SDG 5: Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment
Relevance of the SDG to India
India, a developing country, has unequal access to health, education, and freedom. As per the World Economic Forum Global Gender Gap Index 2019-2020, which measures the gap between genders on parameters like economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment, India ranks 112th out of 153 countries. Apart from opportunities available for women, violence against women is a matter of grave concern too. Violence in the past has taken the form of genital mutation, rapes, marital rapes, dowry demands, and honor killings. One of the primary reasons for such incidences is the lack of punishment on the criminals responsible and the social stigma attached towards the victims. While the former encourages criminals to conduct such heinous acts, the latter reduces such crimes' actual reporting.
Fig: Country-wise Literacy Rates
Regarding women's representation in Indian firms, the data is further skewed against women compared to global figures, with only 8.9% of top management positions occupied by women. Additionally, only 14.36% of parliamentarians in India are women, which is extremely low for representing 48% of the country's population. During COVID-19 skewed employment (around 94%) in an unorganized sector affected women the most during the pandemic. Further, there was a substantial rise in domestic violence cases reported during the nationwide lockdown. As per the National Commission of Women, there was a 100% rise in the number of cases reported within a fortnight of lockdown. While the Indian government has always shown the intent towards being committed towards women empowerment and safety, and the same has led to an improvement in women's situation, there is still a long way to go to achieve equal representation and access to various resources.
Business Implication & Responses
The economic effect of gender equality in India is estimated at US$700 billion of additional GDP by 2025. The IMF forecasts that fair women's workforce participation would raise India's GDP by 27 percent. More than half of India's women don't have cell phones, and 80% don't use them to connect to the internet. If as many women as men had cell phones, the next five years could generate US$17 billion in sales for telecommunications companies. Globally, women make or affect 80% of purchasing decisions and monitor spending of US$20 trillion. Empowering women also provide socio-economic gains. Women spend approximately 90% of their income on their families, economically empowered women fuel demand, have healthy, better-educated children, and increase human growth levels. This kick starts with a vicious cycle. In India, initiatives such as the MUDRA scheme for helping micro and small businesses and direct value transfers under Jan Dhan Yojana aim to empower women. Women entrepreneurs constitute about 78% of MUDRA's overall borrowers.
Ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision making in political, economic, and public life.
Between 2005 and 2015, there was an approximately 10% fall in the female workforce. According to the UN Statistics Division Survey, "The World's Women 2015," only 50% of working-age women are employed compared to 77% of males. An international survey commissioned by Barbara Annis, a respected pioneer in the area of gender disparities and diversity, containing 240,000 women, says that 81 percent of women feel some form of exclusion at work, but 90 percent of men claim they are not aware of such exclusionary activities.
Fig: Labor force participation
The Gap between female and male jobs are 26%, while women spend two and a half times more time on unpaid health care and household work than men. On average, women are paying 24 percent less globally than men. Disparities like these are places that must be discussed. The first step is to examine how existing regulations have been applied. The Women, business and law 2016 study by the World Bank reports that 90% of 173 economies protected by the Women, Business, and Law of the World Bank report 2016 have at least one law limiting female economic participation, restricting women from some occupations, hindering their right to move abroad, or restricting their right to travel abroad.
Trends Today - A Company Specific Report
Goldman Sachs
It has made phenomenal progress on equity for men and women and will reach harmony between the sexes by 2025. The firm's new global parenting policy allows for 20 weeks of leave, an increase from 16 weeks. The company also launched Pathways to Parenthood, which increases existing stipends for adoption and surrogacy. The firm also supports expecting parents with a wide range of programs and services. These include a dedicated expectant-parent coordinator who can provide guidance on the firm's benefits, facilities, and mentoring opportunities.
JP Morgan Chase
According to the annual report, women made up 50% of its Operating Committee. JPMC conducts periodic pay equity reviews at all levels. In 2019, in aggregate, women globally were paid 99% of what men were paid. The report stated that a variety of actions focused on hiring, retaining, developing, and advancing women, especially at more senior levels are underway.
Boston Consulting Group
A new study has found that women make up 36 percent of STEM graduates but just 25 percent of STEM employees. So, its major focus is to engage in gender equity in our digital companies and in enhancing the digital skills of its female consultants. Research partner of the STEM Daring Circle Women’s Forum for Economics and Society are actively endorsing a committee of ten organizations working to improve the role of women in STEM.
Analysis
There are multiple reasons for skewed numbers and disproportional representation that can be traced way back in time to inherent inequalities in society. But as of today, given these pre-existing conditions, there are a few reasons for these numbers.
Occupational Division and Concentration of Women in Low Growth Areas
The breakdown of NSSO data (1970 – 2018) shows that women have primarily been undertaking labor-intensive, home-based, and informal work, concentrated in low-productivity sectors. These jobs are also reduced with higher demand and emphasize skilled and niche labor.
Fear to Explore Due to Increased Mechanization and Now Automation
The increased industrialization of traditionally labor-intensive jobs across sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, mining, etc. Automation in the services sector has affected women disproportionately. Mckinsey Global Institute (2019) has estimated that up to 12 million Indian women could lose their jobs by 2030 owing to mechanization in the agriculture, forestry, fisheries, transportation, and warehousing sectors. The lasting digital divide and increased automation of clerical job roles can make it challenging for women to transition to jobs of higher education and technical skills.
Lack of Family Support and Approved Institutional Structures
Even today, women in India spend up to 352 minutes per day on domestic work, 577% more than men (52 minutes). The deep-rooted segregation of gender-specific activities further results in a lack of family support for a women's life choices, has caused a decrease in participation in all fields from politics, education, sports, etc.
Rising Household Wealth and the Income Effect Hypothesis
A rising household wealth fueled by economic growth reduces the financial need for another earning member. Kapsos estimated that this "income effect" of increased household wealth can explain up to 9% of the total decrease in female participation in the labor force. NSSO data reveals that the female work participation rates are lower for higher expenditure categories, particularly in rural areas. Families take pride when female members retreat from work, illustrating that male members can provide a good family life.
Key Growth Areas
Education
Multiple initiatives in gender-responsive support have enabled out-of-school girls and boys to return to school. Curricula and pedagogy across the world have become more gender-neutral and careful of language, images, and messages that do not perpetuate gender stereotypes.
Menstrual Hygiene
Nutrition
Improving the nutrition of women by promoting more evenhanded eating practices. In India, women cooperatives' growth that develops and implements their micro-plans for improved food and nutrition in their villages has gained immense prominence.
Awareness Through Movements
The Path Ahead
Ultimately equality means different
things to different people. Yet there is an underlying theme that is pushed
across the spectrum:
What You See Is What You Become
Discrimination or equality both begin at home. Small steps taken by both genders in sharing the workload, not stereotyping between siblings and peers can help remove early-stage biases.
External Influence
Education systems and other social groups unconsciously induce stereotypes in all our minds. Carefully written textbooks, playground rules, extracurricular activities unconsciously penetrate this further. Allowing choice and exploration at early stages could potentially remove bias (As experimented in Sweden: Girls and boys were not even associated with pink and blue as done conventionally in other countries).
Men As Enablers
Equality does not imply matriarchy. If anyone can support and bring about radical changes in society today, it must ultimately equally involve men. Often men are unaware, leading to insensitiveness to the problem. Awareness and comfort to talk and debate over the issue itself will reduce stigma and create change.
Support Systems At Work
Government and business programs are expected to solve women professionals' institutional barriers. Flexible post-maternity work schedules enable women to return to work at a controlled pace, government-led, or private mentoring services for women who join after a career break, and upskilling are absolute essentials.
Despite these setbacks looking back, we have come a long way in terms of gender equality. It is a long road, but it would not be very optimistic to merely complain considering where we are today. To move towards utopian gender-equal, society must set up enablers in different fields that create an atmosphere of comfort and safety.
References
[1] https://data.em2030.org/countries/india>
[2] https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/topics/women/decisions
[3] https://www.unicef.org/india/what-we-do/gender-equality
[4] https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/2322UN%20Women%20Analysis%20on%20Women%20and%20SDGs.pdf
[5] https://knoema.com/infographics/fzwnho/women-in-parliament-around-the-globe
[6] https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-management/
[7] https://www.oxfamindia.org/blog/locked-down-domestic-violence-reporting-india-during-covid-19
[8] https://www.catalyst.org/research/women-in-the-workforce-india/
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