The perception of the population concerning the gender roles in society worsened in 2017. Among men, the level of stereotipization was more accentuated. At the same time, the authorities delay implementing reforms that would help overcome pronounced gender differences. The conclusions derive from the Gender Equality Index that was calculated and presented by the Partnership for Development Center on March 8.
Rodica Ivashcu, programs director at the Partnership for Development Center, in a news conference at IPN said the level of gender equality didn’t rise in 2017 and remained at 58 points of 100 possible, as in 2016. The index is calculated based on 31 indictors, on a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 means full inequality between women and men, while 100 means perfect gender equality. The closer the calculated index is to 100, the higher is the gender equality level.
Rodica Ivashcu said the Index measures the equality between women and men on six key areas. These are: health, labor market, politics, access to resources, perceptions and stereotypes. In 2017, three areas of the six made progress compared with only one area in 2016. These are: access to resources, labor market and health. As regards the access to resources, the level of gender equality rose by 3 points on 2016, from 76 to 79. This is due to the insignificant rise in the revenues of women involved in non-agricultural activities.
The score concerning the access to the labor market increased by 1 point on 2016, from 63 to 64. Rodica Ivashcu said that compared with a year before, the employment rate among women with at least one child of preschool age in 2017 rose by 2.2 percentage points. The score in health grew by 1 point on 2016, but the growth was not based on a positive motive. Even if the women went to see a doctor more often, this was due to serious health problems.
The Index shows that the score in politics stood at 36 points, as in 2016. According to the programs director, no measures were taken to improve the situation. The women continue to be underrepresented in Parliament, the district councils and mayor’s offices. At the same time, the score in education decreased by 1 point compared with the previous index, to 53. This was due to the wider gender discrepancy among graduates of secondary professional education institutions. The share of men was by 3.26 percentage points higher.
The most pronounced diminution was witnessed as regards perceptions and stereotypes. The Index fell from 51 in 2016 to 47 in 2017. According to a study carried out in 2017, 8 in 10 respondents consider the men are those who should maintain the family, while 6 in 10 respondents believe the women should do the housework only.
“Even if we are in the 21st century, the women continue to face a multitude of problems and gender equality in the Republic of Moldova is not a priority, regrettably. The prejudice and stereotypes prevail and influence a lot the level of gender equality,” stated Alina Andronache, consultant at the Partnership for Development Center.
Andrei Brighidin, a member of the Council for the Prevention and Elimination of Discrimination and Ensuring of Equality, said the prejudice and stereotypes are rather deep-rooted in our society. During the last five years, the instigation of discrimination on grounds of gender and disability was at the forefront.
The Gender Equality Index is compiled within the Common Initiative for Equal Opportunities Initiative.
