Does gender inequality still exist in the 21st century? Gender equality and women empowerment are represented as SDG 5; however, there is little possibility of achieving this goal by 2030. The percentage of women in leadership roles around the world had hardly changed from 2015 to 2020, with Northern Africa and Western Asia having the lowest rate (12.2%) of women in managerial posts. The COVID-19 pandemic together with cultural stereotypes in handling housework has contributed to employment losses and an increase in unpaid care work among women worldwide (United Nations, 2022). It is also more difficult for women to get employed and receive the same salary as their male counterparts. Not only do women face harsher evaluations in the workplace, but many people still believe that it is unacceptable for them to be employed in paid work (Charoensilp et al., 2024; International Labour Organization, 2022). In a way, belief in the latter can jeopardize women and girls’ access to quality education, which eventually limits their choices to lower-paying jobs with less autonomy making them vulnerable to discrimination. (International Labour Organization, 2024).

How can we end this disparity? It is unfortunate that gender inequality is deep-rooted and systemic in many societies, and equal representation between men and women will take decades to achieve. As cliché as it seems, education is still considered the key to bridging this disparity. Women should be equipped with the hard skills needed to work in fields related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), which are traditionally dominated by men. On-the-job training (OJT) opportunities and mentorship programs are equally essential to acquire highly specialized skills that lead to jobs with better working conditions. Existing gender segregation in STEM-related jobs should be addressed on an institutional level and training for future green economy jobs related to renewable energy, water and sanitation should specifically include women (United Nations Development Programme, 2019). Skills development is a powerful means for women to be empowered as it increases the chances for them to access more stable employment with better income.

However, training women with the technical skills needed for work is not enough. Education must also instill the concept of gender equality in both boys and girls early on so that men do not feel insecure about having female colleagues or superiors in the future. Women should be encouraged to have a positive and confident view of themselves as individuals who are capable of achieving as much as the men in their society. This process is called gender sensitization (Dash et al., 2008). In the SKY Project’s training need assessment for the employable capacity development of women in Pakistan (Yamada et al., 2024), results have shown that an inclusive workplace with managers who are not biased against female workers helps improve the productivity of women through equal OJT and soft skills training opportunities, eventually resulting in an increase in the company’s productivity.

It is, therefore, essential for government and private institutions to respond better to the needs of both men and women employees. With only 53% of female labor force participation in the world (World Bank, 2022), infrastructures such as safe restrooms, day-care facilities (United Nations Development Programme, 2019), and maternity hospitals are needed to ensure that women can return to the workforce after having their own families. These are particularly important in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and South Asia, where female labor force participation rates are less than 30% (World Bank, 2022).

In the end, change has to happen within – what men and women think they can do with their abilities – and around the individual – societal structures that promote gender equality – to ensure that whatever skills learned are actually utilized in the labor market. Having women contribute to the workforce increases economic stability which, in turn, raises their self-esteem. This cycle creates a positive relationship between psychology and the economy and can enable women to make decisions about their lives more independently. Hopefully, when this is achieved, the great gender divide can also be bridged.

Keywords: SDG5, gender inequality, skills development, empowerment, training and development, independence in women through education, skyproject, スキルトレーニング, 男女不平等, エンパワーメント, 教育を通じて女性の自立

References:
Charoensilp, P., Yamada, S., Shimazu, Y., & Estrellado, E. (2024). Initial findings of the training need assessment: Employable capacity development for women project in Punjab. Skills and Knowledge for Youths – SKY Project. https://skills-for-development.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/TNA-Inital-Report-2023-2_compressed.pdf

Dash, H.K., Srinath, K., Sadangi, B. N. (2008). Gender sensitization: Role in reforming the society. https://icar-ciwa.org.in/gks/Downloads/Gender%20Notes/Gender%20Notes(1).pdf

International Labour Organization. (2022, February). The gender gap in employment: What’s holding women back? https://webapps.ilo.org/infostories/en-GB/Stories/Employment/barriers-women#intro

International Labour Organization. (2024, September 19). Skills for Gender Equality. https://www.ilo.org/skills-gender-equality

United Nations. (2022). Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2022/Goal-05/

United Nations Development Programme. (2019). Gender mainstreaming in skills development: Guidance paper and tools. https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/migration/in/GMISD.pdf

World Bank. (2022). Female labor force participation. https://genderdata.worldbank.org/en/data-stories/flfp-data-story

Yamada, S., Charoensilp, P., Estrellado, E., & Shimazu, Y. (2024) Summary report of the training needs assessment: Employable capacity development for women, Project in Punjab, Pakistan. Skills and Knowledge for Youths – SKY Project. https://skills-for-development.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/TNA-final-Report-2023-Mailing-version-compressed.pdf