Missing links between gender, Missing links between gender, economy and statisticseconomy and statistics

Ewa Ruminska-Zimny, UNECE

Conference of European Statisticians

Group of Experts on Gender Statistics

Geneva, 11-13 September 2006

Gender equality as an economic Gender equality as an economic issueissue

Feminist economists: taking the lead and providing a framework

Catching-up by “hard core” economists: women’s employment as an engine of GDP growth - The Economist April 2006)

Private sector interest - Davos Forum (links GDP and gender equality)

Policy issues: male breadwinner bias; double earner/ double burden family model

Why?Why?

Pressure of globalization for diversity, flexibility and best use of resources

Ageing and lower fertility: worries of A. Merkel and V. Putin

More competitive while maintaining social coherence (Lisbon Strategy)

Loss of women’s economic potential in EE and especially CIS (lower participation, moving to lower paid jobs)

How to engender economic policy-How to engender economic policy-making?making?

More awareness of economic ministries that gender equality pays off

Arguments/evidence: key role of data and gender analysis

Concepts and tools in various policy areas (e.g. budgetary and SME policies)

Political support and mechanisms to include gender into economic strategies

Nordic countries the most competitive and most equal: is there a link?

Measuring women’s contribution Measuring women’s contribution to competitiveness and growthto competitiveness and growth

Unpaid work - a key issue Paid work: contribution to quantitative (e.g.

participation rates) and qualitative growth factors (e.g. education and skills, incl. life-long learning)

But also measuring optimal use of women’s economic potential (management jobs; entrepreneurship but also value of diversity, flexibility etc)

Gaps and challenges for data Gaps and challenges for data producersproducers

Engendering macro-economic data (public expenditure and budgetary data)

Social security statistics (sex disaggregated data of beneficiaries of parental leaves, costs of child care services, care services for elderly, pensions)

Improvement in employment data (wages, informal sector, self-employment, part-time)

Economic decision making (public administration, banks and financial sector, top/senior management companies, economic think-tanks/research)

Specific challenges for Central Specific challenges for Central Asia, south Caucasus & other CISAsia, south Caucasus & other CIS

Poverty and women’s incomes (wages from formal, informal, and self-employment plus social transfers)

Situation of rural women and regional differences Gender analysis of public expenditure and budgets ICT and new opportunities - is there a gender

bias?

ECE as a platform for raising ECE as a platform for raising awareness of economic policy awareness of economic policy

makers makers Beijing +10 review and recommendations New sub-programme on promoting countries’

competitiveness and innovation SPECA and WG on Gender and Economy for

Central Asia and South Caucasus New DA project on region specific MDGs

indicators

DA Project on region-specific MDG DA Project on region-specific MDG indicatorsindicators

Project objective: strengthening social inclusion, gender equality and health promotion

Expected output: identification of additional MDG targets and indicators adopted by for policy-makers; MDG knowledge-hub

Focus: economic aspects of gender equality in Central Asia and South Caucasus

ConclusionsConclusions

Data which “fit” the demand of policy makers is a key to have an impact on economic policy

Knowledge of gender aspects of economic policies is essential (part of training programs)

As well as knowledge of priority issues and agenda at regional/national levels is necessary for data improvement

ECE is a “natural” platform to strengthen the links between gender, economy and statistics at regional and sub-regional levels

Thank you!Thank you!

Ewa Ruminska-ZimnyUNECE Gender Focal Point

Office of the Executive Secretary

E-mail: Ewa.Zimny@unece.orgWeb: http://www.unece.org/oes/gender/Welcome.html