Conakry, MALI, 9 May 2023 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/Women and girls in Guinea face significant barriers to accessing the same opportunities as men, according to a new World Bank report titled Unleashing the Potential of Women and Girls: The Status of Women and Girls Compared to Men and Boys in Guinea and which emphasizes the common phenomenon of early family formation and its implications for family well-being and opportunity.
Guinea, ranked 182 out of 191 in 2021, in the United Nations Development Program Gender Inequality Index is one of the most gender unequal countries in the world. The economic repercussions of this inequality are all the more worrying as almost half of the rural population remains poor, 38% of children work, approximately one in three children under the age of five suffers from stunted growth and that one in 10 dies before the age of nine.
« Efforts to promote the rights and well-being of women can bring benefits to all of Guinean society,” affirms Miriam Muller, senior social scientist at the World Bank.
Despite progress over the past decades in primary and secondary school enrollment rates for girls and boys, overall school completion rates remain a concern, particularly among women and girls in rural areas. The latter being clearly more likely than boys not to attend secondary school. In terms of health, Guinea also has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, probably linked to the high incidence of female genital mutilation.
Lack of investment in human capital increases women’s poverty risks, and their overall participation in the labor market remains below the Sub-Saharan African average in terms of job quality marked by informality, self-employment and vulnerability. They also appear to be disadvantaged in accessing and owning productive assets and finances.
Moreover, with one of the highest rates of child marriage in the world and resulting from socio-cultural norms, beliefs and perceptions of gender roles, this practice has important implications for the way in which women participate in economic activities and exercise their free will. Early marriage increases their risk of facing domestic violence, the incidence of which is particularly high in Guinea.
“The report provides strategic guidance in all the dimensions highlighted that apply to the Guinean context,” dclarify Nestor Coffi, World Bank Resident Representative in Guinea. “Efforts to empower women to realize their potential must focus on the following objectives: education, improved access to health care, employment and increased economic empowerment. »
In light of the multidimensional aspects of gender equality, it is crucial to launch comprehensive and multisectoral policies to close existing gender gaps and which must be based on existing evidence and data.
Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) for World Bank.
Source : African Media Agency (AMA)