Armenia Country Gender Assessment Armenia has made steady improvements in gender equality over the years through a strategic focus on integrating gender concerns into operations of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in the country. This report examines Armenia’s progress in achieving gender equality in the government, economy, society, and culture. It analyzes gender issues in key sectors such as energy, transport, and urban development as well as the challenges of mainstreaming gender equality and promoting women’s empowerment in ADB programs and projects. Developed in cooperation with the government and other partners, this country gender assessment identifies gender entry points to improve gender equality outcomes and ultimately intends to be a guide in developing and implementing policies, programs, and projects with a social and gender perspective. About the Asian Development Bank ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members —49 from the region. Its main instruments for helping its developing member countries are policy dialogue, loans, equity investments, guarantees, grants, and technical assistance. ARMENIA COUNTRY GENDER ASSESSMENT DECEMBER 2019 ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK www.adb.org ARMENIA COUNTRY GENDER ASSESSMENT DECEMBER 2019 ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO) © 2019 Asian Development Bank 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City, 1550 Metro Manila, Philippines Tel +63 2 8632 4444; Fax +63 2 8636 2444 www.adb.org Some rights reserved. Published in 2019. ISBN 978-92-9261-952-7 (print), 978-92-9261-953-4 (electronic) Publication Stock No. TCS190601-2 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22617/TCS190601-2 The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or its Board of Governors or the governments they represent. ADB does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibility for any consequence of their use. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by ADB in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. By making any designation of or reference to a particular territory or geographic area, or by using the term “country” in this document, ADB does not intend to make any judgments as to the legal or other status of any territory or area. 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Corrigenda to ADB publications may be found at http://www.adb.org/publications/corrigenda. Note: In this publication, “$” refers to United States dollars. On the cover: Gender equality and women’s empowerment are key priorities of ADB in Armenia. ADB-supported projects have helped deliver social services and expand livelihood opportunities in various sectors (ADB photo library). Executive Summary iii Contents Tables and Figures iv Acknowledgments v Abbreviations vi Executive Summary vii I. Introduction 1 A. Purpose 1 B. Methodology 1 II. Context 2 A. Political Context 2 B. Socioeconomic Development Context 4 C. Key Indicators on Gender Equality 5 D. National Policies and International Commitments on Gender Equality 8 E. Institutions and Mandates 12 F. Gender Statistics 13 III. Crosscutting Gender Equality Issues 15 A. Participation in Decision-Making 15 B. Economic Empowerment 19 C. Human Development 26 D. Reduced Vulnerability to Risks and Shocks 38 E. Reduced Time Poverty 41 F. Gender Norms and Attitudes 42 IV. ADB Portfolio Sectors 44 A. Pillar 1: Diversified Growth 45 B. Pillar 2: Wider Inclusiveness 64 VI. Conclusion 80 Appendixes 1 Summary of Recommendations for ADB Portfolio Sectors 81 2 List of Agencies for Key Informant Interviews 89 iii iv Executive Summary Tables and Figures Tables 1 Gender Gap Rankings in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, 2018 7 2 Values for Global Gender Gap Subindexes, 2018 7 3 Rate of Enrollment in Preprimary Institutions 27 4 Comparative Reproductive Health Figures 31 5 Key Findings from Demographic Health Survey, 2011–2016 32 6 Changes in Female and Male Life Expectancy 33 Figures 1 Comparison of Human Development Report Values for 2000 and 2017 6 2 Response to World Values Survey: Men Make Better Political Leaders than Women, 2014 16 3 Representation of Women and Men in Civil Service by Level of Position, 2017 18 4 Number of Women in the Judiciary, 2017 18 5 Number of Women in Prosecutorial Office, 2017 19 6 Labor Force Participation by Sex, 2017 20 7 Male and Female Labor Force Participation Rate, 2000–2017 20 8 Sectors of Employment by Sex, 2017 22 9 Occupational Category by Sex, 2017 23 10 Comparison of Male and Female Education Indicators, 2018 28 11 Female-to-Male Ratio of Enrollment in Tertiary Education Levels, 2017 28 12 Male and Female Postgraduate Enrollment and Completion Rates, 2017 29 13 Female and Male Students by Field of Study at Bachelor Level, 2017 30 14 Teachers Disaggregated by Sex, 2017 30 15 In Agreement with “Women Having the Same Rights as Men Is an Essential 42 Characteristic of Democracy” iv Executive Summary v Acknowledgments This country gender assessment (CGA) was researched and written by Kathleen McLaughlin with the assistance of Anoush Khachatryan. The CGA was prepared under the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Regional Technical Assistance 9088: Strengthening Gender-Inclusive Growth in Central and West Asia. The overall CGA process was supervised and managed by ADB’s Central and West Asia Department gender team comprising Mary Alice Rosero (social development specialist on gender and development), Gladys Puzon Franco (social development officer on gender), Maria Lisa Alano (gender and development consultant), and Fritz Tuliao who facilitated the financial and logistical arrangements. We also acknowledge the important contributions of staff from the ADB Armenia Resident Mission in Yerevan, specifically Paolo Spantigati, country director and Shane Rosenthal, former country director. Ketevan Chkheidze is the international implementation consultant and gender specialist. The ARM CGA could not have been produced without the full support of the Central and West Asia Department management team: Jesper Klindt Petersen, head and advisor of the Portfolio, Results, Safeguards, and Gender Unit; Nianshan Zhang, deputy director general; and Werner Liepach, director general. The report benefited from valuable inputs of reviewers from the divisions at ADB Headquarters in Manila namely CWRD Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination; CWRD Public Management, Financial Sector, and Trade; CWRD Social Safeguards; CWRD Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture; Southeast Asia Department; and Gender Equity Thematic Group. The CGA team would like to convey appreciation to the Government of Armenia: Department of Family, Women and Children’s Issues; Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs; Ministry of Finance (External/Donor Relations); Ministry of Economic Development and Investments (Small and Medium Entrepreneurship Development National Center of Armenia for women’s entrepreneurship project); Ministry of Transport, Communication and Information Technologies; Ministry of Education and Science; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Agriculture; State Statistical Committee; and Yerevan Municipality for participating in the interviews and shedding light on the policies and programs contributing to gender equality and women’s empowerment. We are also grateful to our development partners and civil society organizations, who provided fresh perspectives on the issues. Finally, we express our gratitude to the individual women in the communities, who shared their stories and insights on how ADB projects and other social interventions improved their lives. v vi Executive Summary Abbreviations ADB Asian Development Bank AWSC Armenian Water and Sewerage Company BDS business development services CCA climate change adaptation CEDAW Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women CGA country gender assessment CPS country partnership strategy CSO civil society organization DFWCI Department of Family, Women and Children’s Issues DHS demographic and health survey DRR disaster risk reduction EU European Union GAP gender action plan GBV gender-based violence GDP gross domestic product GGGI global gender gap index GRB gender-responsive budgeting HDI human development index ICT information and communication