Publication: Women's Role in Afghanistan's Future : Taking Stock of Achievements and Continued Challenges
Loading...
Published
2014-03-27
ISSN
Date
2014-06-12
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
This report assesses the overall situation of women in Afghanistan across key sectors, acting as a follow-up to the report published by the World Bank in 2005 entitled, Afghanistan: National Reconstruction and Poverty Reduction-Role of Women in Afghanistan's Future. What can be seen from the sectoral chapters (namely in health, education, work and employment, and legal rights and voice) included in this report is that, in sectors where concerted and coordinated efforts have been made among a collection of key actors (including the Government of Afghanistan, the donor community, NGOs and civil society, significant improvements have been achieved. Where well-planned systems have been designed and consensus has been garnered for the support of these systems, services are indeed reaching more women and girls, and communities are becoming more accepting of these services. What is also shown in the report is the innovative function that NGOs and civil society actors have played in some of the sectors discussed, developing new mechanisms to include and reach women. The report also highlights areas in which significant improvement has been lacking, and a systematic approach to addressing some issues is still missing. The prevailing lack of reliable data makes understanding the issues faced by women in these sectors challenging. Each chapter in the report concludes by distilling key recommendations for the future, whether based on successes to date, or based on a lack of progress and critical gaps in specific areas. While specific issues can be identified as critical within each of the above sectors, what is also notable is that some issues cut across all sectors as prevailing barriers for women. One of these consistent themes is that the lack of female professionals in key areas poses a barrier to other women and girls accessing these services. Another cross-cutting impediment for women is insecurity, or the perception of insecurity. In each chapter, issues of regional inequality and disparity between rural and urban areas can be seen across key indicators. In addition, barriers such as a lack of mobility, limited transportation options, inadequate infrastructure that omits women-friendly features, and the prevalence of early marriage, tend to be repetitive cross-cutting barriers. Finally, the report concludes framed through the lens of the upcoming transition years in Afghanistan, when the Government of Afghanistan will take over more and more direct management of services and security.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“World Bank. 2014. Women's Role in Afghanistan's Future : Taking Stock of Achievements and Continued Challenges. © http://hdl.handle.net/10986/18661 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Digital Object Identifier
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Strategic Gender Assessment of Mali(World Bank, Bamako, 2006-02)This issues paper discusses a gender assessment exercise carried out in April-June 2005. It provides the government of Mali and its partners with proposals aimed at improving policies and activities that promote gender equity and equality (GEE). The study is divided into four sections: Section 1 presents the national context within which the study falls; Section 2 deals with the gender profile in Mali; Section 3 addresses the institutional framework for gender implementation in Mali; and Section 4 gives the conclusions and recommendations of the study. Based on the findings of the study, advocacy will be carried out among decision-makers to inform them about gender-specific developmental challenges, and encourage them to give concrete support to gender mainstreaming.Publication FYR Macedonia Gender Diagnostic : Gaps in Endowments, Access to Economic Opportunities and Agency(Washington, DC, 2013-01)Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia has closed several gaps in gender inequalities, particularly in education and health, but key disparities persist in access to economic opportunities and agency, particularly among certain ethnic groups. This report provides an overview of gender disparities in several outcomes related to human and physical endowments, access to economic opportunities, and agency. In addition, it offers potential explanations of these gaps and, in the process, identifies knowledge gaps to be addressed in future research. On average, FYR Macedonia has achieved gender equality in health and in education; however, gender disparities persist for certain population subgroups. However, women are more likely than men to choose general programs or social sciences as their primary field of education. Both men and women are unlikely to undertake additional training following their initial education, but each for different reasons: women are more likely than men to cite family obligations as a key factor in this decision (19 percent of women compared to 1.5 percent of men) as women devote a much larger percentage of their time to domestic activities. In addition, only a limited number of children enroll in pre-school. Female labor force participation is low, particularly among women who have received only a primary education or less. Although female-managed businesses are as productive as male-managed businesses, few women are entrepreneurs. Women's participation in collective actions is limited, and gender stereotypes remain pervasive. Looking forward, further efforts to increase women's access to economic opportunities in FYR Macedonia are needed. Policies aimed at fostering the competitiveness of the private sector for job creation is a key for addressing the high unemployment rates faced by both men and women. In the case of FYR Macedonia, policies can also increase female labor force participation by affecting the potential wages or the reservation wages of less skilled women.Publication Belarus : Country Gender Profile(Washington, DC, 2014-03-03)Belarus demonstrated strong economic growth 2000-2008 and this translated into fast poverty reduction. Belarus invested a lot in the human capital of its population both in men and women. This assessment identifies and describes main gender disparities in Belarus in agency, education, health, and access to economic opportunities. The report builds on the framework of the World Bank's regional gender report, Europe and Central Asia: opportunities for men and women, as well as the World development report on gender and development. The assessment takes a quantitative approach using a wide range of different international data sources including World Bank's world development indicators, the global financial inclusion database, the life in transition survey, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)-World Bank business environment and enterprise performance survey as well as local household living standards survey. The report is organized as follows: section one discusses agency and describes factors which may shape the process how men and women use their endowments and utilize economic opportunities to achieve desired outcomes. The second section analyzes gender disparities in endowments, such as health and education. The third section focuses on gender gaps in the labor market, entrepreneurship and earnings, access to finance and poverty. The fourth section presents conclusions and policy recommendations.Publication Making Everyone Count(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2011-11)The Philippines has made significant progress in empowering women and in advancing gender equality. The government's policy on gender equality and women's empowerment has prioritized women's economic empowerment, advancing human rights and enhancing gender-responsive local governance. All these priority concerns are integral components of poverty reduction programs in the Philippines. The Philippines has made significant progress in empowering women and in advancing gender equality. Since the government introduced a constitution in 1987 affirming the equality of women, it has pursued a number of initiatives to mainstream gender concerns in national policies and programs. A development plan for women was launched in 1987, followed by a plan for gender-responsive development, 1995-2025, coordinated by the National Commission on the Role of Filipino women. In 2004, the commission drafted a framework plan for women that identify three priority concerns to meet the objectives of gender equality and women's empowerment: economic empowerment of women, protection and fulfillment of women's human rights, and gender-responsive governance. Projects that support these priorities will facilitate more equitable development across the Philippines, including supporting the full participation of women in political processes and governance in the international and national local level, strengthening gender-sensitive and inclusive programs and mechanisms with civil society, and increasing women's access to economic resources such as capital, technology, information, markets, and training.Publication Equality for Women : Where Do We Stand on Millennium Development Goal 3?(Washington, DC : World Bank, 2008)There is compelling evidence of the importance of gender equality for poverty reduction and sustainable growth. So it should come as no surprise that most development actors-international agencies, bilateral donors, and most developing countries, have an official policy for promoting gender equality. Millennium Development Goal 3 (MDG3) on gender equality and women's empowerment is shared global commitment. With only seven years remaining until the end date for the MDGs, it is an opportune time to take stock of where the world stands in terms of progress toward gender equality. This volume documents trends both on the official MDG3 indicators and on an expanded set of indicators that provide a more complete measure of gender equality, especially in the area of women's economic empowerment. The message that emerges is both hopeful and sobering: progress toward equality in capabilities has been considerable, but progress toward equality of opportunities for women's economic livelihoods leaves much to be desired. Beyond tracking trends toward gender equality, the volume reviews different measures of gender equality and estimates the financial resources required to achieve this objective. While necessarily imprecise, such estimates can provide a rough guide as to whether the level of effort devoted by international donors and developing countries is adequate in the area of women's economic empowerment.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Direct and Indirect Impacts of Transport Mobility on Access to Jobs: Evidence from South Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-12)Access to jobs is essential for economic growth. In Africa, unemployment rates are notably high. This paper reexamines the relationship between transport mobility and labor market outcomes, with a particular focus on the direct and indirect effects of transport connectivity. As predicted by theory, wages are influenced by the level of commuting deterrence. Generally, higher earnings are associated with longer commute times and/or higher commuting costs. Local accessibility is also important, especially for individuals with time constraints. Both direct and indirect impacts are found to be significant in South Africa, where job accessibility has been challenging since the end of apartheid. For the direct impact, the wage elasticity associated with commuting costs is significant. Returns on commute are particularly high for women. Local accessibility to socioeconomic facilities, such as shops and health services, is also found to have a significant impact, consistent with the concept of mobility of care. To enhance employment, therefore, it is crucial to connect people not only to job locations but also to various socioeconomic points of interest, such as markets and hospitals, in an integrated manner. This integration will enable individuals to spend more time working and commuting longer distances.Publication Kyrgyz Republic Country Climate and Development Report(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-03)This Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) on the Kyrgyz Republic aims to support the country’s development goals amid a changing climate. The CCDR considers two policy scenarios up to 2050: the business-as-usual (BAU) and high-growth scenarios. As it quantifies the likely impacts of climate change on the Kyrgyz economy between now and 2050, the report highlights key government actions to best prepare for and adapt to climate impacts (referred to as “with adaptation” measures), with a particular focus on the time horizon up to 2030. The CCDR also outlines a path to net zero emissions by 2050 (referred to as “with mitigation” measures, “decarbonization,” or, simply, “net zero 2050”), highlighting associated development co-benefits.Publication Digital Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-03-13)All African countries need better and more jobs for their growing populations. "Digital Africa: Technological Transformation for Jobs" shows that broader use of productivity-enhancing, digital technologies by enterprises and households is imperative to generate such jobs, including for lower-skilled people. At the same time, it can support not only countries’ short-term objective of postpandemic economic recovery but also their vision of economic transformation with more inclusive growth. These outcomes are not automatic, however. Mobile internet availability has increased throughout the continent in recent years, but Africa’s uptake gap is the highest in the world. Areas with at least 3G mobile internet service now cover 84 percent of Africa’s population, but only 22 percent uses such services. And the average African business lags in the use of smartphones and computers as well as more sophisticated digital technologies that catalyze further productivity gains. Two issues explain the usage gap: affordability of these new technologies and willingness to use them. For the 40 percent of Africans below the extreme poverty line, mobile data plans alone would cost one-third of their incomes—in addition to the price of access devices, apps, and electricity. Data plans for small- and medium-size businesses are also more expensive than in other regions. Moreover, shortcomings in the quality of internet services—and in the supply of attractive, skills-appropriate apps that promote entrepreneurship and raise earnings—dampen people’s willingness to use them. For those countries already using these technologies, the development payoffs are significant. New empirical studies for this report add to the rapidly growing evidence that mobile internet availability directly raises enterprise productivity, increases jobs, and reduces poverty throughout Africa. To realize these and other benefits more widely, Africa’s countries must implement complementary and mutually reinforcing policies to strengthen both consumers’ ability to pay and willingness to use digital technologies. These interventions must prioritize productive use to generate large numbers of inclusive jobs in a region poised to benefit from a massive, youthful workforce—one projected to become the world’s largest by the end of this century.Publication Taxes, Spending, and Equity: International Patterns and Lessons for Developing Countries(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-17)Taxes and public spending underpin the basic administration of government and finance the human capital and infrastructure investments needed for economic growth. They can also have a significant and immediate impact on poverty and inequality. The question of how public finance can support longer-term growth objectives while promoting equity has become even more important in recent years, given the high fiscal deficits and debt levels most countries emerged with in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. These included the increasing cost of debt and the need to restart environmentally sustainable growth while helping households address the learning losses and other social scars caused by the pandemic. This paper examines the global evidence on which households pay which taxes and who benefits from what spending, and critically, the net effect on different households across the income distribution. The aim is to identify the patterns and lessons that emerge for designing progressive fiscal policies. A global dataset of 96 countries is assembled, spanning all regions of the world and all national income levels, grounded in the Commitment to Equity (CEQ) approach to fiscal incidence.Publication Continental Drying: A Threat to Our Common Future(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2025-11-04)Grounded in new evidence from satellite data, “Continental Drying: A Threat to Our Common Future” presents the first global assessment of freshwater reserves over the past two decades. The findings expose an alarming trend of “continental drying,” a persistent long-term decline in freshwater availability across vast landmasses. Not only are droughts and deluges becoming more unpredictable, but the total amount of freshwater available for use has also significantly declined. Continental drying, driven by global warming, worsening droughts, and unsustainable water and land use, is a silent but accelerating crisis—largely unknown to the public—that reshapes the global water narrative. Continental drying raises profound risks. This report reveals new empirical evidence showing how freshwater depletion leads to major job losses, reduced incomes, wildfires, and biodiversity threats. In the long term, the combined effects of drying and warming could push societies toward a tipping point where damage accelerates rapidly and adaptation becomes increasingly difficult. Against the backdrop of continental drying, global water consumption rose by 25 percent between 2000 and 2019, with about a third of this increase occurring in regions already experiencing drying. Compounding the pressure, a substantial share of water use in drying regions remains inefficient. Continental Drying identifies hot spots where rising demand and declining supply converge and explores where and how water savings can be realized. This report recommends a three-pronged approach to address the crisis: managing demand, augmenting water supply, and improving water allocation. Five cross-cutting levers—strengthening institutions, reforming water tariffs and repurposing subsidies, adopting water accounting, leveraging data and technological innovations, and valuing water in trade—are essential for effective implementation and to attract private investment to finance the approach. Beyond water, addressing trade barriers, investing in education and skills development, and improving access to markets and financial services are critical for strengthening job and livelihood resilience amid a continental drying crisis.