Gender Equality, Poverty and Economic Growth

This paper reviews empirical findings
from economic analyses of the role of gender equality and
women's empowerment in reducing poverty and stimulating
growth. Going beyond the large literature documenting the
impact of female education on a range of development
outcomes, the paper presents evidence on the impact of
women's access to markets (labor, land, and credit) and
women's decision-making power within households on
poverty reduction and productivity at the individual and
household level. The paper also summarizes evidence from
studies examining the relationship between gender equality
and poverty reduction and growth at the macro level.
Although micro level effects of gender equality on
individual productivity and human development outcomes have
been well documented and have important ramifications for
aggregate economic performance, establishing an empirical
relationship between gender equality and poverty reduction
and growth at the macro level has proven to be more
challenging. The paper concludes by identifying priority
areas for future research.