Reducing the Gender Gap in Muslim Societies: The Case of Pakistan Ana Komnenic, Anita Tavra, Eliana Chia Dr. Muhammad Iqbal The Maria-Helena Foundation

What is ‘equality’ ? Equal access to “opportunities that allow people to pursue a life of their own choosing and to avoid extreme deprivations in outcomes” (World Development Report, 2006)

It measures gaps not levels FemaleMale Country A) 20%40% Country B)40%80% Country C)20%20% Countries A and B both have a gap of 0.5 Country C has no gap

Why reduce the Gender Gap? It’s a basic human right Freedom from male control Better health care More participants in the economy = economic growth Improved work/life balance for both women and men

Global Gender Gap Report of the World Economic Forum (2010) Based on four pillars: –Economic attainment –Political participation –Health –Education

Examples of Sub-indices Bangladesh Pakistan

Rankings – some comparisons COUNTRY2010 RANK Norway2 Philippines9 Canada20 The Gambia*75 Bangladesh*82 Japan94 Saudi Arabia*129 Pakistan*132 Yemen*134 *Muslim majority countries

Gender Gap in Muslim Societies

The Muslim world

Why is the gender gap so high? o Culture o Religion o Structural and systemic barriers o Varying levels of socioeconomic development o Varying levels of democratization

Culture Combination of local pre-existing, pre- Islamic cultures Dictated by morals and values influenced by pre-existing practices and religion A foundation for the way of life: social, political, economic

Religion Interpretive nature – various manifestation of religiosity in secular and traditional states (Bosnia vs. Saudi Arabia) Used to support discriminatory attitudes and policies Absolutist values on social roles, sexuality, morality In some places, immune from public scrutiny and challenge

Structural/Systemic Traditional vs. secular governments Various types of governance Influence of clerics, religious/moral police Culture and religion serve as foundations upon which systemic structures are formed and upheld

Socioeconomic development Low literacy impacts women’s access to reproductive and general health Low literacy correlates with maternal and child health/mortality Rural areas: problems of infrastructure High fertility and poverty mean that families would prefer to send boys to school in many cases Families may be forbidden to or choose not to send their daughters to school

Democratization Laws and policies which support girls and women are not always enforced Example: Women in Saudi Arabia and Iran have high levels of literacy but very low work sector participation Example: Women in Saudi Arabia will be able to vote, but cannot drive or be alone without male supervision

What can governments do? Invest in schools, teachers, egalitarian curriculum development, and scholarships Expand access to public education by removing fees which many parents cannot afford Promote equality* Provide equal opportunities for men and women to be educated and to work together as equals to build a healthy society