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Indonesian women eager to make use of ample work opportunities: Survey
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Commemorating International Women's Day on March 8, four women from Information Technology (IT) industries in Indonesia have shared their opinion about women's current role in the industries. (Shutterstock/File)
T
he majority of Indonesian women have expressed their desire to be able to work and provide care for their families, with 60 percent telling an ILO-Gallup survey that they wanted both paid work and to stay at home, compared to 32 percent who strictly preferred the domestic life.
Globally, 29 percent of women said they would prefer to work in a paid job, while another 41 percent expressed the desire for both paid work and to stay at home, while 27 percent wanted to stay at home only.
Among men globally, the figures were similar, with 28 percent saying they preferred the women in their family to work in a paid job, 38 percent wanted women to both have paid jobs and to stay at home, while another 29 percent of men wanted women in their family to stay at home.
Countries with a higher proportion of women who said they preferred to stay at home were Algeria (41 percent), Iraq (43 percent), Yemen (43 percent), Bangladesh (46 percent), Pakistan (51 percent) and Afghanistan (56 percent), making Indonesia more progressive than most Muslimmajority countries in terms of women empowerment.
The perception that Indonesian women are more confident in tackling both worlds is further strengthened by the fact that more than half (51 percent) of Indonesian men support women for being able to do paid work and carry out domestic care, more than those who said they preferred women in their family to stay at home only (43 percent).
(Read also: Six Southeast Asian women recognized for advocating for human rights)
Indonesia scores higher than the average percentage perceived between the genders as reported throughout the Southeast Asia and the Pacific sub-region (55 and 48 percent for women and men, respectively), although Singaporean women were much more confident in seizing paid work opportunities than most other ASEAN nations.
In the Southeast Asia and the Pacific sub-region, just 7 percent overall say opportunities for similarly qualified women are worse, whereas nearly half (45 percent) say opportunities are better.
As many as 70 percent of respondents said Singaporean women of similar education and experience were on par with men in seeking paid work, better than the perception in Indonesia (60 percent).
“It is possible that the generally lower levels of education among men and women in the region — and the lack of disparity between them — place them on more even footing,” the report said.
The results come from the Gallup World Poll, which was conducted in 142 countries and territories and surveyed nearly 149,000 adults.
The joint ILO-Gallup report was released early on Wednesday morning to mark International Women’s Day.
Women empowerment has been one of the many focal issues in the government of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, as seen in the representation of powerful career-driven women in the Cabinet: Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti.
“Against the backdrop of the significant progress women have made in the world of work, there is much yet to accomplish,” the report said.
“Over the decades, the benefits that women’s economic empowerment brings to individuals, families and societies as a whole have become clear, and yet gender equality has not been achieved anywhere.”
Even where women are less present in the workforce, 57 percent of men in North Africa and 52 percent of men in Arab states said they would prefer to see women in paid work and working to care for their families.(jun)
