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Oxfam urges G20 to act on gender gap
A report released by Oxfam International on Monday urges G20 leaders to tackle gender inequality during their meeting in Australia later this year as it has found that women will not be paid as much as men for another 75 years
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report released by Oxfam International on Monday urges G20 leaders to tackle gender inequality during their meeting in Australia later this year as it has found that women will not be paid as much as men for another 75 years.
The report entitled 'The G20 and gender equality ' How the G20 can advance women's rights in employment, social protection and fiscal policies' shows that the group's growth ambitions cannot be realized without policies addressing the systemic discrimination and economic exclusion of women across G20 countries.
Oxfam International executive director Winnie Byanyima said across G20 countries and beyond, women were paid less than men and did most of the unpaid labor. Women were also over-represented in part-time work and were discriminated against in households, markets and institutions, she added.
'This gap between women and men reflects a fundamental and entrenched form of inequality afflicting G20 countries, despite the gains that have undoubtedly been made in some areas,' Byanyima said on the report, released as the Business 20 (B20) ' one of the satellite conferences in the lead-up to the G20 Leaders Summit in Brisbane in November ' meets in Sydney this week.
According to the report, an extra 20 percent to 60 percent could be added to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of individual G20 countries if they recognized and valued the hidden contribution of unpaid work, such as caring for children or carrying out housework.
'If women's paid employment rates were the same as men's, the United States' GDP would increase by nine percent, the Eurozone's by 13 percent and Japan's by 16 percent,' said Byanyima in a release made available to The Jakarta Post on Monday.
During the Australian meeting, she said, the G20 had the chance to keep its commitment to tackling the barriers to full economic and social participation for women and to expanding opportunities for women as stated in the Los Cabos Declaration in 2012. (ebf)
