Person:
Solotaroff, Jennifer Lynn

Social Development, South Asia, The World Bank
Profile Picture
Author Name Variants
Solotaroff, Jennifer Lynn, Solotaroff, Jennifer L., Solotaroff, J.L.
Fields of Specialization
Gender, Social inclusion, South Asia, China
Degrees
ORCID
0000-0003-1578-6301
Departments
Social Development, South Asia, The World Bank
Externally Hosted Work
Contact Information
Last updated:January 31, 2023
Biography
Jennifer Lynn Solotaroff recently moved to the Gender Group of the World Bank. Before that, she worked for 14 years in the World Bank South Asia Region’s Social Development Unit, where she led programs and analytical tasks related to gender and social inclusion, women’s economic empowerment, and microenterprise in South Asian countries, with particular attention to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Most recently, she led the South Asia Gender Innovation Lab; the South Asia Regional Trade Facilitation Program Gender Platform; the Sri Lanka/Maldives Gender, Citizen Engagement, and Poverty Platform; and the South Asia Regional Gender Action Plan FY16-21. She is the lead author of the book, Violence against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia (2014) and the forthcoming Getting to Work: Unlocking Women’s Potential in Sri Lanka’s Labor Force. Her research interests include gender and labor markets, gender-based violence, and social stratification in South Asia and East Asia. Jennifer has a PhD in sociology, MA in economics, and MA in East Asia studies. She completed her BA at Oberlin College in Ohio.

Filters

2020 - 202612000 - 20193
Browse document type tree
Reset filters

Settings

Statistics
Citations

Publication Search Results

Now showing1 - 4 of 4
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Getting to Work: Unlocking Women's Potential in Sri Lanka's Labor Force
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2020-03-02) Sethi, Jayati; Solotaroff, Jennifer L.; Joseph, George; Kuriakose, Anne
    Sri Lanka has shown remarkable persistence in low female labor force participation rates—at 36 percent in the past two years, compared with 75 percent for same-aged men—despite overall economic growth and poverty reduction over the past decade. The trend stands in contrast to the country’s achievements in human capital development that favor women, such as high levels of female education and low total fertility rates, as well as its status as a lower-middle-income country. This study intends to better understand the puzzle of women’s poor labor market outcomes in Sri Lanka. Using nationally representative secondary survey data—as well as primary qualitative and quantitative research—it tests three hypotheses that would explain gender gaps in labor market outcomes: (1) household roles and responsibilities, which fall disproportionately on women, and the associated sociophysical constraints on women’s mobility; (2) a human capital mismatch, whereby women are not acquiring the proper skills demanded by job markets; and (3) gender discrimination in job search, hiring, and promotion processes. Further, the analysis provides a comparison of women’s experience of the labor market between the years leading up to the end of Sri Lanka’s civil war (2006–09) and the years following the civil war (2010–15). The study recommends priority areas for addressing the multiple supply- and demand-side factors to improve women’s labor force participation rates and reduce other gender gaps in labor market outcomes. It also offers specific recommendations for improving women’s participation in the five private sector industries covered by the primary research: commercial agriculture, garments, tourism, information and communications technology, and tea estate work. The findings are intended to influence policy makers, educators, and employment program practitioners with a stake in helping Sri Lanka achieve its vision of inclusive and sustainable job creation and economic growth. The study also aims to contribute to the work of research institutions and civil society in identifying the most effective means of engaging more women—and their untapped potential for labor, innovation, and productivity—in Sri Lanka’s future.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Voices to Choices: Bangladesh's Journey in Women's Economic Empowerment
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2019) Kotikula, Aphichoke; Solotaroff, Jennifer L.; Ali, Snigdha; Lonnberg, Tara; Jahan, Ferdous; Pande, Rohini P.
    This book analyzes advances in women's economic engagement and empowerment in rural and urban Bangladesh. It concludes that despite notable improvement, women's economic choices and control remain limited. Female labor force participation rose 10 percentage points between 2003 and 2016, and the gender wage gap shrank; societal attitudes toward women's land ownership are evolving; and women's financial inclusion and entrepreneurship rates are improving. Women's labor force participation still is less than half that of men, however. Women are confined to a narrower range of occupations—in mostly informal sector jobs—and are still less likely to own land than men. The financial gender gap remains stubbornly large. Women from ethnic and religious minorities face 'double' discrimination on several of these fronts. Stakeholders need to address foundational societal and market barriers, such as sexual and other forms of harassment, mobility constraints, high transactional costs, and lack of formal childcare, while developing accurate gender–disaggregated data to track progress. Despite achieving Millennium Development Goal Target 1 to halve poverty between 1990 and 2015, Bangladesh remains one of the world's poorer countries. Improvements in engaging and empowering women economically—particularly disadvantaged women—is a clear next step in growing the Bangladeshi economy and maintaining progress in poverty reduction and inclusive development. This book provides recommendations and good practices on how to do so.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Underreporting of Gender-Based Violence in Kerala, India: An Application of the List Randomization Method
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017-04) Javaid, Syed Usman; Joseph, George; Chellaraj, Gnanaraj; Andres, Luis Alberto; Rajan, S. Irudaya; Solotaroff, Jennifer L.
    This paper analyzes the incidence and extent to which domestic violence and physical harassment on public/private buses is underreported in Kerala, India, using the list randomization technique. The results indicate that the level of underreporting is over nine percentage points for domestic violence and negligible for physical harassment on public/private buses. Urban households, especially poor urban households, tend to have higher levels of incidence of domestic violence. Further, women and those who are professionally educated tend to underreport more than others. Underreporting is also higher among the youngest and oldest age cohorts. For physical harassment on public/private buses, rural population -- especially the rural non --poor and urban females—tend to underreport compared with the rural poor and urban males.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Violence against Women and Girls : Lessons from South Asia
    (World Bank Group, Washington, DC, 2014-09-16) Solotaroff, Jennifer L.; Pande, Rohini Prabha
    This report documents the dynamics of violence against women in South Asia across the life cycle, from early childhood to old age. It explores the different types of violence that women may face throughout their lives, as well as the associated perpetrators (male and female), risk and protective factors for both victims and perpetrators, and interventions to address violence across all life cycle stages. The report also analyzes the societal factors that drive the primarily male — but also female — perpetrators to commit violence against women in the region. For each stage and type of violence, the report critically reviews existing research from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, supplemented by original analysis and select literature from outside the region. Policies and programs that address violence against women and girls are analyzed in order to highlight key actors and promising interventions. Finally, the report identifies critical gaps in research, program evaluations, and interventions in order to provide strategic recommendations for policy makers, civil society, and other stakeholders working to mitigate violence against women in South Asia.