Status of women and girls around the world:

Facts and figures (provided by the Global Fund for Women)

Status of women

Women have not achieved equality with men in any country.

Of the world’s 1.3 billion poor people, it is estimated that nearly 70 per cent are women.

Between 75 and 80 per cent of the world’s 27 million refugees are women and children. Women’s life expectancy, educational attainment and income are highest in Sweden, Canada, Norway, USA and Finland.

Violence

Gender-based violence against women – female infanticide, sexual trafficking and exploitation, dowry killing and domestic violence – causes more death and disability among women in the 15 to 44 age group than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents and war combined (Center for Women Policy Studies, 2003).

During the past 30 years, 30 million women and children have been trafficked for sexual exploitation (United Nations, 2003).

An estimated 130 million women worldwide have undergone female genital mutilation and 2 million more are mutilated every year (Center for Reproductive Rights, 2002).

Worldwide, 20 to 50 per cent of women experience some degree of domestic violence during marriage.

The primary victims of today’s wars are civilian women and their children, not soldiers (International Parenthood Federation, 2002).

Health status

More than half a million women die from complications related to pregnancy and childbirth every year. 99 per cent of those deaths occur in the developing world (World Health Organization, 2004).

An estimated 20 million unsafe abortions are performed worldwide every year, resulting in the deaths of 70,000women (United Nations Population Fund, 2003).

Access to education

Of the world’s 979 million illiterate adults, two-thirds are women (UNDP Human Development Report, 2003).

Two-thirds of the 130 million children worldwide who are not in school are girls (United Nations Population Fund, 2002).

Political Participation

The first country to grant women the right to vote was New Zealand in 1893. Some countries still do not have universal suffrage. Among them are Brunei, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (Women in Politics, 2003).

 In 2003, at least 54 countries had discriminatory laws against women (Amnesty International, 2003).

Of the 185 highest-ranking diplomats to the United Nations, seven are women. The percentage of female cabinet ministers worldwide has risen from 3.4 in 1987 to 6.8 per cent in 1996.

Of more than 180 countries only 16 are headed by women (Women in
Politics, 2010).

Economic status

Only 1 per cent of the world’s assets are in the name of women.

The majority of women earn on average about three-fourths of the pay of males for the same work, outside of the agricultural sector, in both developed and developing countries.

In most countries, women work approximately twice the unpaid time men do.

www.mpg.de

Language focus

1. Match the words to make relevant collocations. Translate them into Russian/ Belarusian.

abject	order
maternity	goal
relentless	lie
reverse	conditions
male-dominated	struggle
adverse	retreats
blatant	impunity
elusive	poverty
total	leave
humiliating	world

 

 

1. Explain the meaning of the following expressions.

– to advance the status of women;

– empowered women;

– half of the world’s talent pool;

– women enjoy a veneer of equality;

– to close the inequality gaps;

– to (re)enter the workforce;

– educational attainments;

– relevant vocational skills;

– to generate support;

– social-welfare policy;

– unemployment insurance provisions.

 

1. Fill in the spaces with the word from your functional vocabulary that fits in all three spaces.

A.	1. During this period, Japan’s export industries were in top ……. .
	2. The party is ….. up for the election.
	3. Don’t turn off the engine while you are still in ….. .
B.	1. The court of appeal ….. the original verdict and set the prisoner free.
	2. They …. the normal order of the ceremony and started with prayers.
	3. Before you …. , make sure there are no pedestrians behind you.
C.	1. The children hunted for crabs in the ….. between the rocks.
	2. His desk lamp cast a …. of light on the documents.
	3. A …. of volunteers for community projects were discussing their plans.
D.	1. He saw her and …. , too shy to speak to her.
	2. The flood waters are slowly ….. .
	3. Current economic problems have forced the government to …. from its pledge to cut taxes.

 

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