Making the Law Work for Working Women

When Sarah Iqbal, currently the Program Manager for Women, Business and the Law at the World Bank, first started working on development issues there in 2008, she says she often found herself explaining why the obstacles women faced when trying to start businesses and get jobs mattered on a global scale. Now, she says, there aren’t enough data to meet the demand for such information.

In this week’s WAPPP Seminar, “Women, Business and the Law: Removing Restrictions to Enhance Gender Equality,” Iqbal discussed the findings of the Women, Business and Law 2014 Report. The report scrutinizes the laws and regulations across the globe that affect men and women differently so as to limit women’s opportunities and incentives to work.

In a survey of 143 economies, 90% were found to have at least one legal difference restricting women’s economic opportunities. The restrictions came in a variety of forms, from property rights restrictions to long lists of jobs that women were prohibited from doing. 15 of these countries had laws allowing husbands to object to – and therefore restrict – their wives’ employment.

The study looked at seven indicators of gender economic equality to make these determinations: (1) ability to access institutions, (2) property use, (3) whether there were restrictions on type of employment, (4) whether incentives to work are provided, (5) ability to build credit, (6) court accessibility, and (7) the degree to which women are protected from violence.

The report found that there were three main obstacles for women’s advancement in business. The first is women’s lack of autonomy to interact with government institutions or conduct official transactions. Iqbal illustrated this by discussing “head of household” rights and responsibilities, such as paying taxes or sending children to school, which are usually delegated to men.

Second, Iqdal explained that marriage is often the trigger for such loss of rights. While single women have as many rights as single men in almost every country studied, women give up some of their autonomy upon marriage in many countries around the world. Lastly, limited property rights are a major factor contributing to women’s restricted economic opportunities, since property can be used as collateral for loans to start small businesses, for example.

Fortunately, there is hope that progress is being made on this issue. Within five years of the ratification of CEDAW, rates of reform in the countries studied had doubled. The report also found that having women legislators increased the likelihood of reform in that country. Over the two year period examined, Women, Business and the Law recorded 59 legal changes in 44 economies. Of these changes, 48 increased gender parity, 11 were neutral to gender parity. None reduced gender parity.

In addition to collecting this data, Women, Business and the Law are working with countries to make their laws less restrictive for women's economic opportunities. Iqbal closed by arguing that “what gets measured gets done,” and that despite the clear challenges ahead, a good first step is measuring the problem in order to tackle it.

Photo source: The World Bank

Older Women’s Rights are Human Rights

The Women: Judy Lear, Gray Panthers; Ferdous Ara Begum, Gender Issues Specialist

The Talk: Older Women Gain a Foothold: Reaching for Full Human Rights on Paper and Beyond

The Question: Where is the inclusion of older women in CEDAW? 

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
-- Margaret Mead.

Ms. Judy Lear opened her speech with this Margaret Mead quote to preface discussions around the inclusion of the protection of older women in the international Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, CEDAW. Ms. Lear provided the opening remarks for Ms. Ferdous Ara Begum, a CEDAW Committee Expert from Bangladesh who was intimately involved in the process. 

What is CEDAW?

CEDAW is the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women. It was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1979, and it is referred to colloquially as the “International Bill of Rights for Women.” Out of 193 UN member states, 186 have ratified all or part or all of it. Unfortunately, the United States, largely for economic and political reasons, is one of seven countries to have not yet ratified CEDAW. 

What does CEDAW do? 

CEDAW is an international declaration holding governments responsible, and partially accountable, for the equality of women and girls. In countries that have ratified CEDAW, groups have often been able to partner with the government to change laws and policies targeting women and girls. These include: creating economic safety nets, increasing access to healthcare and education, encouraging laws around violence and domestic violence, ensuring rights around voting and inheritance, and many, many more. 

However, CEDAW is not without its faults. Because the United States has not ratified CEDAW, its legitimacy on the international stage is mitigated. Additionally, countries can partially ratify the Convention, which often removes some of its strongest articles. 

Why target older women specifically? 

Older women are often invisible in societies. Former CEDAW Committee member, Ferdous Ara Begum, discussed the negative stereotypes towards women as they age. Deeply rooted cultural and social biases marginalize this group; older women are often viewed as a burden to their families as they are no longer economically or reproductively useful. Furthermore, as a group, older women are more likely to be homeless, have unattended chronic health issues, or limited access to property and land. 

How does CEDAW protect older women? 

In October of 2010, CEDAW adopted Recommendation No. 27 to protect older women and their human rights on issues related to access to social pensions, education, adequate housing, inheritance laws, violence, and social biases (among other).  It compels, “State parties [to] recognize that older women are an important resource to society, and have the obligation to take all appropriate measures, including legislation, to eliminate discrimination against older women.”

Going forward. 

Including older women in CEDAW is an important step in protecting marginalized rights. However, and perhaps more importantly, this inclusions encourages governments -- and societies -- to recognize and appreciate the contributions of older women.

Click here to read the full recommendation on the protection of the human rights for older women, available in six languages. 

Melissa Sandgren is a MPP1 at the Harvard Kennedy School and a participant in WAPPP's From Harvard Square to the Oval Office program.