Policy Briefs
Towards Greater Gender Diversity in the Workplace in Egypt
No.
PB 50
Publisher
Economic Research Forum
Date
November, 2019
Topic
J. Labor and Demographic Economics
In a nutshell
- One of the main challenges facing the Egyptian economy is that it is not making the best use of half of the population, as the rate women’s participation in the labor force is among the lowest in the world. Worse yet, their participation is declining over time, as public sector jobs are become scarcer, and the formal private sector is unable to sufficiently absorb new women entering the labor market.
- This phenomenon persists despite growing evidence in support of a positive association between women’s employment and firm productivity and wages, especially in knowledge-intensive services and high-tech manufacturing.
- If policymakers were to take corrective actions to enhance women’s economic empowerment, they could: (i) adopt policies to mitigate private sector disincentives to hire women, and improve working conditions, (ii) directly support segments of the labor market that employ higher shares of women, such as education and healthcare provision, as well as export-oriented manufacturers, and (iii), improve the business environment for private sector development and employment generation that would empower both men and women.
Research Fellows
Rami Galal
Economist, The World Bank
Research Fellows
Mona Said
Professor of Economics, Economics Department, The American...