Women & Girls

This report, by the IDB, OECD and UNESCO, outlines current knowledge of the impact that AI systems have on women’s opportunities for work, and their position, treatment and status in the workforce. It does so by exploring how AI is used within and outside the workplace, and how it could be used in the future. It looks at the potential impact of new and emerging AI technologies on the skills that employers will require, on how women look for and are hired for jobs, and on how jobs are structured through automated monitoring and oversight.

Millions of women are engaged in platform work around the world, both as workers and sellers. By better understanding women’s experiences on platforms, financial services providers (FSPs) and platforms can design solutions to help women maximize the benefits and minimize the risks of platform work. To shed light on the opportunities and challenges facing women platform workers, as well as to better understand their financial profile and need for financial services, CGAP conducted primary research with women platform workers and sellers.

This Note analyzes how Generative AI (GAI) will impact jobs, using a skills-based approach to categorize occupations as augmented by GAI, disrupted by automation, or minimally affected. While GAI is expected to enhance some jobs, a troubling gender gap emerges: women are more likely to hold jobs susceptible to disruption, while men are more likely to benefit from GAI-powered augmentation. This trend suggests GAI could widen the gender gap in the job market.

This Note examines how crowd work platforms, online marketplaces for freelance tasks, can impact low-income women in patriarchal societies. While these platforms offer increased work opportunities, the research explores the challenges women face. The study, conducted in India, found significant hurdles like gaining family permission, limited support, and working in secrecy. Despite these difficulties, the research also highlights positive outcomes such as increased confidence,autonomy, and agency for the women involved. The report concludes by discussing ways to reduce the tensions and diff

This report showcases a successful pilot program in Ethiopia's Somali region that connected female entrepreneurs with a digital mentoring platform offering valuable resources. The program's key to success was a multi-faceted approach:traditional marketing to raise awareness, in-person support for initial platform navigation, a mobile-friendly low-bandwidth design for easy access, simplified registration to minimize barriers, and clear educational materials to empower women to leverage the platform's full potential. This demonstrates the feasibility of connecting female entrepreneurs in low-

This report highlights the Better Work strategy (2018-2022), a collaborative effort by the ILO and IFC to promote gender equality in the global garment industry. It highlights the importance of decent work conditions, including fair treatment, social protections, and work-life balance, for empowering women and fostering a thriving garment industry.

This publication explores the African fashion industry and an initiative by the African Development Bank to support it. The fashion industry is a major player in Africa, holding immense potential for job creation, particularly for women and young people. However, the industry also faces challenges such as limited access to funding and low production capacity. The African Development Bank's Fashionomics Africa program helps fashion businesses with training, investment, and finding new markets.

This report examines the role of the apparel industry in developing countries for women's economic empowerment. While the industry has brought more women into the formal workforce, the report argues it's not enough. It focuses on seven countries and explores how these nations can leverage the garment sector as a springboard for women's career advancement. The report emphasizes the need for additional policies to break down barriers that prevent women from reaching higher-paying jobs and staying in the workforce long-term. The goal is to move women beyond just having jobs to having fulfillin

This S4YE Note analyzes the importance of the fashion industry for socio-economic growth and examines its potential as a source of job opportunities for young people. It discusses jobs along the industry’s value chain, its contribution to global revenues and trade, and its evolution with changes in technology, environmental concerns, and changing consumption patterns. The note also highlights the skills required for jobs in the fashion industry and presents analysis to support the claim that the industry is a key driver of jobs for youth and women.

This Short Note is part of a series building on the report Working Without Borders: The Promise and Peril of Online Gig Work. This note aims to provide some practical tips for practitioners like World Bank task team leaders in implementing online gig work programs to enable vulnerable populations - such as youth, women, persons with disabilities - to access online gig jobs to support their social and economic inclusion.