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REDUCING GLOBAL POVERTY: The Role of Women in Development AStatement by the Research and Policy Committee of the Committee for Economic Development July 2003 CED is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization of business leaders and educators that has worked for sixty years to address the critical economic and social issues facing American society. REDUCING GLOBAL POVERTY: The Role of Women in Development AStatement by the Research and Policy Committee of the Committee for Economic Development July 2003 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data How economies grow : the ced perspective on raising the long-term standard of living : a statement on national policy / by the Research and Policy Committee of the Committee for Economic Development. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-00000-000-X 1. Economics—United States. I. Committee for Economic Development. Research and Policy Committee. QA00.L00 2003 510’.71’073—dc21 2003043432 First printing in bound-book form: 2003 Paperback: $15.00 Printed in the United States of America Design: Rowe Design Group COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 261 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10016 (212) 688-2063 2000 L Street, N.W., Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036 (202) 296-5860 www.ced.org CONTENTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR CED STATEMENTS ON NATIONAL POLICY........................................iv PURPOSE OF THIS STATEMENT......................................................................................................vi EXECUTIVE SUMMARY...............................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION....................................................................................................................................2 THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN PRODUCTION.........................................................................................4 Agriculture.................................................................................................................................................4 Industry/Export Trade..............................................................................................................................5 Entrepreneurship, Retail Trade, and Services.........................................................................................6 THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN THE FAMILY ...........................................................................................8 REMOVING RESTRICTIONS ON WOMEN’S ACCESS TO RESOURCES .....................................9 Education ...................................................................................................................................................9 Health and Nutrition...............................................................................................................................11 Physical and Financial Capital ................................................................................................................ 12 Land Use and Property............................................................................................................................14 CONCLUSION .......................................................................................................................................16 ENDNOTES ............................................................................................................................................17 OBJECTIVES OF THE COMMITTEE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT..................................19 iii RESPONSIBILITY FOR CED STATEMENTS ON NATIONAL POLICY The Committee for Economic Develop- specific legislative proposals; its purpose is to ment is an independent research and policy urge careful consideration of the objectives set organization of some 250 business leaders and forth in this statement and of the best means of educators. CED is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and accomplishing those objectives. nonpolitical. Its purpose is to propose policies Each statement is preceded by extensive dis- that bring about steady economic growth at cussions, meetings, and exchange of memo- high employment and reasonably stable prices, randa. The research is undertaken by a sub- increased productivity and living standards, committee, assisted by advisors chosen for their greater and more equal opportunity for every competence in the field under study. citizen, and an improved quality of life for all. The full Research and Policy Committee All CED policy recommendations must have participates in the drafting of recommenda- the approval of Trustees on the Research and tions. Likewise, the trustees on the drafting Policy Committee. This committee is directed subcommittee vote to approve or disapprove a under the bylaws, which emphasize that “all policy statement, and they share with the research is to be thoroughly objective in char- Research and Policy Committee the privilege acter, and the approach in each instance is to of submitting individual comments for publica- be from the standpoint of the general welfare tion. and not from that of any special political or economic group.” The committee is aided by a The recommendations presented herein are those Research Advisory Board of leading social sci- of the Trustee members of the Research and Policy entists and by a small permanent professional Committee and the responsible subcommittee. They staff. are not necessarily endorsed by other Trustees or by The Research and Policy Committee does nontrustee subcommittee members, advisors, contrib- not attempt to pass judgment on any pending utors, staff members, or others associated with CED. iv RESEARCH AND POLICY COMMITTEE Co-Chairmen GEORGE H. CONRADES CHARLES R. LEE Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Chairman PATRICK W. GROSS Akamai Technologies, Inc. Verizon Communications Chairman, The Lovell Group Founder and Senior Advisor, AMS RONALD R. DAVENPORT ALONZO L. MCDONALD Chairman of the Board Chairman and Chief Executive Officer BRUCE K. MACLAURY Sheridan Broadcasting Corporation Avenir Group, Inc. President Emeritus The Brookings Institution JOHN DIEBOLD NICHOLAS G. MOORE Chairman Chairman Emeritus John Diebold Incorporated PricewaterhouseCoopers Vice Chairmen FRANK P. DOYLE STEFFEN E. PALKO IAN ARNOF Retired Executive Vice President Vice Chairman and President Retired Chairman General Electric XTO Energy Inc. Bank One, Louisiana, N.A. T.J. DERMOT DUNPHY CAROL J. PARRY CLIFTON R. WHARTON, JR. Chairman President Former Chairman and Chief Executive Kildare Enterprises, LLC Corporate Social Responsibility Officer Associates TIAA-CREF CHRISTOPHER D. EARL Managing Director VICTOR A. PELSON Perseus Capital, LLC Senior Advisor UBS Warburg LLC W. D. EBERLE REX D. ADAMS Chairman PETER G. PETERSON Professor of Business Administration Manchester Associates, Ltd. Chairman The Fuqua School of Business The Blackstone Group Duke University EDMUND B. FITZGERALD Managing Director NED REGAN ALAN BELZER Woodmont Associates President Retired President and Chief Operating Baruch College Officer HARRY L. FREEMAN AlliedSignal Inc. Chair JAMES Q. RIORDAN The Mark Twain Institute Chairman PETER A. BENOLIEL Quentin Partners Co. Chairman, Executive Committee BARBARA B. GROGAN Quaker Chemical Corporation President LANDON H. ROWLAND Western Industrial Contractors Chairman ROY J. BOSTOCK Janus Capital Group Chairman Emeritus, Executive RICHARD W. HANSELMAN Committee Chairman GEORGE RUPP Bcom3 Group, Inc. Health Net Inc. President International Rescue Committee FLETCHER L. BYROM RODERICK M. HILLS President and Chief Executive Officer Chairman ROCCO C. SICILIANO MICASU Corporation Hills Enterprises, Ltd. Beverly Hills, California DONALD R. CALDWELL MATINA S. HORNER MATTHEW J. STOVER Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Executive Vice President President Cross Atlantic Capital Partners TIAA-CREF LKM Ventures JOHN B. CAVE H.V. JONES ARNOLD R. WEBER Principal Managing Director President Emeritus Avenir Group, Inc. Korn/Ferry International Northwestern University CAROLYN CHIN EDWARD A. KANGAS JOSH S. WESTON Chairman Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Honorary Chairman Commtouch/C3 Partners Retired Automatic Data Processing, Inc. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu A. W. CLAUSEN DOLORES D. WHARTON Retired Chairman and Chief Executive JOSEPH E. KASPUTYS Former Chairman and Chief Officer Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer BankAmerica Corporation Executive Officer The Fund for Corporate Initiatives, Inc. Global Insight, Inc. JOHN L. CLENDENIN MARTIN B. ZIMMERMAN Retired Chairman CHARLES E.M. KOLB Group Vice President, Corporate BellSouth Corporation President Affairs Committee for Economic Development Ford Motor Company *Voted to approve the policy statement but submitted memoranda of comment, reservation, or dissent, See page 41 v THE PURPOSE OF THIS STATEMENT In May 2002, CED released a policy state- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ment, A Shared Future: Reducing Global Poverty, This program statement was developed by which called on leaders of global enterprises CED staff under the guidance of the co-chairs “to rally public and private support for a strategy to of CED’s Subcommittee on Globalization, overcome global poverty.” This program state- Edmund Fitzgerald and Paula Stern. We are ment provides greater background and deep- grateful for the time, effort, and care they put er analysis than could be attained in the initial into the development of this report. policy statement with regard to the important The report was drafted by Elliot Schwartz, role played by women in both economic and Vice President and