Closing Gender Gaps in the Southern Cone: An Untapped Potential for Growth

Abstract

In this volume, we study gender gaps in the Southern Cone countries which include Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. We assess the importance of gender inequalities and present evidence on their economic consequences, their drivers, and the policy tools that can contribute to mitigating them. Gender gaps in access to public services, human capital accumulation, and the labor market limit overall productivity and economic growth, and policies that mitigate these inequalities have the potential to foster economic development and wellbeing. In our current context, a global pandemic has highlighted and even widened gender gaps, meaning policymakers are in urgent need of a new set of policies that can foster gender parity in the recovery phase. This volume is thus a timely compendium of solid evidence to design policies that can effectively tackle gender disparities in Southern Cone countries.

A gender-comparative study of informal entrepreneurship: the moderating role of location decision

“…The literature has left evidence of this behaviour in women micro-entrepreneurs, considering as a relevant factor the lack of education, access to resources and time available for their responsibilities at home (Sendra-Pons et al, 2021). Specifically, women triple the hours per week on domestic activities compared to men and are under-represented in formal employment (Inter-American Development Bank, 2022). In this research, we want to evaluate the gender difference in micro-enterprises, especially in those businesses in which the lack of resources (human and financial) leads their owners to improvise and be creative using public spaces where they offer their products and services (Mart ınez and Young, 2022).…”

“…Studies on informality in Latin America are very scarce, which makes this research relevant even more in times of COVID-19, when the gender gap has widened, with married women with children being the ones who have achieved greater prominence in the informal business sector (Inter-American Development Bank, 2022). Taking into account the indicator of discrimination against women in social institutions (Social Institutions and Gender Index -SIGI), it is found that in 2019 Colombia was the Latin American country with the lowest rate of discrimination, registered at 15%, followed by Brazil (21.2%) and Bolivia (21.4%); while the countries with the highest rate of discrimination against women were Mexico (29%), Paraguay (32.8%) and Chile (36.1%) (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2022).…”

“…Taking into account the indicator of discrimination against women in social institutions (Social Institutions and Gender Index -SIGI), it is found that in 2019 Colombia was the Latin American country with the lowest rate of discrimination, registered at 15%, followed by Brazil (21.2%) and Bolivia (21.4%); while the countries with the highest rate of discrimination against women were Mexico (29%), Paraguay (32.8%) and Chile (36.1%) (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development [OECD], 2022). Furthermore, the female employment rate in the Southern Cone countries is 49%, while the men's rate is 70% (Inter-American Development Bank, 2022). The second country with the highest rate of labour informality is Peru (52% of gross domestic product), showing, by 2020, 77.3% in women and 73.9% for men, despite maintaining a SIGI of 24.5% (Instituto Nacional de Estad ıstica e Inform atica [INEI], 2021c; Medina and Schneider, 2018).…”

Brecha de ingresos laborales por género en República Dominicana: Un análisis de la evolución en el período 2000 a 2019

“…La participación de las mujeres en el mercado laboral se ha incrementado en las últimas décadas, y con ello su visibilidad como protagonistas importantes de la economía. Sin embargo, aún existen desafíos y brechas a los que se enfrentan cuando allí compiten (Frisancho y Queijo, 2022). Por otro lado, la evidencia muestra que la crisis generada por el COVID 19 y sus efectos en el mercado laboral afectaron en mayor proporción a las mujeres en América Latina y el Caribe, profundizando aún más las brechas y revirtiendo los avances antes logrados (Bustelo, Suaya y Vezza, 2021).…”

Brecha de género en los ingresos laborales en Venezuela: un análisis de su evolución en el periodo 1993-2021

“…En los últimos años, América Latina y el Caribe (ALC) han experimentado cambios significativos en los roles tradicionalmente asignados a hombres y mujeres. Se ha observado un aumento en la representación política de las mujeres, así como un incremento en sus niveles de educación y participación en el mercado laboral (Frisancho y Queijo, 2022). A pesar de estos avances, persisten desafíos en lo que respecta a la inclusión laboral de las mujeres y sus oportunidades de desarrollo profesional 1 .…”