Women, Business and the Law
10 items available
Permanent URI for this collection
Women, Business and the Law (WBL) is a World Bank Group project collecting unique data on the laws and regulations that restrict women's economic opportunities. By examining the economic decisions women make as they go through different stages of their working lives, WBL informs research and policy discussions about the state of women’s economic empowerment. It celebrates the progress made while emphasizing the work still to be done to ensure economic empowerment for all.
10 results
Filters
Reset filtersSettings
Citations
Statistics
Items in this collection
Now showing
1 - 10 of 10
-
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2023
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-02) World Bank“Women, Business and the Law 2023” is the ninth in a series of annual studies measuring the laws and regulations that affect women’s economic opportunity in 190 economies. The project presents eight indicators structured around women’s interactions with the law as they move through their lives and careers: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension. The 2023 edition identifies barriers to women’s economic participation and encourages reform of discriminatory laws. This year, the study also includes research, a literature review, and analysis of 53 years of reforms for women’s rights. Examining the economic decisions that women make throughout their working lives as well as tracking regulatory changes from 1970 to today, the study makes an important contribution to research and policy discussions about the state of women’s economic opportunities. By presenting powerful examples of change and highlighting the gaps still remaining, “Women, Business and the Law 2023” is a vital tool in ensuring economic empowerment for all. Data in “Women, Business and the Law 2023” are current as of October 1, 2022. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2022
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-03-01) World BankWomen, Business and the Law 2022 is the eighth in a series of annual studies measuring the laws and regulations that affect women's economic opportunity in 190 economies. The project presents eight indicators structured around women's interactions with the law as they move through their careers: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension. Amid a global pandemic that threatens progress toward gender equality, 'Women, Business and the Law 2022' identifies barriers to women's economic participation and encourages reform of discriminatory laws. This year, the study also includes pilot research related to childcare and implementation of the law. By examining the economic decisions women make throughout their working lives, as well as the pace of reform over the past 50 years, Women, Business and the Law makes an important contribution to research and policy discussions about the state of women's economic empowerment. The indicators build evidence of the critical relationship between legal gender equality and women's employment and entrepreneurship. Data in 'Women, Business and the Law 2022' are current as of October 1, 2021. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2021
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2021-02-23) World BankWomen, Business and the Law 2021 is the seventh in a series of annual studies measuring the laws and regulations that affect women’s economic opportunity in 190 economies. The project presents eight indicators structured around women’s interactions with the law as they move through their lives and careers: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension. This year’s report updates all indicators as of October 1, 2020 and builds evidence of the links between legal gender equality and women’s economic inclusion. By examining the economic decisions women make throughout their working lives, as well as the pace of reform over the past 50 years, Women, Business and the Law 2021 makes an important contribution to research and policy discussions about the state of women’s economic empowerment. Prepared during a global pandemic that threatens progress toward gender equality, findings on government responses to COVID-19 and pilot research related to childcare and women’s access to justice. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2020
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2020-01-14) World BankWomen, Business and the Law 2020, the sixth edition in a series, analyzes laws and regulations affecting women’s economic inclusion in 190 economies. The Women, Business and the Law Index, composed by eight indicators structured around women’s interactions with the law as they begin, progress through and end their careers, aligns different areas of the law with the economic decisions women make at various stages of their lives. The indicators are: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension. The report updates all indicators as of September 1, 2019, and builds evidence around the linkages between legal gender equality and women’s economic inclusion. By examining the economic decisions women make as they go through different stages of their working lives and the pace of reforms over the past 2 years, Women, Business and the Law makes an important contribution to research and policy discussions about the state of women’s economic opportunities and empowerment. While celebrating the progress made, the data and analysis emphasize the work still to be done to ensure economic empowerment for all. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2019: A Decade of Reform
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-02-27) World Bank GroupThe World Bank Group’s Women, Business and the Law examines laws and regulations affecting women’s prospects as entrepreneurs and employees across 187 economies. Its goal is to inform policy discussions on how to remove legal restrictions on women and promote research on how to improve women’s economic inclusion. Women, Business and the Law 2019: A Decade of Reform introduces a new index measuring legal rights for women throughout their working lives in 187 economies. The index is composed of 35 data points grouped into eight indicators. The data covers a 10-year period not only to understand the current situation but to see how laws affecting women’s equality of opportunity have evolved over time. The index assesses economic rights at milestones spanning the arc of a woman’s working life: the ability to move freely; starting a job; getting paid; legal capacity within marriage; having children; running a business; managing assets; and getting a pension. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2018
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2018-03-29) World Bank GroupHow can governments ensure that women have the same employment and entrepreneurship opportunities as men? One important step is to level the legal playing field so that the rules for operating in the worlds of work and business apply equally regardless of gender. Women, Business and the Law 2018, the fifth edition in a series, examines laws affecting women’s economic inclusion in 189 economies worldwide. It tracks progress that has been made over the past two years while identifying opportunities for reform to ensure economic empowerment for all. The report updates all indicators as of June 1, 2017 and explores new areas of research, including financial inclusion. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2016: Getting to Equal
(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2015-09-09) World Bank GroupBy measuring where the law treats men and women differently, this book shines a light on how women's incentives or capacity to work are affected by the legal environment and provides a basis for improving regulation. The fourth edition in a series, this book examines laws and regulations affecting women’s prospects as entrepreneurs and employees in 173 economies, across seven areas: accessing institutions, using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, building credit, going to court, and protecting women from violence. The report's quantitative indicators are intended to inform research and policy discussions on how to improve women's economic opportunities and outcomes. -
Publication
Women, Business, and the Law 2014 : Removing Restrictions to Enhance Gender Equality
(London: Bloomsbury, 2013) World Bank ; International Finance CorporationIn the past 50 years women's legal status has improved all over the world. But many laws still make it difficult for women to fully participate in economic life whether by getting jobs or starting businesses. Discriminatory rules bar women from certain jobs, restrict access to capital for women-owned firms and limit women's capacity to make legal decisions. Gender differences in laws affect both developing and developed economies, and women in all regions. Women, business, and the law measures restrictions on women s employment and entrepreneurship as well as incentives for women s employment in 143 economies. Women, business, and the law and the World Bank's global financial inclusion global findings database show that in economies with a default full community of property regime, there are on average 10 percentage points more female owned accounts at formal financial institutions than in economies with a default separation of property regime. This report has shown that although much progress has been made in recent decades in gradually dismantling many of the legal restrictions which have hampered women from more fully contributing to national prosperity, there is a large unfinished agenda of reform. Gender equality is important not only for fairness and equity, but also for economic efficiency and is at the center of creating a more prosperous world. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2012: Removing Barriers to Economic Inclusion
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2011) World Bank ; International Finance CorporationWomen, business and the law focuses on this critical piece of the puzzle, objectively highlighting differentiations on the basis of gender in 141 economies around the world, covering six areas: accessing institutions, using property, getting a job, providing incentives to work, building credit and going to court. Women, business and the law describes regional trends and shows how economies are changing across these six areas, tracking governments' actions to expand economic opportunities for women. For men and women throughout the developing world, the chance to start and run a business or get a good job is the surest hope for a way out of poverty. It also requires good business regulation, suited to the purpose, streamlined and accessible, so that the opportunity to build a business or have a good job is dependent not on connections, wealth or power, but on an individual's initiative and ability. The doing business report has led the way in providing data to countries about creating a sounder and more streamlined business environment. Women, Business, and the Law 2012 are the second in this series of reports. This edition retains the same basic structure of the 2010 pilot edition, while significantly expanding the depth of data covered. While the number of topics covered is the same, there has been a significant expansion of the data collected within these topics, thus addressing some of the initial shortcomings of the pilot edition. The number of economies covered has also been expanded from 128 to 141. -
Publication
Women, Business and the Law 2010 : Measuring Legal Gender Parity for Entrepreneurs and Workers in 128 Economies
(Washington, DC, 2010) World BankThis report presents indicators based on laws and regulations affecting women's prospects as entrepreneurs and employees. Several of these indicators draw on the Gender Law Library, a collection of over 2,000 legal provisions impacting women's economic status. Both resources can inform research and policy discussions on how to improve women's economic opportunities and outcomes. The six indicators of gender differences in formal laws and institutions established in this report include: 1) accessing institutions, 2 ) using prpoerty, 3) getting a job, 4) dealing with taxes, 5) building credit, and 6) going to court. The first 3 indicators (accessing institutions, using property, and getting a job) capture laws that have direct gender dimensions and are based on a reading of such laws from the perspective of individual women. The 4th indicator (dealing with taxes) examines the direct and indirect gender implications of tax policy from the perspective of 4 standardized families with varying tax liabilities. The last 2 indicators (building credit and going to court) examine the ease of access to credit bureaus and courts to examine the indirect effects that microfinance institutions and dispute resolution have on women, who are more likely to rely on nontraditional financial services.