Publication: Global Value Chains, Economic Upgrading, and Gender : Case Studies of the Horticulture, Tourism, and Call Center Industries
Loading...
Date
2013-01
ISSN
Published
2013-01
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
This document provides a gendered analysis of the horticulture, tourism, and call center global value chains (GVCs), based on a survey of the literature and case studies carried out in Honduras, Kenya, and the Arab Republic of Egypt. The studies focus on export sectors that have had high female employment and have been relatively underexplored from the angle of trade and gender research. The studies show that GVCs and their upgrading dynamics have important gender dimensions, and that integration and upgrading are influenced by, and have an impact on, gender relations. While the conditions and dynamics in the sectors in concern are very different, certain broad conclusions are drawn from the results of the studies. The first is that patterns of job segregation are observed in all case studies, with women being assigned to specific jobs, though the reasons for such segregation differ from sector to sector. The second conclusion is that women face gender-intensified constraints, though their extent and articulation may be quite different, depending on the value chain. The third is that constraints related to women's primary responsibility for reproductive work have been identified as important in all three studies. This social division of labor is deeply embedded in developed and developing countries, but poor infrastructure, particularly in rural areas, heightens this challenge for women in developing countries. This report also suggests appropriate interventions to improve the constraints faced by women.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Staritz, Cornelia; Reis, José Guilherme. Staritz, Cornelia; Reis, José Guilherme, editors. 2013. Global Value Chains, Economic Upgrading, and Gender : Case Studies of the Horticulture, Tourism, and Call Center Industries. © http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16976 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication Lao PDR - Mapping the Gender Dimensions of Trade : A Preliminary Exposition(Washington, DC, 2012-07)The Lao Government has also made important commitments to gender equality in both its national socio-economic development planning and in a number of international agreements. Through mapping the gender dimensions of trade in Lao PDR, this report aims to draw out key inter-linkages between a more open trade policy and gender. Recent export performance in Lao has been strong and mostly driven by hydro-electricity and minerals, which constituted more than half of all exports in 2010 and are predicted to grow even more in the next few years. To better understand the interaction between gender and trade policy, this paper presents a gender mapping exercise for export development in Lao PDR and in this regard presents simple recommendations on how to undertake this type of exercise. The paper is split in two parts: the first sketches out a simple methodological framework that can be used by researchers to do an initial mapping of the inter-relationships between export promotion/trade policy and gender. The second part of the paper is aimed primarily at policy makers. It uses the framework to provide a diagnostic which examines: 1) sectors in Lao with potential for export expansion that could benefit women; 2) gender-based constraints in these sectors which limit their expansion through trade; and 3) potential impacts for women, both positive and negative, from an increase in Lao's natural resource exports.Publication Gender and Economic Growth in Kenya : Unleashing the Power of Women(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007)This report examines the legal, administrative, and regulatory barriers that are preventing women in Kenya from contributing fully to the Kenyan economy. Building on the 2004 Foreign Investment and Advisory Service (FIAS) report, "Improving the Commercial Legal Framework and Removing Administrative and Regulatory Barriers to Investment," this study looks at the bureaucratic barriers facing women in Kenya through a gender lens. The report makes specific recommendations to address gender-related barriers in the context of ongoing government and donor initiatives to encourage private sector development as the key driver of poverty reduction and economic growth, in line with Kenya's Economic Recovery Strategy for Wealth and Employment Creation 2003-2007 (ERS). Addressing these constraints will not only allow women to make a full contribution to the economy but also improve their livelihoods and those of their families and help create a more enabling environment for all businesses in Kenya.Publication Gender Dimensions of Trade Facilitation and Logistics : A Guidance Note(Washington, DC, 2012-04)Gender equality is a vital instrument for development. In trade related interventions, taking gender equality into account not only spurs country competitiveness, but also helps obtain better outcomes. The World Bank's international trade department and the gender and development unit in the Poverty Reduction and Economic Management network are collaborating to produce guidance notes in order to help people working in the field identify and assess the gender dimensions of trade projects. This guidance note focuses on trade facilitation and logistics initiatives, which seek to improve customs and border management, trade infrastructure, port efficiency, transport security, logistics and transport services, regional trade corridors and transit and multimodal transport. The guidance note demonstrates why gender matters for trade facilitation and logistics and how gender dimensions can be integrated into trade facilitation and logistics initiatives. The ultimate objective of the note is to support World Bank staff to enhance the effectiveness of the World Banks's trade-related work by integrating a gender perspective into trade-related policy dialogue, and the design, implementation and monitoring and evaluation of trade facilitation and logistics initiatives.Publication A Model of Gendered Production in Colonial Africa and Implications for Development in the Post-Colonial Period(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2013-05)This paper proposes a model to analyze the implications of colonial policies for gender inequality in Sub-Saharan Africa. The model emphasizes segmentation of production under complete specialization. It shows that the colonial production model, underpinned by occupational job segregation in the agricultural sector and gender bias in the non-agricultural sector, exacerbated gender inequality by limiting employment opportunities for women outside the realm of home production and subsistence agriculture. Over the past few decades, the resilience of parameters underlying these models of colonial production has heightened the risks of macroeconomic volatility in the region, especially where the structural transformation from low to high-value-added activities has remained elusive.Publication Bhutan Gender Policy Note(Washington, DC, 2013-10-10)Bhutan has undergone a major socio-economic transformation over the past few decades. Today, as a middle-income country guided by the unique development philosophy of Gross National Happiness, it continues to develop rapidly and become more integrated into the global economy. Coinciding with its development, Bhutan has also made considerable strides in closing gaps in gender equality. The analysis of the Gender Policy Note (GPN) focuses on specific issues related to economic empowerment. It analyzes patterns related to specific aspects of the economic empowerment of both men and women by applying the analytical framework of the 2012 World Development Report on Gender and Development to the Bhutan context. For the areas of focus, the report examines overall indicators on gender and identifies areas where gender gaps persist: agricultural land holding and inheritance practices, and gender gaps in labor markets and job quality. In Bhutan, most women acquire land ownership through inheritance, particularly in matrilineal communities. Unlike in other countries, the matrilineal inheritance practice offers economic opportunities for Bhutanese women and contributes to their relatively equal status with men. In addition, land holding through inheritance can also affect economic choices, particularly the decision to remain in one's village. Bhutan has made tremendous progress in female labor force participation, but the quality of jobs for women is still an issue. Although women's participation in the labor force has increased, it has not translated into improvements in employment quality. The Labor Force Survey shows that Bhutanese women work in lower quality jobs than men-women who earn income from work outside the home; their earnings are only 75 percent of men's earnings. The report recommends policy interventions in five main areas: first, it promotes equal ownership and agency over land. The policy appears to be working well in most areas of the country, and families are moving toward equal inheritance. Second, women's economic endowment could be augmented to increase labor productivity and earnings. Third, child care, along with vocational and life-skills training tailored for girls could women's access to good jobs. Fourth, social norms that lead to gender inequality could be addressed by promoting a greater role for men as fathers and caregivers and men's participation in housework. Finally, the report recognizes the need to conduct further research to better understand the gender gap in happiness.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Global Economic Prospects, January 2024(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-01-09)Note: Chart 1.2.B has been updated on January 18, 2024. Chart 2.2.3 B has been updated on January 14, 2024. Global growth is expected to slow further this year, reflecting the lagged and ongoing effects of tight monetary policy to rein in inflation, restrictive credit conditions, and anemic global trade and investment. Downside risks include an escalation of the recent conflict in the Middle East, financial stress, persistent inflation, weaker-than-expected activity in China, trade fragmentation, and climate-related disasters. Against this backdrop, policy makers face enormous challenges. In emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), commodity exporters face the enduring challenges posed by fiscal policy procyclicality and volatility, which highlight the need for robust fiscal frameworks. Across EMDEs, previous episodes of investment growth acceleration underscore the critical importance of macroeconomic and structural policies and an enabling institutional environment in bolstering investment and long-term growth. At the global level, cooperation needs to be strengthened to provide debt relief, facilitate trade integration, tackle climate change, and alleviate food insecurity.Publication Mozambique(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017-08-04)Mozambique ratified the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control only in 2017, but some tobacco control policies were already implemented in the country before that. The prevalence of current tobacco use in 2003 was about 40 percent in men and 18 percent in women, while women consumed predominantly smokeless tobacco. Between 2003 and 2011, the level of tobacco use among women decreased: the prevalence of smoking remained at the same level, but the use of other tobacco products substantially declined. However, among men, the prevalence of current cigarette smoking increased. The volumes of annual cigarette sales increased from about 2.5 billion cigarettes in 2006-2010 to about 3.7 billion cigarettes in 2012-2013 and then declined in 2014-2016. Since 2010, the tiered specific excises for cigarettes and mixed (ad valorem and specific) excises for other tobacco have been in place. In 2013, 2014, and 2015, the excise rates were increased. In 2013-2016 combined, tobacco prices in Mozambique increased by 85 percent in nominal terms, or by 27 percent in inflation-adjusted terms. Over those years, inflation-adjusted GDP per capita increased by 14, and so, cigarettes became less affordable. In 2013-2015, the increase in tobacco excise became one of the factors of the price increase, which reduced tobacco affordability and probably reduced tobacco consumption and sales in the country. Tobacco excise revenue increased from 3.2 billion MZN in 2012 to 3.75 billion MZN in 2015. However, all neighboring countries have cigarette prices and taxes much higher than Mozambique. In such a situation, cigarette smuggling out of Mozambique is rather common, while cigarette smuggling into Mozambique is very unlikely. Even in the report commissioned by the tobacco industry, percentage of contraband cigarettes at the Mozambican market was estimated to be only 1-2 percent of total consumption. The following recommendations could provide both public health and fiscal benefits for Mozambique: As the first step, cigarette specific excise rates should be unified for all kinds of cigarettes at the level currently used for hard-pack cigarettes. Then, the unified rate should be annually increased to make tobacco products less affordable over time in order to reduce consumption and prevalence in line with FCTC provisions. The issue of cigarette smuggling should not be used in hindering the implementation of tax and price policies. Increase of cigarette taxes and prices in Mozambique would reduce cigarette smuggling out of the country, and it would reduce tobacco consumption in the neighboring countries. Tobacco control monitoring, including economic information on tobacco products sales, prices, and other indicators, should be much improved in the country to support more precise forecasts of the outcomes of the current and future tobacco control activities.Publication Digital Progress and Trends Report 2023(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2024-03-05)Digitalization is the transformational opportunity of our time. The digital sector has become a powerhouse of innovation, economic growth, and job creation. Value added in the IT services sector grew at 8 percent annually during 2000–22, nearly twice as fast as the global economy. Employment growth in IT services reached 7 percent annually, six times higher than total employment growth. The diffusion and adoption of digital technologies are just as critical as their invention. Digital uptake has accelerated since the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.5 billion new internet users added from 2018 to 2022. The share of firms investing in digital solutions around the world has more than doubled from 2020 to 2022. Low-income countries, vulnerable populations, and small firms, however, have been falling behind, while transformative digital innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) have been accelerating in higher-income countries. Although more than 90 percent of the population in high-income countries was online in 2022, only one in four people in low-income countries used the internet, and the speed of their connection was typically only a small fraction of that in wealthier countries. As businesses in technologically advanced countries integrate generative AI into their products and services, less than half of the businesses in many low- and middle-income countries have an internet connection. The growing digital divide is exacerbating the poverty and productivity gaps between richer and poorer economies. The Digital Progress and Trends Report series will track global digitalization progress and highlight policy trends, debates, and implications for low- and middle-income countries. The series adds to the global efforts to study the progress and trends of digitalization in two main ways: · By compiling, curating, and analyzing data from diverse sources to present a comprehensive picture of digitalization in low- and middle-income countries, including in-depth analyses on understudied topics. · By developing insights on policy opportunities, challenges, and debates and reflecting the perspectives of various stakeholders and the World Bank’s operational experiences. This report, the first in the series, aims to inform evidence-based policy making and motivate action among internal and external audiences and stakeholders. The report will bring global attention to high-performing countries that have valuable experience to share as well as to areas where efforts will need to be redoubled.Publication World Development Report 2018(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2018)Every year, the World Bank's World Development Report takes on a topic of central importance to global development. The 2018 Report, Learning to Realize Education's Promise, is the first ever devoted entirely to education. Now is an excellent time for it: education has long been critical for human welfare, but is even more so in a time of rapid economic change. The Report explores four main themes. First, education's promise: Education is a powerful instrument for eradicating poverty and promoting shared prosperity, but fulfilling its potential requires better policies - both within and outside the education system. Second, the learning crisis: Despite gains in education access, recent learning assessments show that many young people around the world, especially from poor families, are leaving school unequipped with even the most foundational skills they need for life. At the same time, internationally comparable learning assessments show that skills in many middle-income countries lag far behind what those countries aspire to. Third, promising interventions to improve learning: Research from areas such as brain science, pedagogical innovations, or school management have identified interventions that promote learning by ensuring that learners are prepared, that teachers are skilled as well as motivated, and that other inputs support the teacher-learner relationship. Fourth, learning at scale: Achieving learning throughout an education system will require more than just scaling up effective interventions. Change requires overcoming technical and political barriers by deploying salient metrics for mobilizing actors and tracking progress, building coalitions for learning, and being adaptive when implementing programs.Publication World Development Report 2017(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2017-01-30)Why are carefully designed, sensible policies too often not adopted or implemented? When they are, why do they often fail to generate development outcomes such as security, growth, and equity? And why do some bad policies endure? This book addresses these fundamental questions, which are at the heart of development. Policy making and policy implementation do not occur in a vacuum. Rather, they take place in complex political and social settings, in which individuals and groups with unequal power interact within changing rules as they pursue conflicting interests. The process of these interactions is what this Report calls governance, and the space in which these interactions take place, the policy arena. The capacity of actors to commit and their willingness to cooperate and coordinate to achieve socially desirable goals are what matter for effectiveness. However, who bargains, who is excluded, and what barriers block entry to the policy arena determine the selection and implementation of policies and, consequently, their impact on development outcomes. Exclusion, capture, and clientelism are manifestations of power asymmetries that lead to failures to achieve security, growth, and equity. The distribution of power in society is partly determined by history. Yet, there is room for positive change. This Report reveals that governance can mitigate, even overcome, power asymmetries to bring about more effective policy interventions that achieve sustainable improvements in security, growth, and equity. This happens by shifting the incentives of those with power, reshaping their preferences in favor of good outcomes, and taking into account the interests of previously excluded participants. These changes can come about through bargains among elites and greater citizen engagement, as well as by international actors supporting rules that strengthen coalitions for reform.