LEGAL & REGULATORY BARRIERS TO WOMEN’S FULL FINANCIAL INCLUSION Tazeen Hasan GBA Annual Summit November 13, 2018
MEASURING GENDER EQUALITY IN THE LAW FOR 10 YEARS 2010 2010 2014 2014 2018 2018 2012 2012 2016 2016 In its fifth edition, Women, Business and the Law 2018 expands its analysis to 189 economies
WHY DO LAWS MATTER? Equality of opportunity allows women to make the choices that are best for them, their families and their communities 3
GENDER EQUALITY IS SMART ECONOMICS Estimated income losses due to gender gaps in women's employment and entrepreneurship ▪ Legal gender differences significantly decrease 27% female labor force participation and undermine GDP growth ▪ If women’s labor force 19% participation were the same as men’s, as much 15% as $28 trillion could be added to global GDP by 2025 10% 9% ▪ Legal gender equality is associated with lower gender gaps in labor force participation without any significant effect on male Middle East & South Asia Latin America Europe Sub-Saharan participation rates North Africa & Caribbean Africa 4
IDENTIFICATION MATTERS FOR FINANCIAL INCLUSION Women cannot legally apply for a national ID card in the same way as men in 11 economies globally, including 4 in the Middle East and North Africa 5
LAWS RESTRICTING WOMEN’S AGENCY AND MOBILITY CAN HINDER THEIR FINANCIAL INCLUSION Actions that women cannot legally perform in the same way as men Afghanistan; Algeria; Bahrain; Barbados; Belize; Benin; Botswana; Cameroon; Congo, Rep.; Cyprus; Apply for a passport Dominica; Egypt, Arab Rep.; Fiji; Gabon; Grenada; Guyana; Haiti; Iran, Islamic Rep.; Jordan; Malawi; Mali; 37 Myanmar; Nigeria; Oman; Pakistan; Philippines; Samoa; Saudi Arabia; Seychelles; Solomon Islands; St. Vincent and the Grenadines; Sudan; Trinidad and Tobago; Uganda; United Arab Emirates; Yemen, Rep.; Zambia Bahrain; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Chile; Comoros; Congo, Be head of household 31 Dem. Rep.; Congo, Rep.; Djibouti; Gabon; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Rep.; Iraq; Jordan; Libya; Madagascar; Mali; Mauritania; Morocco; Niger; Oman; San Marino; Saudi Arabia; Senegal; Sudan; Tunisia; United Arab Emirates; Yemen, Rep. Afghanistan; Bahrain; Brunei Darussalam; Egypt, Arab Rep.; Iran, Islamic Rep.; Iraq; Jordan; Travel outside the home 17 Kuwait; Malaysia; Oman; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; Sudan; Syrian Arab Republic; United Arab Emirates; West Bank and Gaza; Yemen, Rep. Bhutan; Guinea- Register a business 4 Bissau; Pakistan; Suriname Chad; Open a bank account 3 Guinea- Bissau; Niger 6
GE GEND NDER ER GA GAPS PS IN IN ACC CCOU OUNT T OWNE WNERSH RSHIP IP AR ARE E LARGER WHERE WOMEN’S MOBILITY IS CO CONS NSTRA TRAINED NED Account at a financial institution (% age 15+) Borrowed from a financial institution (% age 15+) 60% 56% 25% 17% 15% 12% 7% 4% Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male YES NO YES NO Can a married woman choose where to Can a married woman choose where live in the same way as a married man? to live in the same way as a married man? 7
BARRIERS AND ENABLERS TO FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP: ACCESS TO PROPERTY • In some economies, e.g. Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Malaysia, the value of a wife’s non -monetary contributions, such as taking care of the children and household, is recognized when dividing property between spouses upon divorce • In Jordan a law was introduced in 2010 requiring registration of inheritance and a 3- month waiting period during which a woman cannot waive her inheritance rights 8
THE LEGAL RECOGNITION OF NONMONETARY CONTRIBUTIONS CAN PROMOTE WOMEN’S USE OF DEBIT CARDS Debit card used in the past year (% Debit card in own name (% age 15+) age 15+) 56% 54% 43% 42% 17% 10% 10% 5% Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male YES NO YES NO Does the law recognize nonmonetary Does the law recognize nonmonetary contributions in separate property contributions in separate property regimes? regimes? 9
ESTABLISHING GOOD CREDIT HISTORIES CAN HELP WOMEN BUILD REPUTATION COLLATERAL FOR LOANS Women can leverage Utility Credit payment of Utility bill in company agency utility bills woman’s records her collects to build name successful repayment their repayment information reputation collateral 10
BARRIERS AND ENABLERS TO FEMALE ENTREPRENEURSHIP: ACCESS TO CREDIT • 66 economies, including Malta and Morocco , prohibit discrimination in access to credit based on gender • 32 economies, including Morocco and Tunisia , prohibit discrimination in access to credit based on marital status 11
LAWS ON NON-DISCRIMINATION IN ACCESS TO CREDIT CAN PROMOTE FINANCIAL INCLUSION Debit card in own name, female (% Account at a financial institution, age 15+) female (% age 15+) 65% 50% 39% 22% Yes No Yes No Does the law prohibit discrimination Does the law prohibit discrimination based on gender in access to credit? based on gender in access to credit? 12
THE TACKING CHILDCARE PROJECT A WBL AND IFC STUDY OF 50 COUNTRIES HIGHLIGHTING THE BUSINESS CASE FOR CHILDCARE (2017) 14
IN 15 ECONOMIES IN MENA THE GOVERNMENT PROVIDES CHILDCARE SERVICES
THE CHILDCARE BUSINESS AND DEVELOPMENT CASE ✓ GOOD FOR CHILDREN o Benefits of early childhood development range from healthy development and greater capacity to learn while in school to increased productivity in adulthood (World Bank, 2015) ✓ GOOD FOR WOMEN’S EMPLOYMENT o Investments in care economy would create twice as many jobs than investments in construction industry and decrease the gender gap in employment (ITUC, 2016) o Value of unpaid care estimated at $10 trillion or 13% of global GDP ( McKinsey, 2016 ) ✓ GOOD FOR ECONOMIES o Investing 2% of GDP in care economy of 7 developed countries would create more than 21 million jobs and help countries overcome challenges of aging populations and economic stagnation (ITUC, 2016) o Investing in early childcare could generate 719,000 jobs in Turkey alone and expand the skilled talent pool by encouraging women’s labor force participation (ILO et al, 2015) 15
MORE WOMEN RECEIVE WAGES WHERE GOVERNMENTS SUPPORT CHILDCARE 16
ENROLLMENT IN PRE-PRIMARY SCHOOL IS HIGHER WHERE CHILDCARE FEES ARE TAX DEDUCTIBLE 17
FROM INFORM TO REFORM WOMEN’S FINANCIAL INCLUSION ECONOMY REFORMS Islamic The Islamic Republic of Iran improved access to credit information by Republic of reporting data on credit payments from an automobile retailer Iran Iraq The 2015 Labor Law mandates employers to provide childcare services Tunisia strengthened credit reporting by distributing payment information Tunisia from a telecommunications company West Bank and Gaza passed the Palestinian Law in 2017 on Education and West Bank Higher Education, which for the first time mandates the government to and Gaza provide one year of free and compulsory public preschool 18
USING WOMEN, BUSINESS AND THE LAW IN YOUR WORK IDENTIFY GOOD PRACTICES Examine the legislation that works for women employees and entrepreneurs INCORPORATE AN ECONOMIC ANALYSIS Demonstrate how gender gaps undermine growth INFLUENCE REFORM Reform laws, unleashing women’s full potential
POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS Enact laws that promote women’s access and control over assets e.g. recognition of women’s non -monetary contribution and mandatory joint titling of land Reform laws that constrain women’s mobility and access to national IDs and enact laws that provide an enabling childcare framework Ensure credit agencies collect repayment history from microfinance institutions, retailers and utility companies Introduce laws on non-discrimination in access to credit based on gender and marital status 20
VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WBL.WORLDBANK.ORG 21
#WomenBizLaw #Get2Equal @womenbusinesslaw 22
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