The G20 and Gender Equality: How the G20 can advance women's rights in employment, social protection and fiscal policies

Women won’t be paid as much as men for another 75 years, according to a report released today by Oxfam International in collaboration with the Heinrich Boell Foundation. 

The organizations urge the G20 leaders to tackle gender inequality when they meet in Australia later this year.  The G20, which refers to itself as the “premier forum for economic cooperation,” is in a position to advance gender equality.  Indeed, the report declares that the G20’s ambitions to achieve inclusive growth and development cannot be realized without policies that address systemic discrimination and economic exclusion of women.

The report focuses on the question of how the G20 can advance women’s rights in employment, social protection and fiscal policies, shows how The report, which assesses G20 countries across a number of gender-related policies, is being released at the Business 20 (B20)  in Sydney, Australia this week.  It is one of the satellite conferences in the lead-up to the G20 Leaders Summit in Brisbane in November .

Among other things, the report recommends that the G20 support an accountable post-2015 UN process and inclusion of standalone goals on extreme economic inequality, gender equality and women’s rights; to target employment policies to create decent jobs for women, eliminate gender wage gaps and occupational segregation; end workplace gender discrimination and promote family-friendly policies such as parental leave entitlements, access to care for children and the elderly, and social insurance, and promote financing of public services to reduce women’s unpaid care work.

In 2012, at the Mexican G20 Summit, the G20 committed to bringing down the barriers to women’s full economic and social participation.  By the 2014 Australian G20 Summit, the commitment should be realized.

For interviews or more information, please contact Laurelle Keough (Oxfam) at +61 425 701 801