Gender Equality and Women Empowerment in Developing Societies

Abstract

The issue of gender equality and women empowerment is still of interest in the discourse of sustainable development, especially in the Third world where the structural inequalities still limit the social, economic, and political participation of women. Gender inequalities in education, employment, access to health facilities and influence over decision making are prevalent and despite international agreements like the United Nations sustainable development goal 5 gender inequalities remain. This paper will discuss the conceptual underpinnings, structural factors and developmental consequences of gender equality and women empowerment in developing nations. Based on a quantitative research orientation founded on the current empirical evidence, the study identifies the influence of institutional structures, cultural practices, economic reliance, and gaps of the policy-implementation process on the emergence of women empowerment results. The paper also highlights how gender equality is related to overall socio-economic development, because women empowerment is a major factor of reducing poverty, developing human capital, and democracy. Drawing evidence on the developing regions, this paper highlights the importance of context-sensitive policies, inclusive governance, and indicators of empowerment. The results are important to further scholarly and policy discussions as they provide an overall insight into gender equality as a human right requirement and developmental strategic instrument in developing societies.