Opening Doors : Gender Equality and Development in the Middle East and North Africa

Since The Early 1990s, Countries In The Middle East And North Africa (mena) Region Have Made Admirable Progress In Reducing The Gap Between Girls And Boys In Areas Such As Access To Education And Health Care. Indeed, Almost All Young Girls In The Region Attend School, And More Women Than Men Are Enrolled In University. Over The Past Two Decades, Maternal Mortality Declined 60 Percent, The Largest Decrease In The World. Women In Mena Are More Educated Than Ever Before. It Is Not Only In The Protest Squares That Have Seen Women Whose Aspirations Are Changing Rapidly But Increasingly Unmet. The Worldwide Average For The Participation Of Women In The Workforce Is Approximately 50 Percent. In Mena, Their Participation Is Half That At 25 Percent. Facing Popular Pressure To Be More Open And Inclusive, Some Governments In The Region Are Considering And Implementing Electoral And Constitutional Reforms To Deepen Democracy. These Reforms Present An Opportunity To Enhance Economic, Social, And Political Inclusion For All, Including Women, Who Make Up Half The Population. However, The Outlook Remains Uncertain. Finally, There Are Limited Private Sector And Entrepreneurial Prospects Not Only For Jobs But Also For Those Women Who Aspire To Create And Run A Business. These Constraints Present Multiple Challenges For Reform. Each Country In Mena Will, Of Course, Confront These Constraints In Different Contexts. However, Inherent In Many Of These Challenges Are Rich Opportunities As Reforms Unleash New Economic Actors. For The Private Sector, The Challenge Is To Create More Jobs For Young Women And Men. The World Bank Has Been Pursuing An Exciting Pilot Program In Jordan To Assist Young Women Graduates In Preparing To Face The Work Environment. Acknowledgements -- Foreword -- Acronyms And Abbreviations -- Executive Summary -- Gender Equality In Mena : The Facts And The Puzzle -- Impressive Achievements In Human Development -- Little Discrimination Between Girls And Boys Within The Household -- Of The Lowest Rates Of Excess Female Mortality In The World -- Rapid Declines In Maternal Mortality -- More Girls In School Than In Much Of The World -- Virtually No Gender Gaps In Enrolment, And Reverse Gender Gaps In University, And Math Performance -- Mena's Performance In Human Development Is Largely Explained By Economic Development And Wealth -- Some Challenges Remain -- The Puzzle In Mena : Why Do Women Participate In Such Few Numbers Outside The Home? -- Women In The Workforce -- Women In Business -- Women In Politics -- What Explains The Mena Puzzle? -- Religion Is Too Simplistic An Explanation -- Oil Endowments Alone Cannot Explain The Paradox Either -- Social Norms And The Legal Framework Limit Women's Agency --^ Social And Cultural Norms Constrain Women's Roles Outside The Home -- Evolving Norms And The Invisible Hand Of Marriage -- Equality Under The Law And Its Enforcement Is Critical For Women's Agency -- Legal Systems Differ Widely And Derive From Multiple Sources -- Legal Constraints To Women's Agency In Mena -- Economic Incentives Dampen Participation In The Workforce -- A Social Contract Underpinned By A Generous But Costly Welfare State -- Extensive Public Sector Employment With Generous Compensation -- Generous Subsidies Encourage Women To Stay At Home -- State Regulation And Intervention In The Market -- Heavy Investment In Education, But Not The Kind That Businesses Want -- Unequal Access To Entrepreneurship Opportunities -- The Time For Reform Is Now -- Aspirations Are Changing -- As Education Levels Increase, Female Labor Force Participation Will Likely Increase -- A Demographic Gift? -- The Social Contract Is No Longer Sustainable --^ Opening The Door To Women : Policy Directions -- A Roadmap For Reform -- Policies To Address The Region's Challenges -- Closing The Remaining Gender Gaps In Human Deelopment -- Expanding Economic Opportunities For Women -- Closing Gender Gaps In Voice And Agency -- Supporting Evidence-based Policy Making -- References -- Technical Annex -- Appendix 1. The World Bank. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.