Promoting Women's Economic Empowerment : What Works?

A review of rigorous evaluations of interventions that seek to empower women economically shows that the same class of interventions has significantly different outcomes depending on the client. Capital alone, as a small cash loan or grant, is not...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors:	Buvinic, Mayra, Furst-Nichols, Rebecca
Format:	Policy Research Working Paper
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank Group, Washington, DC 2014
Subjects:	ACCESS TO CREDIT ACCESS TO LOANS ACCOUNTING ACCOUNTING PRACTICES ADOLESCENT GIRLS ADULT WOMEN AGE GROUPS ATM ATM CARDS ATTRITION AUTONOMY AVERAGE WAGES BANK ACCOUNT BANK ACCOUNTS BANKS BARGAINING BARGAINING POWER BASIC LITERACY BENEFICIARIES BENEFICIARY BORROWING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT BUSINESS PROFITABILITY BUSINESS TRAINING CASH TRANSFER CASH TRANSFERS CHILD CARE CLASSROOM CLASSROOM TRAINING CONTRIBUTION CREDIT ACCESS DEBT DECISION MAKING DELIVERY MECHANISMS DEPOSIT DEPOSITS DEVELOPMENT BANK DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS DISCRIMINATION DISPLACEMENT EARNINGS EARNINGS OF WOMEN ECONOMIC COSTS ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC SHOCK ECONOMICS ENROLLMENT ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS ENTREPRENEURSHIP EXCHANGE RATES FAMILY MEMBERS FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS FEMALE PARTICIPANTS FEMALE-OWNED BUSINESSES FINANCIAL GOAL FINANCIAL INCENTIVES FINANCIAL LITERACY FINANCIAL PRODUCTS FINANCIAL SERVICES FINANCIAL STUDIES FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS GENDER GENDER DIFFERENCES GENDER EQUALITY GENDER GAPS GENDER NORMS GENDER SEGREGATION GIRLS GROWTH OF WOMEN HOUSEHOLD EXPENDITURES HOUSEHOLD EXPENSES HOUSEHOLD FINANCES HOUSEHOLD INCOME HOUSEHOLD INCOMES HOUSEWIVES HUMAN CAPITAL INCENTIVES TO SAVE INCOME INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME LEVELS INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTS INNOVATIONS INTERVENTIONS INVENTORY INVESTMENT CHOICE INVESTMENT DECISIONS JOB SEARCH JOB SEARCH ASSISTANCE JOB TRAINING KNOWLEDGE GAPS LABOR FORCE LABOR MARKET LABOR MARKET POLICIES LABOR RELATIONS LABOR SUPPLY LABOUR LARGE FIRMS LEARNING LIABILITY LIFE SKILLS LITERACY CLASSES LOAN LOAN PRODUCTS LOCAL GOVERNMENT LOCAL GOVERNMENTS LOW COST LOW-INCOME LOWER INCOMES MARKET ENTRY MARRIED COUPLES MARRIED MEN MARRIED WOMEN MICROFINANCE MINIMUM WAGE MONTHLY INCOMES NET SAVINGS NUMERACY OCCUPATIONAL TRAINING OCCUPATIONS ORPHANS PENALTIES PERSONAL SAVINGS PERSONALITY PERSONALITY TRAITS POOR WOMEN PROBABILITIES PROBABILITY PRODUCTIVITY REPAYMENT RIGHTS FOR WOMEN RISK AVERSION RISK TAKING RURAL WOMEN SALARY SALES SAVINGS SAVINGS ACCOUNT SAVINGS ACCOUNTS SAVINGS GOAL SECONDARY EDUCATION SELF-EMPLOYMENT SENIOR SEXES SEXUAL BEHAVIOR SKILLS TRAINING SMALL BUSINESSES SMALL LOAN SOCIAL PROTECTION TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TECHNICAL SKILLS TEMPORARY EMPLOYMENT TRAINING COURSES TRAINING PROGRAM TRAINING PROGRAMS TRANSACTION TRANSACTION COSTS TRANSITION ECONOMIES TRANSPORT UNEMPLOYED UNEMPLOYED PEOPLE UNEMPLOYED WORKERS UNEMPLOYMENT UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS UNITED NATIONS URBAN WOMEN VALUABLE VOCATIONAL EDUCATION VOCATIONAL TRAINING WAGE WAGE GAP WAGE SUBSIDIES WAGES WITHDRAWAL WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS WOMEN FARMERS WOMEN IN BUSINESS WORK EXPERIENCE WORK HOURS WORKING WOMEN YOUNG ADULTS YOUNG PEOPLE YOUNG WOMEN YOUNGER PEOPLE YOUNGER WORKERS YOUTH YOUTH EMPLOYMENT
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2014/11/20346367/promoting-womens-economic-empowerment-works http://hdl.handle.net/10986/20629

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Summary:	A review of rigorous evaluations of interventions that seek to empower women economically shows that the same class of interventions has significantly different outcomes depending on the client. Capital alone, as a small cash loan or grant, is not sufficient to grow women-owned subsistence-level firms. However, it can work if it is delivered in-kind to more successful women microentrepreneurs, and it should boost the performance of women's larger-sized SMEs. Very poor women need a more intensive package of services than do less poor women to break out of subsistence production and grow their businesses. What works for young women does not necessarily work for adult women. Skills training, job search assistance, internships, and wage subsidies increase the employment levels of adult women but do not raise wages. However, similar interventions increase young women's employability and earnings if social restrictions are not binding. Women who run subsistence-level firms face additional social constraints when compared to similar men, thus explaining the differences in the outcomes of some loans, grants, and training interventions that favor men. Social constraints may also play a role in explaining women's outcome gains that are short-lasting or emerge with a delay. The good news is that many of the additional constraints that women face can be overcome by simple, inexpensive adjustments in program design that lessen family and social pressures. These include providing capital in-kind or transacted through the privacy of a mobile phone and providing secure savings accounts to nudge women to keep the money in the business rather than to divert it to non-business uses.

Promoting Women's Economic Empowerment : What Works?

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