Gender and Waste Nexus: Experiences from Bhutan, Mongolia and Nepal

GENDER INDICATORS, BHUTAN - 2018

Bhutan

40%

FEMALE LABOUR FORCE (% OF TOTAL LABOUR FORCE)

CAN A WOMAN LEGALLY GET A JOB IN THE SAME WAY AS A MAN? CAN A WOMAN LEGALLY REGISTER A BUSINESS IN THE SAME WAY AS A MAN? DO SONS AND DAUGHTERS HAVE EQUAL INHERITANCE RIGHTS? IS THERE PAID MATERNITY LEAVE OF AT LEAST 14 WEEKS? DOES THE GOVERNMENT SUPPORT OR PROVIDE CHILDCARE SERVICES? DOES THE LAW MANDATE EQUAL REMUNERATION FOR WORK OF EQUAL VALUE? DOES THE LAW MANDATE NON-DISCRIMINATION BASED ON GENDER IN EMPLOYMENT? IS DISMISSAL OF PREGNANT WORKERS PROHIBITED? IS DISCRIMINATION BASED ON GENDER PROHIBITED IN ACCESS TO CREDIT? IS THERE LEGISLATION ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN EMPLOYMENT? ARE THERE CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR SEXUAL HARASSMENT IN EMPLOYMENT?

Source: World Bank, Women, Business and the Law 2018 .

RANK

SCORE 0.619 0.917 0.960 0.056 0.638

E

C

S

104 /149 125 /149 141 /149 138 /149 122 /149

O

C

ECONOMIC PARTICIPATION AND OPPORTUNITY

I

N

T

O

I

L

M

O

Y

P

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT HEALTH AND SURVIVAL POLITICAL EMPOWERMENT GLOBAL GENDER GAP SCORE

N

H

O

E

T I

A

L

A

T

C

H

U

D

E

Bhutan score Average score

Sources: World Economic Forum, The Global Gender Gap Report 2018 ; Royal Civil Service Commission, Bhutan Civil Service Rules and Regulations 2018 .

Figure 17

particularly due to women’s household responsibilities, is often a barrier to the development of career ambitions.

were elected (Dorji and Wangmo 2018). While this progress is important, only 15 per cent of the elected members are women. Even though women and men enjoy the same legal rights in Bhutan, women are increasingly very well educated (especially the younger generation) and enjoy quite a large degree of freedom, thanks to the significant protection for them in national legislations. However, this does not translate into the job market, nor in the representation of women in decision-making positions and politics. A recent study suggests that a “glass ceiling” explains the dearth of women in high political positions (Verma and Ura 2015), and that gender perspectives remain under the influence of older behaviours and stereotypes that suggest women do not make good leaders. Strong cultural rules bind women to the cleaning, cooking and caretaking roles they have always held. The Government of Bhutan collects data on Gross National Happiness (GNH), an indicator of the population’s collective well-being and happiness.

Gender parity in the employment of men and women without education could be achieved, but in general, the higher the education, the larger the level of disparity. For example, at the bachelor’s level, twice as many men are employed as women, while at the master´s level, only 15 per cent of all employed people are women (Bhutan, Ministry of Labour and Human Resources 2016). Despite its recent steps to close the gender gap, Bhutan ranks only 122 out of 149 on the Global Gender Gap Index (WEF 2018). While this ranking is disproportionally low compared with some of the advances made in educational attainment in recent years, it is mainly attributable to gaps in labour participation and to the low participation of women in politics. Of the 188 candidates that stood in the 2018 primary elections for the National Assembly, only 19werewomen (down from 31 in 2013). In the second round, only 10 women remained (compared with 11 in 2013). In 2013, four women were eventually elected but in 2018, seven of the 10 female candidates

65 Gender and waste nexus