Gender Inequality Thesis Statement

“Gender inequality exists to some extent, in most areas of society, in all countries of the world”. Geographically examine this statement. Gender inequality refers to unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on the gender. It arises from differences in socially constructed gender roles, behaviors, and activities and attributes that a given society deems appropriate for men and women. For two years Iceland is the number one country for gender equality followed by Norway in second, Finland third and Sweden fifth – showing that the Nordic countries are the best for gender equality.

The gender equality gap is measured by looking at politics, education, employment and health. According to recent studies the highest representation of women in parliament was in Europe, in which 20. 56% of parliamentary people were female, and the lowest Oceania in which 7. 5% of parliamentary people were women. Women’s political empowerment is very important, and small loans can help improve it. More power means an increase in confidence to change and challenge gender relations. Economically it will mean women have increased access to markets, and increased control over income, assests and resources within the home.

Kuwait is an example of a country trying to solve gender inequality issues and increase women’s empowerment politically, socially, and economically. Women in Kuwait have been given the right to run in local and governmental elections, as well as vote in elections. Sub-Saharan Africa is another area in which women’s empowerment is being promoted. This time through giving women mobile phones to help improve their lives slightly. Statistics show that within Sub-Saharan Africa 300 million fewer men than women have mobiles. So the plan was to issue 150 million mobiles to women across the region.

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It is thought that mobiles can help with literacy, health programs and project awareness, developing small businesses, and gaining financial independence. Education is also another area in which gender inequality is trying to be beaten. By improving women’s educations statistics show that Fertility rates and Infant and child mortality numbers will decrease, while women’s labour force and women’s children going to school will increase. Gender inequality in education correlates with ethnicity and religion, domestic responsibilities, cultural restrictions and less economic power.

Examples of gender inequality within education are in Pakistan and Yemen. In Pakistan the Taliban was restricting women’s education. 125,000 girls have had to abandon their education after 180 schools were torched and 900 school closed down. Taliban are brutal, they behead, assassinate political figures and destroy homes. A recent example might be the fourteen-year-old Malala who was shot in the head by the Taliban on her way home from school because she was trying to promote women’s rights. In Yemen being the lowest global rating of gender inequality means they’re heavily investing in this sector.

The International Development Association (IDA) are working to increase access to and the quality of education, as well as promoting it to women nationally. They’re encouraging female teachers, which will increase ‘social acceptance’. 1000 new female teachers were introduced in 2008 alone, and they successfully attracted girls to schools. As well as 100- new female teachers, 4000 classrooms and 200 schools were built, and 80 of the original schools were repaired. All of these efforts have worked, as the illiteracy rate has halved from 90% in 1999 to 45% in 2009!

Other areas in which gender inequality exists are within culture and government, migration, health, employment, birth ratios and legal rights and land ownership. Not all countries with gender inequality issues are third world countries. Infact, some are the most developed. Places like China, Switzerland and The United Kingdom all suffer from gender inequality. This might show that gender inequality does exist to some extent in all countries of the world, not just less developed countries because they don’t have the money to over come the problem. China’s a very good example of the birth ratios gender inequality issue.

It is estimated there that men will outnumber women by 30 million by 2020. And in 2005, china’s birth rate was 119 males to every 100 females, in some provinces it went up to 140 males. According to feminist writers in China, it is because Chinese people would rather have a son, as they’re considered more useful, they also say that son preference is seen as blunt gender discrimination. Overall it’s common for one to think that the statement “Gender inequality exists to some extent, in most areas of society, in all countries of the world” is very much true.

All the evidence points towards geographically spread gender inequality worldwide, not just certain countries in which one might assume to suffer from gender inequality. Yemen, Ethiopia, Kuwait and Sub-Saharan Africa are all strong examples of less economically developed countries suffering from gender inequality, and UK, Switzerland and China more economically developed countries also suffering from gender inequality – however all are affected by politics, education, employment and health.

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