lead Research Organisation:
School of Oriental and African Studies
Department Name: Economics
Abstract
Within the ESRC core area of the 'Dynamics of Inequalities', this proposed multidisciplinary GCRF Research Network will focus its efforts on women's labour force participation and gender inequality in eight countries in three world regions: Iran and Turkey in the Middle East; Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia in North Africa; and Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka in South Asia. In doing so, it also plans to draw on the related experience and expertise of researchers who have examined the same topic in Greece, Italy and Spain in Southern Europe.
This Network will concentrate its efforts in two areas: 1) the interplay of economic structures, policies and institutions in determining women's access to employment and 2) the patterns of women's economic participation as key determinants of gender inequality and social inequality in general. Of central concern in the Middle East and North Africa (the MENA region) is the apparent contradiction that while the educational gaps between women and men have narrowed and women have experienced rapid declines in their fertility rates, female labour force participation (FLFP) rates remain the lowest of any region in the world. In the countries of South Asia, despite variations between countries, average rates are the third lowest in the world, after the Middle East and North Africa.
Hence, one of the central concerns of this Network will be to help develop a research agenda that could contribute to explaining why female labour force participation rates are relatively low in these three regions despite their structural differences, and to leverage this contribution to help account for income inequality across households as well as across women themselves. The Southern European countries, particularly the three countries of Greece, Italy and Spain, are very interesting because they have a history of similar problems of social and gender inequalities and there is a rich literature upon which the researchers in this proposed Network could draw to help explain the nature of the historical trends in MENA and South Asia.
The exploratory work of this proposed Network in the above eleven countries will concentrate on four major research-related questions. (1) What are the impediments to women's access to jobs? (2) What are the effects on the household-level well-being of women's lack of employment and income? (3) What is the relationship between gender inequality and labour-market segmentation and what is the effect of gender inequality on broader forms of social inequality and income inequality? (4) What are the data requirements for addressing such research issues and what information gaps need to be filled?
In pursuing this agenda, our proposed Network will include researchers from academic and non-academic institutions (including NGOs) with vital and extensive experience in our area of focus. Included in these efforts will be PhD students as well as early career researchers. The Network members will constitute a multidisciplinary group, spanning the areas of economics, development studies, sociology, anthropology, demography, statistics and law.
These researchers will come together in three workshops, two in London and one in Cairo (the latter in collaboration with the ERF), in order to collectively and intensively discuss the relevant issues and explore potential areas of research on women's labour force participation and gender inequality. As a result of these discussions, the network researchers will be organised into thematic working groups whose members will maintain contact with one another between workshops and will contribute inputs into the Research Briefs and Final Report produced by the Network as a whole.
Additional activities of this network will include organising panels at various international conferences and the active dissemination of the network's outputs to other interested researchers, NGOs and international institutions such as the World Bank, ILO & UN Women.
This Network will concentrate its efforts in two areas: 1) the interplay of economic structures, policies and institutions in determining women's access to employment and 2) the patterns of women's economic participation as key determinants of gender inequality and social inequality in general. Of central concern in the Middle East and North Africa (the MENA region) is the apparent contradiction that while the educational gaps between women and men have narrowed and women have experienced rapid declines in their fertility rates, female labour force participation (FLFP) rates remain the lowest of any region in the world. In the countries of South Asia, despite variations between countries, average rates are the third lowest in the world, after the Middle East and North Africa.
Hence, one of the central concerns of this Network will be to help develop a research agenda that could contribute to explaining why female labour force participation rates are relatively low in these three regions despite their structural differences, and to leverage this contribution to help account for income inequality across households as well as across women themselves. The Southern European countries, particularly the three countries of Greece, Italy and Spain, are very interesting because they have a history of similar problems of social and gender inequalities and there is a rich literature upon which the researchers in this proposed Network could draw to help explain the nature of the historical trends in MENA and South Asia.
The exploratory work of this proposed Network in the above eleven countries will concentrate on four major research-related questions. (1) What are the impediments to women's access to jobs? (2) What are the effects on the household-level well-being of women's lack of employment and income? (3) What is the relationship between gender inequality and labour-market segmentation and what is the effect of gender inequality on broader forms of social inequality and income inequality? (4) What are the data requirements for addressing such research issues and what information gaps need to be filled?
In pursuing this agenda, our proposed Network will include researchers from academic and non-academic institutions (including NGOs) with vital and extensive experience in our area of focus. Included in these efforts will be PhD students as well as early career researchers. The Network members will constitute a multidisciplinary group, spanning the areas of economics, development studies, sociology, anthropology, demography, statistics and law.
These researchers will come together in three workshops, two in London and one in Cairo (the latter in collaboration with the ERF), in order to collectively and intensively discuss the relevant issues and explore potential areas of research on women's labour force participation and gender inequality. As a result of these discussions, the network researchers will be organised into thematic working groups whose members will maintain contact with one another between workshops and will contribute inputs into the Research Briefs and Final Report produced by the Network as a whole.
Additional activities of this network will include organising panels at various international conferences and the active dissemination of the network's outputs to other interested researchers, NGOs and international institutions such as the World Bank, ILO & UN Women.
Planned Impact
The creation of a multi-disciplinary international network with a focus on women's access to employment and the various dynamics of gender and social inequality across three world regions is likely to have a significant impact that can be transmitted through various channels. The network will build links between beneficiaries and the users of future research agendas; among those within the network itself; and between the network members and those outside it.
The immediate impact of the network will be through its non-academic participants. These participants from international NGOs and civil society organizations will be actively involved in shaping the network agenda and will be conduits for dissemination of the network's findings through their own local and transnational networks, including women's organizations and trade unions; contacts within government agencies and women's policy agencies; national, regional and international research institutes; and local offices of the World Bank and UN agencies.
Project participants with experience of working on gender and employment issues in international or civil society organisations include: Shahrashoub Razavi, UN Women (New York); Emna Aoudi and Samia Letaief, Union Générale des Travailleurs Tunisiens (UGTT, Tunis) and AFTURD; Rabéa Naciri, Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc (ADFM, Rabat); Irina Kravchenko (Advisor to Managing Director, Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Region, EBRD, London); Heba Handoussa (ENID, Alneda'a, Egypt); and Nisha Srivastava (SAHYOG and AALI, India).
Network institutional ties will include: UN Women; The International Association for Feminist Economics; The Economic Research Forum for the Arab Countries, Iran, and Turkey (ERF); Union Générale des Travailleurs Tunisiens (UGTT); AFTURD - Association des femmes Tunisiennes pour la recherche et le développement; Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc (ADFM, Rabat); Association for Advocacy and Legal Initiatives (AALI, Lucknow); Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Region, EBRD, London; and Egypt Network for Integrated Development (ENID, Alneda'a), Egypt.
The women's rights organizations or women's empowerment NGOs engage in research, advocacy and policy dialogues as well as providing services to their members and beneficiaries. Their participation will help shape the network's agenda as well as build capacity for work in their own countries around issues of women, work, inequalities and public policies.
It should be noted that NGO participants from North Africa are francophone and thus will require English-French interpretation and translation. For example, given the size and influence of the UGTT (which during a difficult period in 2013 led Tunisia's National Dialogue Quartet, which was then awarded the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize), it is important that their representatives be able to benefit from the brainstorming, interactive learning and networking opportunities afforded by the workshops for their own advocacy and research purposes.
Academic participants and NGOs often have contacts with the statistical offices of their own countries, and UN Women in particular will be able to take part in the discussion of data gaps across the three regions and identification of ways to fill these gaps. Additional channels of impact will be through the academic researchers in the network, each of whom takes part in professional associations and has various links to civil society organizations and policy making bodies.
We expect our workshops, working groups and conference reports to result in participants' co-production of research agendas with various users across our three regions. This effort should help inform policy and practice and ultimately bring about changes in employment policies, social policies and workplace conditions that can enhance female labour force participation and contribute to the development of each country.
The immediate impact of the network will be through its non-academic participants. These participants from international NGOs and civil society organizations will be actively involved in shaping the network agenda and will be conduits for dissemination of the network's findings through their own local and transnational networks, including women's organizations and trade unions; contacts within government agencies and women's policy agencies; national, regional and international research institutes; and local offices of the World Bank and UN agencies.
Project participants with experience of working on gender and employment issues in international or civil society organisations include: Shahrashoub Razavi, UN Women (New York); Emna Aoudi and Samia Letaief, Union Générale des Travailleurs Tunisiens (UGTT, Tunis) and AFTURD; Rabéa Naciri, Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc (ADFM, Rabat); Irina Kravchenko (Advisor to Managing Director, Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Region, EBRD, London); Heba Handoussa (ENID, Alneda'a, Egypt); and Nisha Srivastava (SAHYOG and AALI, India).
Network institutional ties will include: UN Women; The International Association for Feminist Economics; The Economic Research Forum for the Arab Countries, Iran, and Turkey (ERF); Union Générale des Travailleurs Tunisiens (UGTT); AFTURD - Association des femmes Tunisiennes pour la recherche et le développement; Association Démocratique des Femmes du Maroc (ADFM, Rabat); Association for Advocacy and Legal Initiatives (AALI, Lucknow); Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Region, EBRD, London; and Egypt Network for Integrated Development (ENID, Alneda'a), Egypt.
The women's rights organizations or women's empowerment NGOs engage in research, advocacy and policy dialogues as well as providing services to their members and beneficiaries. Their participation will help shape the network's agenda as well as build capacity for work in their own countries around issues of women, work, inequalities and public policies.
It should be noted that NGO participants from North Africa are francophone and thus will require English-French interpretation and translation. For example, given the size and influence of the UGTT (which during a difficult period in 2013 led Tunisia's National Dialogue Quartet, which was then awarded the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize), it is important that their representatives be able to benefit from the brainstorming, interactive learning and networking opportunities afforded by the workshops for their own advocacy and research purposes.
Academic participants and NGOs often have contacts with the statistical offices of their own countries, and UN Women in particular will be able to take part in the discussion of data gaps across the three regions and identification of ways to fill these gaps. Additional channels of impact will be through the academic researchers in the network, each of whom takes part in professional associations and has various links to civil society organizations and policy making bodies.
We expect our workshops, working groups and conference reports to result in participants' co-production of research agendas with various users across our three regions. This effort should help inform policy and practice and ultimately bring about changes in employment policies, social policies and workplace conditions that can enhance female labour force participation and contribute to the development of each country.
| Description | The network has been concerned with gender and the dynamics of inequality in three world regions, with specific focus on (a) the interplay of economic structures, policies and institutions as the determinants of women's access to employment and (b) the patterns of women's economic participation as drivers of inequality. The overarching question addressed is: What explains the persistence of low female labour force participation and involvement in paid employment? How is this related to broader patterns of social and gender inequality? What can be done to enhance women's economic empowerment? The network identified common patterns in women's labour-market experiences in countries in three regions with such diverse economic, social, cultural, and political structures, which is indicative of potentially immense knowledge gap in the existing literature which is by and large focused on particular countries or one particular region. Learning was achieved on a number of levels: conceptual, disciplinary, and empirical. The following knowledge gaps and future research strategies were identified: • At the analytical level the existing theories, relying on standard variables such as human capital and fertility, fail to explain the persistently low levels of female labour-force participation and particularly the stagnant and in some cases declining trends in the three regions (Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia). The 'culturalist' explanations based on conservative social norms also fail to explain the underlying social and institutional conditions under which subjective norms persist in some countries and change in others. The network mapped the knowledge gap in relation to these institutional and social conditions in terms of four broad and inter-related thematic areas and identified critical issues for future research in each thematic area. • The first thematic area is the investigation of the impact of laws and policies as determinants of FLFP and gender inequality at the individual and household level from the supply side. An innovative approach that emerged from the discussions of the multidisciplinary network was that the impact of gender-related laws (such as family laws, inheritance laws and domestic violence laws) and social policies directly aimed at gender inequality is inter-related to other dimensions of inequality such as class, wealth and income inequality. This focus on existing social institutions through the mapping of different dimensions of inequality and the investigation of the effect of gender specific laws and policies at the intersection of these different dimensions is an important research agenda for the design of effective policies. A central question that arose in the course of deliberations was how the presence of (conservative) social institutions interacts with demand-side factors to limit female labour-force participation in a kind of 'vicious cycle'; and how a more virtuous cycle could come about through appropriate legal and policy changes. • The second thematic area relates to the demand-side factors. One of the learning outcomes of the network was the observation that in all the countries studied female labour-force participation rates for women with tertiary education was at par with international norms, but they faced very high unemployment rates. The research challenge is to understand the very low levels of female employment in the private sector in all our sample countries - despite the high gender wage gaps and potentially lower cost of employing women. The network developed research strategies to address this question based on planned employer-employee surveys. The surveys will also address the issue of low labour-force participation of lower educated women by examining working conditions in different sectors and occupations. • The third theme relates to the impact of labour-market institutions. These are examined in terms of a) employment legislation, b) minimum wage legislation and wage setting processes, and, c) the role of labour organizations: The reform of the employment protection law (EPL) and increasing 'flexibilization' of labour markets has been followed with varying degree of intensity in most countries in South Asia and MENA. The implications of such reforms for female employment is largely unknown and is one area of research under this theme. A related area is labour legislation that can directly affect women's work, such as maternity leave, child care, night work, equal pay, retirement, income tax, and workplace sexual harassment. This area is also relevant to the research areas under the first two themes and is likely to have more important implications for female employment in the countries in South Asia and MENA than the reform of EPL. Minimum wages vary considerably across the countries in South Asia and MENA, both as a share of median wages and per capita GDP. In some countries in the MENA region the labour law stipulates the level of minimum wages sufficient for the upkeep of a one breadwinner family with stipulated number of children. Wage setting institutions also vary considerably across the countries with different systems of collective bargaining. In South Asian countries, especially India, there are multiple minimum wages, often reflecting gender-based segmentation of the labour market. While the overall impact of minimum wages on employment and labour market inequality has been studied, the effect of minimum wages and the variety of wage setting institutions on female employment, gender gap, and income inequality has not been adequately studied, particularly in the context of MENA and south Asia regions. The third component of this theme is the role of labour organizations. Labour standards, particularly in relation to freedom of association and social dialogue, vary considerably between the MENA countries and the South Asian countries. An important area of knowledge gap that this research aims to fill the role of labour unions as well as formal associations of informal workers (e.g. SEWA in India), some with largely or exclusively female membership, in gendered outcomes of work and remuneration. • The fourth theme relates to the impact of macroeconomic policies and social provisioning on gender inequality. These have been studied in relation to changes in social expenditures, changes in public spending on physical infrastructure, shifts in direct and indirect taxation and shifts in the pattern and delivery of spending from universal provisioning to more targeted interventions. The impact on female employment and inequality is highly context specific, and prior understanding of the questions raised in themes one to three is necessary for the understanding of gendered outcomes of macroeconomic interventions. • The cross-cutting theme of the digital economy was recognized as an important area of substantial knowledge gap, with important consequences for female employment and gender inequality with supply-side and demand-side consequences for the four thematic areas discussed, and with important regulatory implications as well. Would the digital economy enhance women's labour-force participation by increasing time and space (private-public space) flexibility, reducing transaction costs, enhancing availability of information and improving competitiveness? Or, conversely, would platform work lead to increased inequalities and exploitation of women by strengthening the monopoly power of employers? What regulatory measures are needed to protect women and safeguard the quality of jobs? What are the gender gaps in digital skills, and what investments in new skills are required for women to take full advantage of the new technologies? What are the implications for policy debates on flexibility and informality? The rapid growth of the so-called gig economy in the countries covered by the network, and the very limited knowledge landscape on this topic make it an important cross-cutting component of the four thematic proposals developed by the network. Capacity Building and Next Steps • The network members in different thematic groups have prepared proposals that include detailed questions, the research methodology, and the required data sources. All the main thematic proposals use a mixed methods approach combining qualitative and quantitative data based on a range of primary or secondary sources, at the aggregate national or sectoral levels, data from purposive surveys, large scale sample surveys, population censuses, international databanks, etc. A main area for future capacity building is data collection in collaboration with our partners in MENA region and South Asia. • The network has links with national statistical offices through its specialized members who have long experience in generating and/or using large scale surveys in countries under study. Some of the thematic programs are planning to harmonize and utilize the existing labour-force and income-expenditure surveys in the countries covered by the network (e.g., theme I and the minimum wage component of theme III). Others have planned their own large-scale purposive surveys in collaboration with the national statistical offices (e.g., theme II conducting employer-employee surveys, and the digital economy group planning to supplement the existing household surveys with a digital economy block in addition to a case study approach). The thematic groups plan to conduct purposive qualitative surveys of relatively small scale in relation to some of the research areas identified. • To set up the necessary infrastructure for the different thematic programs, funding applications are being made for each theme. However, although each of the thematic programs can be followed as stand-alone projects, the clear synergies across the different thematic programs - both conceptual and empirical synergies - make it much more productive to follow a strategy of combined programs within a university-based centre on gender and dynamics of inequality. |
| Exploitation Route | As we analyse the importance and broad ramifications of work on female employment and dynamics of inequality and highlight links with the SDGs, we expect that policymakers, women's rights groups, and the relevant advocacy organisations in the three regions will find our country studies, proposals, and policy recommendations of interest and relevance. Our studies could also inform the advocacy work of women's rights associations, trade unions, certain professional associations, and related organisations, but they also can be referred to in economic and social development plans at the national level. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Healthcare,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy,Other |
| Description | Based on our first workshop held 9-11 June 2017 in London the participants in the network produced substantive research proposals which were reviewed by academics, NGO representatives and policy makers in our second workshop in Rabat, Morocco 19-20 December 2017. We have also since then disseminated the results of our network's work to a larger audience via podcasts, see https://www.soas.ac.uk/economics/podcasts/ . The project achieved the following: capacity enhancement of participants, especially through the country studies, workshops, and data sessions (see details below); increasing ties between academics and non-academics; creating a collegial environment for communications and collaborations among Co-Is and within the working groups; involving junior academics and Ph.D. students in the project. The Ph.D. student rapporteurs/participants found their involvement relevant and helpful to their doctoral dissertations. A large number of Masters students at SOAS were encouraged to write their final dissertations on gender and development issues using primary data made available by the network. An early career participant from the LSE in London was inspired develop a lecture on gender and dynamics of inequality that she taught to her students on the Development and Globaliztgion module in the Gender Studies program at the LSE. Various participants from the Middle East and South Asian countries have written to indicate that their participation in the network has helped them develop new ideas for teaching and research and they look forward to continued collaboration to develop the themes identified, within the comparative framework developed by the network. A former Director of the Statistics Department at the ILO has developed new ideas on the measurement of female labour supply in the informal sector as a result of his participation in the network. He is currently helping the PI to develop methodologies to investigate the effect of patriarchal norms on official statistics on female labour. An MSc exchange student from Italy was encouraged to develop a dissertation proposal on the impact of digital economy on female employment in North Africa; based in Florence she will be co-supervised by PI Karshenas. Co-I Bargawi is helping develop an MSc in Gender & Development in collaboration with network participants from the development studies department at SOAS. The final workshop in London (May 2018) held two extensive sessions on assessing data and the necessary requirements for new qualitative and quantitative surveys for different proposals. First, a representative of the OECD spoke of the Social Institutions and Gender Inequality data base (SIGI), which some network participants knew about but many did not. This database is especially useful to Working Group I (social norms) and II (employers). Second, Co-Investigators Ragui Assaad and Ravi Srivanasan discussed existing official and academic datasets for the Arab countries and Asian countries, respectively, in a session that was chaired by a former director of the ILO statistical office. Research participant Ipek Ilkkaracan discussed data availability and relevant studies for Turkey, and Iran's data availability was discussed by PI Massoud Karshenas and network member Mahmoud Meskoob. Farhad Mehran, former director of statistics at the ILO, discussed broad conceptual, definitional, and methodological issues regarding labour force and household survey data and chaired the session. These discussions were important for the capacity-building of FEDI network members who would continue to use existing datasets as well as conduct their own surveys through mixed methods approaches. The network's web presence, through both the web site at the lead institution (SOAS) and some of the affiliated universities of Co-Is, increased the capacity for dissemination of the network findings and their continued co-operation. The GCRF seminar series on dynamics of gender inequality at SOAS is an important source of dissemination of knowledge. The podcasts of the seminar series on the project's web site has been popular with students and non-academic researchers. The seminar series is planned to continue after the completion of the project. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2017 |
| Sector | Other |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Economic,Policy & public services |
| Description | Development Studies Association (DSA) Conference Panel |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Panel discussion by five network members on the innovative findings of the network. Participants engaged in research on other developing regions discussed the relevance of the network's findings for their regions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | GCRF Seminar Series on Female Employment and Dynamics of Inequality, SOAS |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The GCRF seminar series on dynamics of gender inequality at SOAS began in 2018 with four speakers and has continued in early 2019 with three additional speakers. The seminar series is an important source of dissemination of knowledge emanating from the network's activities. The podcasts of the seminar series on the project's website have been popular with students and non-academic researchers. The seminar series will continue for the foreseeable future. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018,2019 |
| URL | https://www.soas.ac.uk/fedi/ |