The Gender Gap in Turkey Meltem Kurtsan OECD Istanbul World Forum - Measuring and Fostering the Progress of Societies 28th June 2007

Global Gender Gap Index 2006  1. Sweden  2. Norway  3. Finland  4. Iceland  5. Germany  6. Philippines  7. New Zealand  8. Denmark  9. United Kingdom  10. Ireland  11. Spain  […]  97. Algeria  98. India  99. Mali  100. Ethiopia  101. United Arab Emirates  102. Bahrain  103. Cameroon  104. Burkina Faso  105. Turkey  […]

Turkey’ Gender Gap Indicator Spain Bulgaria Turkey  Female labour force participation 45 % 41 % 28 %  Legislators, senior officials, managers 30 % 30 % 6 %  Professional and technical workers 47 % 34 % 30 %  Enrolment – primary education 99 % 95 % 87 %  Enrolment – secondary education 99 % 87 % -  Enrolment – tertiary education 72 % 44 % 24 %  Women in parliament 36 % 22 % 4 %  Women in ministerial positions 50 % 24 % 4 %

WOMEN EMPLOYMENT RATE WORLDWIDE  Iceland 79,4  USA 65,4  Australia 62,6  Japan 57,4  South Korea 52,2  Mexico 41,3  Turkey 25,4 OECD Report(2005)

WOMEN IN LABOUR MARKET YEARTurkeyRuralUrban FemaleMaleFemaleMaleFemaleMale 2004* European Council in March 2000, Lizbon : Female employment rate target for 2010 : 60 % Recent figures on female employment : EU members (all) 54.9 % EU members the first 15 : 57.1 % * Turkey Labor Market Study, WB November 21, 2005

LABOUR MARKET TURKEY 2000 (thousands) 2005 ( thousands Change ( thousands) 15 + Female Population Male Population Female Labour Force Male Labour Force Female Employment Male Employment Unemployed Women Unemployed Men Women not participating in Labour Force Prof Dr Gülay Toksöz, Ankara University, Faculty of Political Sciences (2007)

EMPLOYMENT RATE BY EDUCATION LEVEL CountryYear Pre High School High SchoolHigher Education Italy Greece Spain Portugal Polond Hungary TURKEY

Obstacles for Entrepreneurship  Patriarchal society and traditional female-male roles  No access to equal education oppurtunities  Lack of experience in Labour Force  Few role models for woman entrepreneurship  Insufficient Capital (women’s share in real estates is 9 %)  Difficulties in getting credit  Unstable markets, politics and finance sector  Limited access to technology and qualified workers  Complexities in Tax Procedures  Insufficient official incentives  Limited networking, trade commissions and committies

About KAGIDER  KAGIDER was chartered in September 2002 as a non- profit and non-governmental organization, by 37 prominent Turkish female entrepreneurs. It has grown steadily over the past three years as other successful businesswomen have joined its ranks.  Today we have 200 members from various sectors, including textile, communication, human resources, tourism, chemicals, mining and health.

About KAGIDER  Vision  To create women entrepreneurs who are effective in shaping the business world of the future.   Mission  · To increase the number of women entrepreneurs who generate added value,  · To strengthen existing women entrepreneurs,  · To integrate Turkish women entrepreneurs to global community;  Thus to contribute to social and economic progress of Turkey.

Women Entrepreneurs Development Program  (Kagimer, Water Drop, Bridge For Women)  KAGIMER aims to support women candidates to start-up small enterprises. In addition to lobbying activities and organizing conferences and seminars, we have provided:  Entrepreneurship trainings to 1200 women  Mentoring support to 11 women  Incubation support to 5 women  Internship opportunities to 35 women

Women’s Fund  KAGİDER has established an endowment to financially support women’s NGO’s projects for economic, social and political empowerment of women. Women’s Fund supported 40 NGOs projects 

Women’s Way to Europe  This project has been developed to establish an international working group, learn from other member countries experiences, draw a roadmap towards gender equality in Turkey and ensure monitoring in the negotiation process. We organized an International Conference on the May 25th-26th, 2006 in Istanbul. 

KAGIDER LOBBYING ACTIVITIES  Today KAGIDER is the one of the strongest women NGOs in related to women.  KAGIDER puts great emphasis on lobbying activities; publishes statements, provides policy recommendations to the state, public and private institutions to make women’s voice heard, to foster gender equality and to better women’s status in general.  KAGIDER participates in international seminars and workshops and represents Turkish women and establishes and enlarges networks among women entrepreneurs

KAGIDER is a member of:  World Women Entrepreneurs Association (FCEM)  European Women Lobby (EWL)  Mediterranean Business Women Association (AFAEMME)  Balkan Regional Coalition of Women Business Associations