The Contribution of Globalization to the Current Level of Gender Inequality in Low-Income Countries

The contribution of globalization to the current level of gender inequality in low-income countries

Introduction

One hundred years ago, it was, according to 20th Century London, quite normal that men occupied a higher social status in the society than women. Nowadays, there are still many examples that clearly show a difference in social status, although various laws have been introduced and measures have been taken in order to promote gender equality.

In 2008, the United Nations reported that “at least 30 percent of the parliamentary seats in 20 countries were occupied by women, and in Rwanda, Sweden, Cuba, Finland and Argentina, the number exceeds 40 percent” (Preble, 2010, p. 354). The greater openness to trade has caused a rising demand for unskilled labor in unskilled-labor intensive sectors in low-income countries. This development has given the female population the opportunity to reduce unemployment among the female population, without observing the consequences. One of the consequences, claimed by Wood (1997), is that an increased wage gap exists between skilled labor jobs and unskilled labor jobs (Baliamoune-Lutz, 2006). Nevertheless, in many areas, it seems that gender equality is certainly not a matter of course. As stated by Preble (2010), the unemployment rates among women in the Middle East and North Africa are still approximately 16 percent. Women often have to accept that they are paid less than men. Furthermore, populations in low-income countries generally do have a simple bias against women, which is reflected in the belief that men are more capable than women (Preble, 2010). These observations form the rationale behind this paper. This paper discusses to what extent globalization can be related to the current level of gender inequality in low-income countries.

This paper has been divided into three parts. Firstly, a clarification will be given on what we mean with gender inequality and what the points of view on this topic of proponents and detractors of globalization are. Subsequently, the influences on gender inequality, whether it is caused by globalization or not, are established through a literature review. The final section includes recommendations to promote gender equality in low-income countries.

Gender inequality

The World Health Organization (WHO) states that gender inequality includes the existing differences between men and women in roles, behaviour, and activities within a society. The differences ensure a systematic favour for one gender. The WHO suggests that the existing inequality in various aspects may be the cause of disparity between women and men concerning their health status and access to health care. In 1995, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) developed two different