Gender equality, also known as sexual equality, is the state of equal ease of access to

resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and

decision-making; and the state of valuing different behaviors, aspirations and needs
equally, regardless of gender.

Gender equality, equality between men and women, entails the concept
that all human beings, both men and women, are free to develop their
personal abilities and make choices without the limitations set by
stereotypes, rigid gender roles and prejudices. Gender equality means that
the different behaviour, aspirations and needs of women and men are
considered, valued and favoured equally. It does not mean that women and
men have to become the same, but that their rights, responsibilities and
opportunities will not depend on whether they are born male or female.
Gender equity means fairness of treatment for women and men, according
to their respective needs. This may include equal treatment or treatment
that is different but which is considered equivalent in terms of rights,
benefits, obligations and opportunities.

— ABC Of Women Worker's Rights And Gender Equality, ILO,

2000. p. 48.

UNICEF says gender equality "means that women and men, and girls and boys, enjoy the
same rights, resources, opportunities and protections. It does not require that girls and
boys, or women and men, be the same, or that they be treated exactly alike."[1]

Gender equality describes the absence of obvious or hidden disparities among

individuals based on gender. Disparities can include the discrimination in terms of
opportunities, resources, services, benefits, decision-making power and influence. It is
important to note that Gender is a social construct which is based on social roles, not
sexual differences per se. The dichotomous nature of gender lends to the creation of
inequality that manifests itself in numerous dimensions of daily life.

Gender equality is the goal, while gender neutrality and gender equity are practices and ways of
thinking that help in achieving the goal. Gender parity, which is used to measure gender balance in a
given situation, can aid in achieving gender equality but is not the goal in and of itself. Gender
equality is more than equal representation, it is strongly tied to women's rights, and often requires
policy changes.

On a global scale, achieving gender equality also requires eliminating harmful practices
against women and girls, including sex trafficking, femicide, wartime sexual violence,
and other oppression tactics. UNFPA stated that, "despite many international agreements
affirming their human rights, women are still much more likely than men to be poor and
illiterate. They have less access to property ownership, credit, training and employment.
They are far less likely than men to be politically active and far more likely to be victims
of domestic violence."[2]

If gender equality is the end, gender equity is the means.

Gender equality "does not mean that women and men will become the same, but that
women’s and men’s rights, responsibilities and opportunities will not depend on whether
they are born male or female.”

Gender equity means fairness of treatment for women and men, according to their
respective needs. This may include equal treatment or treatment that is different, but
which is considered equivalent in terms of rights, benefits, obligations, and opportunities.

When we talk about opportunity, we’re talking about ensuring opportunity is not limited
simply on the basis of gender. We are talking about correcting for gender biases so that
economic outcomes improve for all.

Many of the measures concerning gender equality interplay with the economy and more
specifically, the workforce.

Here’s the current state:

 If there’s only one woman in your candidate pool, there’s statistically no chance she’ll get the
job
 Men are promoted at 30% higher rates than women during their early career stages
 90% of women leave the workforce because of other workplace problems (rather than having
a child)
 Women are paid 79 cents on the dollar of their male colleagues (that drops drastically to 39
cents for the top 2% of wage earners in the U.S.)
 More men named John run FTSE 100 companies than women
 In a study of 21,980 firms from 91 countries, just over 50% of firms didn’t have any female
executives (only 11% of firms had all female executives)
 50% women in STEM fields will eventually leave because of hostile work environments

In addition to women attaining 57% of bachelor degrees and above in

2015 (that trajectory is projected to continue), they are also the majority of university
students in nearly 100 countries. Women are an educated cohort, particularly in the U.S.,
but they are not making it up the talent pipeline. Why not? Gender bias is causing a leaky
pipeline.

Manifestations of Gender Biases

Income disparities linked to job stratification

Wage Gaps Between Men and Women or Wage Gaps Between Men and Women
between gender stems from processes that determine the quality and
earnings associated with jobs in certain sectors. Earnings associated
with jobs will cause income inequality to take form in the placement of
individuals into particular jobs through individual qualifications or
stereotypical norms. Placement of men or women into particular job
categories can be based on particular qualifications of individuals or
abilities associated with biological differences in men and women.
Conversely, the placement of men or women into separate job categories
is argued to be caused by social status groups who desire to keep their
position through the placement of those in lower statuses to lower
paying positions.

Gender roles in parenting and marriage

Gender roles develop through internalisation and identification during childhood.

Sigmund Freud suggested that biology determines gender identity through identification
with either the mother or the father. While some people agree with Freud, others argue
that the development of the “gendered self” is not completely determined by biology, but
rather the interactions that one has with the primary caregiver(s).

From birth, parents interact differently with children depending on their sex, and through
this interaction parents can instill different values or traits in their children on the basis of
what is normative for their sex. This internalisation of gender norms includes the choice
of toys (“feminine” toys often reinforce interaction, nurturing, and closeness, “masculine”
toys often reinforce independence and competitiveness) that a parents give to their
children. Education also plays an integral role in the creation of gender norms.

Gender roles that are created in childhood may permeate throughout life and help to
structure parenting and marriage, especially in relation to work in and outside home.
Despite the increasing number of women in the labor force, women are still responsible
for the majority of domestic chores and childcare. While women split their time between
work and care of the home, men in many societies are pressured into being the primary
economic supporter of the home. Despite the fact that different households may divide
chores more evenly, there is evidence supporting the fact that women have retained the
primary caregiver role within familial life despite contributing economically to the
household. This evidence suggest that women who work outside the home often put an
extra 18 hours a week doing household or childcare related chores as opposed to men
who average 12 minutes a day in childcare activities.

Challenges to Gender Equality

Violence against women

Violence against women is a technical term used to collectively refer to violent acts that
are primarily or exclusively committed against women.[xiii] This type of violence is
gender-based, meaning that the acts of violence are committed against women expressly
because they are women, or as a result of patriarchal gender constructs.[xiv] Violence and
mistreatment of women in marriage has come to international attention during the past
decades. This includes both violence committed inside marriage (domestic violence) as
well as violence related to marriage customs and traditions (such as dowry, bride price,
forced marriage and child marriage).

According to some theories, violence against women is often caused by the acceptance of
violence by various cultural groups as a means of conflict resolution within intimate
relationships. Studies on Intimate partner violence victimization among ethnic minorities
in the United Studies have consistently revealed that immigrants are a high-risk group for
intimate violence.[43][44]

In countries where gang murders, armed kidnappings, civil unrest, and other similar acts
are rare, the vast majority of murdered women are killed by partners/ex-partners.[xv] By
contrast, in countries with a high level of organized criminal activity and gang violence,
murders of women are more likely to occur in a public sphere, often in a general climate
of indifference and impunity.[45] In addition, many countries do not have adequate
comprehensive data collection on such murders, aggravating the problem.[45]

In some parts of the world, various forms of violence against women are tolerated and
accepted as parts of everyday life.[xvi]

In most countries, it is only in more recent decades that domestic violence against women
has received significant legal attention. The Istanbul Convention acknowledges the long
tradition of European countries of ignoring this form of violence.[xvii][xviii]

In some cultures, acts of violence against women are seen as crimes against the male
'owners' of the woman, such as husband, father or male relatives, rather the woman
herself. This leads to practices where men inflict violence upon women in order to get
revenge on male members of the women's family.[46] Such practices include payback
rape, a form of rape specific to certain cultures, particularly the Pacific Islands, which
consists of the rape of a female, usually by a group of several males, as revenge for acts
committed by members of her family, such as her father or brothers, with the rape being
meant to humiliate the father or brothers, as punishment for their prior behavior towards
the perpetrators.[47]

Richard A. Posner writes that "Traditionally, rape was the offense of depriving a father or
husband of a valuable asset — his wife's chastity or his daughter's virginity".[48]
Historically, rape was seen in many cultures (and is still seen today in some societies) as a
crime against the honor of the family, rather than against the self-determination of the
woman. As a result, victims of rape may face violence, in extreme cases even honor
killings, at the hands of their family members.[49][50] Catharine MacKinnon argues that
in male dominated societies, sexual intercourse is imposed on women in a coercive and
unequal way, creating a continuum of victimization, where women have few positive
sexual experiences.[xix] Socialization within rigid gender constructs often creates an
environment where sexual violence is common.[xx] One of the challenges of dealing with
sexual violence is that in many societies women are perceived as being readily available
for sex, and men are seen as entitled to their bodies, until and unless women object

Harmful Traditional Practices

"Harmful traditional practices" refer to forms of violence which are committed in certain
communities often enough to become cultural practice, and accepted for that reason.
Young women are the main victims of such acts, although men can be affected.[66] They
occur in an environment where women and girls have unequal rights and opportunities.
[67] These practices include, according to the Office of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Human Rights:[67]

female genital mutilation (FGM); forced feeding of women; early

marriage; the various taboos or practices which prevent women from
controlling their own fertility; nutritional taboos and traditional birth
practices; son preference and its implications for the status of the girl
child; female infanticide; early pregnancy; and dowry price

Son preference refers to a cultural preference for sons over daughters, and manifests itself
through practices such as sex selective abortion; female infanticide; or abandonment,
neglect or abuse of girl-children.[67]

Abuses regarding nutrition are taboos in regard to certain foods, which result in poor
nutrition of women, and may endanger their health, especially if pregnant.[67]

The caste system in India which leads to untouchability (the practice of ostracizing a
group by segregating them from the mainstream society) often interacts with gender
discrimination, leading to a double discrimination faced by Dalit women.[68] In a 2014
survey, 27% of Indians admitted to practicing untouchability.[69]

Traditional customs regarding birth sometimes endanger the mothers. Births in parts of
Africa are often attended by traditional birth attendants (TBAs), who sometimes perform
rituals that are dangerous to the health of the mother. In many societies, a difficult labour
is believed to be a divine punishment for marital infidelity, and such women face abuse
and are pressured to "confess" to the infidelity.[67]

Tribal traditions can be harmful to males; for instance, the Satere-Mawe tribe use bullet
ants as an initiation rite. Men must wear gloves with hundreds of bullet ants woven in for
ten minutes: the ants' stings cause severe pain and paralysis. This experience must be
completed twenty times for boys to be considered "warriors".[70]

Other harmful traditional practices include marriage by abduction, ritualized sexual

slavery (Devadasi, Trokosi), breast ironing and widow inheritance.[71][72][73][74]

Forced Marriage

Early marriage, child marriage or forced marriage is prevalent in parts of Asia and Africa.
The majority of victims seeking advice are female and aged between 18 and 23.[66] Such
marriages can have harmful effects on a girl's education and development, and may
expose girls to social isolation or abuse.[67][77][78]

The 2013 UN Resolution on Child, Early and Forced Marriage calls for an end to the
practice, and states that "Recognizing that child, early and forced marriage is a harmful
practice that violates abuses, or impairs human rights and is linked to and perpetuates
other harmful practices and human rights violations, that these violations have a
disproportionately negative impact on women and girls [...]".[79] Despite a near-
universal commitment by governments to end child marriage, "one in three girls in
developing countries (excluding China) will probably be married before they are 18."[80]
UNFPA states that, "over 67 million women 20–24 year old in 2010 had been married as
girls. Half were in Asia, one-fifth in Africa. In the next decade 14.2 million girls under 18
will be married every year; this translates into 39,000 girls married each day. This will
rise to an average of 15.1 million girls a year, starting in 2021 until 2030, if present trends
continue."[80]

Bride Price/Dowry

Bride price (also called bridewealth or bride token) is money, property, or other form of
wealth paid by a groom or his family to the parents of the bride. This custom often leads
to women having reduced ability to control their fertility. For instance, in northern Ghana,
the payment of bride price signifies a woman's requirement to bear children, and women
using birth control face threats, violence and reprisals.[81] The custom of bride price has
been criticized as contributing to the mistreatment of women in marriage, and preventing
them from leaving abusive marriages. UN Women recommended its abolition, and stated
that: "Legislation should [...] State that divorce shall not be contingent upon the return of
bride price but such provisions shall not be interpreted to limit women’s right to divorce;
State that a perpetrator of domestic violence, including marital rape, cannot use the fact
that he paid bride price as a defence to a domestic violence charge."[46]
The custom of bride price can also curtail the free movement of women: if a wife wants
to leave her husband, he may demand back the bride price that he had paid to the
woman's family; and the woman's family often cannot or does not want to pay it back,
making it difficult for women to move out of violent husbands' homes.[82][83][84]

The Opportunity

Investing in gender equality and women’s empowerment can unlock human potential on a
transformational scale.

Women account for one-half of the potential human capital in any economy. More than
half a billion women have joined the world’s work force over the past 30 years, and they
make up 40 percent of the agriculture labor force. According to the World Bank, countries
with greater gender equality are more prosperous and competitive.

An extra year of secondary school for girls can increase their future earnings by 10-20
percent. Girls with secondary schooling are up to 6 times less likely to marry as children
than those with little or no education. And countries that invest in girls’ education have
lower maternal and infant deaths, lower rates of HIV and AIDS, and better child nutrition.

When women participate in civil society and politics, governments are more open,
democratic and responsive to citizens. When women are at the negotiating table, peace
agreements are more inclusive and durable. And simply by empowering women farmers
with the same access to land, new technologies and capital as men, we can increase crop
yields by as much as 30 percent helping to feed a growing population.