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Short Summary |
Trade liberalisation processes impact differently
on men and women due to the fact that men and women have different
roles in production. Despite the fact that women are actively involved
in international trade, WTO agreements are gender blind and as such
have adverse impacts on women. The General Agreement in Trade and
Service (GATS), for instance, provides for a level playing field in
service provision between big foreign owned companies and small locally
owned companies. This exposes female service providers to unfair competition
from foreign service providers in sectors such as education and health.
Trade Related Investment Measures (TRIMS) also advocate for liberalisation
of investment, which ensures equal treatment to local and foreign
investors. This has a serious impact on women, as they are concentrated
in small and medium enterprises, resulting in implications for women's
access to land and other resources. The first part of this paper presents
an analysis of the impacts of WTO agreements on women in developing
countries. Provisions of specific agreements the impacts on women
are outlined. The second and main section of the paper is a compilation
of case studies on the impacts of trade liberalisation on women in
Africa. |
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