Gender Inequality Gap

Inequality against women is historical, global and persistent. The gender inequality gap in access to and control over productive resources such as land, natural resources, credit facilities, technology and other means of production correlates with women’s poverty and socioeconomic exclusion (Agarwal, 2007; Doss et al, 2006; UN Women and OHCHR, 2013; Commission on the Status of Women, 2014), whereas access to and control of assets is central to women’s socioeconomic wellbeing (World Survey, 2009; Meinzen-Dick et al, 2011; Dickson and Bangpan, 2012; UN Women and OHCHR, 2013). For this reason, global attempts towards development have in recent times, given much responsiveness to gender gap issues to ensure that men and women have equal gains

According to Data collected by the Gender Asset Gap project for Ghana, the gender analysis of asset and wealth Gap portrays a 70-30 percent male-female gap respectively in ownership of household wealth. The 30 percent of household assets owned by women are generally less valuable assets. 64% of agricultural land is owned by men while women own 29% of small livestock and 34% of poultry. Household consumer durables such as refrigerators, even though used more by women than men, are predominantly owned by men. Likewise mobile phones, motorized vehicles including cars, trucks, motorcycles and scooters are mostly associated with and owned by men. It is one thing owning an asset and another owning the value of that asset. The asset gap report indicates that women not only own less valuable assets, but also own less of their assets’ value (Doss et al, 2011: 5; Meinzen-Dick et al, 2011; Oduro et al, 2012). It is only in business ownership that women have an upper hand over men. Even so, they own less of their business wealth (Doss et al, 2011; Deere et al, 2012: 25; Oduro et al,

Some of the barriers to women’s access to and control of productive assets across different contexts include lack of legal provision and inadequate implementation at both the national and local or community levels. (World Suevey, 2009; Dickson and Bangpan, 2012; GENDERNET, 2012; Commission on the Status of Women: Fifty-eigth session, 2014). Gender disparities in labour market conditions such as wage earnings, job positions and work benefits significantly affect women’s ability to own properties and engage them to create wealth for themselves. Not only are they paid lower salaries than men, women are also mostly employed for the low paying jobs and have restrained access to family income leaving them at a greater poverty risk. (Soni, 2008; GENDERNET, 2012; Meinzen-Dick,