A Step up the ladder — how can skills programmes help women and girl’s economic empowerment?
Download the latest Skills for Prosperity Hub report ‘A Step Up the Ladder — The Role of Skills Development in the Economic Empowerment of Women and Girls’ here.
Improving women and girl’s economic empowerment is a global priority and for good reason; studies show that female labour force participation rates are falling, and women and girls are more likely to be negatively impacted by current socio-economic uncertainty. Worryingly, according to the 2022 World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index which monitors gender equality, based on current rates of progress it will take another 132 years for women to reach full parity with men[1].
There are numerous barriers and challenges to women obtaining the skills and opportunities they need to find fair work and improve their economic empowerment. Skills-based programmes can help address these, especially when they focus on a combination of policy, institutional and individual level reform, something which the Skills for Prosperity (S4P) programme is doing. S4P supports education and skills development across nine countries, aiming to ensure they have a diverse workforce with skills for the future, which will drive sustainable and inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction.
S4P’s recently commissioned research report on the role of skills development in the economic empowerment of women and girls looks at good practice and lessons learned from across S4P programmes and other projects. It highlights how critical it is for gender and inclusion focussed skills interventions to be contextualised to local need. S4P’s context-led approach has led to a diverse range of projects. Initiatives which are helping women and girls to develop skills and transition to work include mentoring schemes, apprenticeships, micro-training initiatives in entrepreneurship and business skills, curriculum and pedagogy reform and the introduction of maternity policies. However, among the diversity of good practice some common themes emerged. What are these and what can other skills programmes learn from them?
Below are 5 things applicable to gender focussed skills programmes across countries.
Safety first — Sadly, girls and women across the globe are exposed to violence and harassment in almost every walk of life, to the extent that UN Women estimate that 1 in 3 women will experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Preventing gender-based violence and harassment (GBVH) and safeguarding girls and women is fundamental in any process to improve women’s economic empowerment. Without the creation of safe places to learn and work, women will continue to be at risk and other interventions aimed at improving women’s skills base and economic prospects are more likely to fail. Conducting gender and inclusion audits with partners, supporting them to develop action plans and implement safeguarding policies should be a foundational step for skills programmes.
Break down stereotypes — For girls and women to first access, and then thrive in the technical and vocational education (TVET) sector, several stereotypes and gender biases must be overcome. Non-gendered career advice and guidance within schools and TVET institutions is vital to combatting stereotypes and encouraging women into careers that they may not have traditionally considered. Given the global demand for STEM graduates and the higher salaries that jobs in these areas tend to attract, encouraging girls and women into this sector is particularly important.
Know your data — Improving data collection and tracking gender-disaggregated data on access, retention, subject choice, attainment and employment outcomes is vital to ensure attention can be focussed on critical areas that will help close the gender gap. Regular data analysis to inform decision making and policy is key.
Future proof — The world of work is changing and as technology advances rapidly, there will be both opportunities and challenges for women. Skills-focussed programmes must pay close attention to these changes and focus activity on interventions which will prepare girls and women for the industries and sectors of the future. S4P chose to focus on sectors which are growing and have a strong supply need. They also carefully selected well-respected and influential industry partners who are responsive and willing to create change at scale.
Collaborate to increase impact — While many barriers to the process of women’s economic empowerment can be addressed by skills programmes, there are many more which are related to deep-rooted, structural inequalities which must be addressed at a societal level. This includes the well-documented imbalance between the domestic load carried by women versus men — women are responsible for 76% of unpaid domestic care work worldwide which limits their ability to engage in the workforce. It also includes social norms about how women should spend their time and what jobs and roles are suitable for them. To increase impact, skills programmes should consider strategic partnerships with organisations already engaging in societal-level projects which aim to counter these stereotypes and create fundamental change within our societies.
[1] Global Gender Gap Report 2022 | World Economic Forum (weforum.org)
