Discriminating against women keeps countries poor

In 100 countries around the world, women are barred from doing certain work solely because they are women. Over 150 countries have at least one law that is discriminatory towards women. And only 18 countries are free of any law disadvantaging women.

This is just the tip of the iceberg of legal barriers for women to achieve their full economic potential. New World Bank Group research in the Women, Business and the Law 2016 report shows that in 32 countries women cannot apply for passports in the same way as men and in 18 countries they cannot get a job if their husbands feel it is not in the family's interest.

Countries whose laws discriminate against women and do not promote gender equality suffer economically. Previous research tells us that gender gaps in women's entrepreneurship and labor force participation account for estimated income losses of 27 percent in the Middle East and North Africa, 19 percent in South Asia, 14 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean and 10 percent in Europe. These are losses that many countries can't afford, particularly those facing high levels of poverty.