LESSON 4: How to Address Gendered Social Problems

LEARNING OUTCOMES
L.O.1 Discuss the 12 steps in achieve gender equality in our lifetimes
L.O.2 How to Address Gendered Social Problems

DISCUSSION PROPER
12 steps to achieve gender equality in our lifetimes
1. Talk to women and girls
A fundamental reason we have not yet achieved gender equality in every realm is that
women and girls’ voices are too often excluded from global and national decision-making.
When programs and policies are designed without women’s needs central to their foundation,
we’re setting ourselves up to fail. If grassroots women had been adequately consulted in
designing the MDGs, decision-makers would have been able to anticipate that girls would still
be held responsible for many home chores, caring for younger siblings and fetching water, and
have known that a major obstacle for girls’ education is that girls are at risk of physical and
sexual assaults when they have to walk long distances to school.

2. Let girls use mobile phones

The majority of girls in India don’t have access to using basic technology such as phones
and computers because of infrastructure related challenges and economic reasons. Increasingly
we see bans on girls using mobile phones. The dialogue on girls’ access to Stem [science,
technology, engineering and maths] education and women’s role in technology has not even
started to be acknowledged. Can girls and women access equal resources, opportunities and
rights without access to technology?

3. Stop child marriage and sexual harassment

In Bangladesh and elsewhere, child marriage is a major impediment to girls’ education.
In Bangladesh more than 50% of girls are married before the age of 18, and about 30% of girls
15 to 19 already have one child. If we want girls to be able to complete education we have to
end child marriage. We also have to seriously address sexual harassment of girls. Insecurity is
one of the reasons parents give for marrying their daughters. It is also a major barrier to girls’
full participation in education.

4. Make education gender sensitive

There has been much progress in increasing access to education, but progress has been
slow in improving the gender sensitivity of the education system, including ensuring textbooks
promote positive stereotypes. This is critically important for girls to come out of schools as
citizens who can shape a more equal society. In some countries, there is a tendency to assume
that things are fine as long as there are equal numbers of girls in schools.
5. Raise aspirations of girls and their parents
One of the key strategies must be to change how girls, families and society imagine
what girls can be and can do. We need to give girls images and role models that expand their
dreams.

6. Empower mothers
In Afghanistan, there have been great moves to increase number of girls going through
formal education through providing schools for girls in every district. We have learned that
through empowering women on the community level you will also enhance girls education.
When mothers are educated and empowered to make choices in their lives, they enable their
daughters to go to school.

7. Give proper value to ‘women’s work’

The unpaid work women and girls do provide the foundation for the global economy.
This fact needs to be highlighted more in the media, with the private sector and in
communities.

8. Get women into power

A proven way to overcome many systemic barriers to a woman’s success has been
increased participation by women in local, regional and national legislation as empowered
change agents.

9. Encourage women into non-traditional vocations

Supporting women in non-traditional jobs is crucial in not only making long-lasting change in
their lives but also help break social taboos.

10. Work together

Alarmingly, gender gaps in sub-Saharan Africa have widened at higher levels of
schooling. This is a reverse of the global trend towards greater parity. Between 1999 and 2010,
the ratio of girls in secondary school fell from 83 to 82 girls for every 100 boys at the secondary
level and from 67 to 63 girls for every 100 boys at the tertiary level. This is stalled progress and
a reversion to the deep gender equalities that characterized previous eras.

11. Stop the violence

Gender inequality allows for violence against women to continue unabated. The UN has
found that globally, one in three women will experience violence in her lifetime, with most
violence against women perpetrated by a current or former intimate partner.

12. Beware the backlash

One of the realities that we need to remember and address is that, when women
“trespass” in spaces that were previously completely male-dominated there is often a penalty.
In education and in the workplace that backlash often takes the form of sexual harassment,
humiliation, violence.

10 Key issues in ensuring gender equity in the global health workforce

Gender inequity remains a challenge in the health workforce, with too few women
making critical decisions and leading the work. WHO, the Global Health Workforce Network,
and Women in Global Health today launched a report at the Commission on the Status of
Women to describe the social and economic factors that determine why few women lead in
global health, and make a call for action to urgently address gender inequity. These are the 10
key points to emerge from the report.

1. Women make up 70% of the health workforce but only 25% hold senior roles.

This means that in reality, women deliver global health and men lead it. These gaps in gender
leadership are driven by stereotypes, discrimination, and power imbalances. Some women are
further disadvantaged on the basis of their race or class.

2. Gender inequity in the health workforce is indicative of a wider problem in global health.
Global health is predominantly led by men: 69% of global health organizations are headed by
men, and 80% of board chairs are men. Only 20% of global health organizations were found to
have gender parity on their boards, and only 25% had gender parity at senior management
level.
3. Often, gender norms and stereotypes of jobs can affect the roles that women occupy.
Cultural labelling as either ‘men’s’ or ‘women’s’ roles prevent women from reaching leadership
levels.

4. This stereotyping is a significant contributor to the gender pay gap.

The gender pay gap is 25% - higher than average for other sectors. Female health workers are
clustered into lower-status and lower-paid (often unpaid) roles.
5. Women often face bias and discrimination, as well as sexual harassment.
This can affect their careers and lead to extreme stress and a loss of morale. Many
countries lack laws and social protection that are the foundation for gender equality at work –
moreover, male health workers are more likely to be organized in trade unions that defend
their rights than female health workers.
6. Gender inequity is threatening the delivery of health.
An estimated 40 million new jobs will be needed by 2030 in the global health and social
sector. Yet there is an estimated shortfall of 18 million health workers, primarily in low- and
middle-income countries.

7. Leaving the gender balance to equalize on its own is not an option. Unless specific, targeted
measures are taken, workplace gender equality is estimated to take 202 years.
8. Addressing gender inequities in the health and social workforce as one of the biggest
employment sectors of women could have enormous impact towards achieving the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs).

There is a health dividend in filling the millions of new jobs that must be created to meet
growing demand and reach universal health coverage and the health-related SDGs by 2030.
There is a gender equality dividend, since investing in women and the education of girls to
enter formal, paid work will increase gender equality and women’s empowerment as women
gain income, education and autonomy. In turn, this is likely to improve family education,
nutrition, women’s and children’s health, and other aspects of development. Finally, there is a
development dividend as new jobs are created, fuelling economic growth.
9. Countries need to adopt policies that address the underlying causes of gender inequities.
This is what is called gender-transformative change. For example, adding jobs to the
health workforce under current conditions will not solve the gender inequities that exacerbate
the health worker shortage. Policies to date have attempted to fix women to fit into inequitable
systems; now we need to fix the system and work environment to create decent work for
women and close gender gaps in leadership and pay.

10. The focus of research in the global health and social workforce should be shifted.
Research must prioritize low- and middle-income countries; apply a gender and
intersectionality lens; include sex- and gender-disaggregated data; and include the social care
workforce. Research must go beyond describing the gender inequities to also evaluate the
impact of gender-transformative interventions.