The Gender Gap in Turkey

Meltem Kurtsan

OECD Istanbul World Forum - Measuring and Fostering the

Progress of Societies

28th June 2007

Global Gender Gap Index 2006

1. Sweden 2. Norway 3. Finland 4. Iceland 5. Germany 6. Philippines 7. New Zealand 8. Denmark 9. United Kingdom 10. Ireland 11. Spain […] […] 97. Algeria 98. India 99. Mali 100. Ethiopia 101. United Arab Emirates 102. Bahrain 103. Cameroon 104. Burkina Faso 105. Turkey […]

Turkey’ Gender GapIndicator Spain Bulgaria Turkey

Female labour force participation 45 % 41 % 28 % Legislators, senior officials, managers 30 % 30 % 6 % Professional and technical workers 47 % 34 % 30 % Enrolment – primary education 99 % 95 % 87 % Enrolment – secondary education 99 % 87 % - Enrolment – tertiary education 72 % 44 % 24 % Women in parliament 36 % 22 % 4 % Women in ministerial positions 50 % 24 % 4 %

WOMEN EMPLOYMENT RATE WORLDWIDE

Iceland 79,4 USA 65,4 Australia 62,6 Japan 57,4 South Korea 52,2 Mexico 41,3 Turkey 25,4

OECD Report(2005)

WOMEN IN LABOUR MARKET

YEAR Turkey Rural Urban

Female Male Female Male

Female Male

2004* 25.4 72.3 36.7 74.7 18.3 70.8

European Council in March 2000, Lizbon :Female employment rate target for 2010 : 60 %

Recent figures on female employment :•EU members (all) 54.9 %•EU members the first 15 : 57.1 %

* Turkey Labor Market Study, WB November 21, 2005

LABOUR MARKET

TURKEY 2000 (thousands)

2005 (thousands

Change (thousands)

15 + Female Population 23 295 25 617 2 322

15 + Male Population 22 916 25 209 2 293

Female Labour Force 6 188 6 352 164

Male Labour Force 16 890 18 213 1 323

Female Employment 5 801 5 700 - 101

Male Employment 15 780 16 346 566

Unemployed Women 387 652 265

Unemployed Men 1 111 1867 756

Women not participating in Labour Force

17 108 19 264 2 156

Prof Dr Gülay Toksöz, Ankara University, Faculty of Political Sciences (2007)

EMPLOYMENT RATE BY EDUCATION LEVEL

Country Year

Pre High School

High School

Higher Education

Italy 1999 32.6 66.1 81.3

Greece 1999 41.1 56.9 83.2

Spain 1999 39.5 68.4 82.7

Portugal 1999 69.0 82.4 90.9

Polond 1999 47.8 71.3 87.1

Hungary 1999 34.5 68.4 78.5

TURKEY 2004 25.5 31 71.5

Obstacles for Entrepreneurship Patriarchal society and traditional female-male roles No access to equal education oppurtunities Lack of experience in Labour Force Few role models for woman entrepreneurship Insufficient Capital (women’s share in real estates is 9

%) Difficulties in getting credit Unstable markets, politics and finance sector Limited access to technology and qualified workers Complexities in Tax Procedures Insufficient official incentives Limited networking, trade commissions and

committies

About KAGIDER                                                                                    

          KAGIDER was chartered in September 2002 as a non-

profit and non-governmental organization, by 37 prominent Turkish female entrepreneurs. It has grown steadily over the past three years as other successful businesswomen have joined its ranks.

Today we have 200 members from various sectors, including textile, communication, human resources, tourism, chemicals, mining and health. 

About KAGIDER Vision To create women entrepreneurs who are effective in

shaping the business world of the future.   Mission ·         To increase the number of women

entrepreneurs who generate added value, ·         To strengthen existing women entrepreneurs, ·         To integrate Turkish women entrepreneurs to

global community; Thus to contribute to social and economic progress of

Turkey.

Women Entrepreneurs Development Program (Kagimer, Water Drop, Bridge For

Women) KAGIMER aims to support women

candidates to start-up small enterprises. In addition to lobbying activities and organizing conferences and seminars, we have provided:

Entrepreneurship trainings to 1200 women Mentoring support to 11 women Incubation support to 5 women Internship opportunities to 35 women

Women’s Fund

KAGİDER has established an endowment to financially support women’s NGO’s projects for economic, social and political empowerment of women. Women’s Fund supported 40 NGOs projects

 

Women’s Way to Europe

This project has been developed to establish an international working group, learn from other member countries experiences, draw a roadmap towards gender  equality in Turkey and  ensure monitoring in the negotiation process. We organized an International Conference on the May 25th-26th, 2006 in Istanbul.

 

KAGIDER LOBBYING ACTIVITIES Today KAGIDER is the one of the strongest women

NGOs in related to women. KAGIDER puts great emphasis on lobbying activities;

publishes statements, provides policy recommendations to the state, public and private institutions to make women’s voice heard, to foster gender equality and to better women’s status in general.

KAGIDER participates in international seminars and workshops and represents Turkish women and establishes and enlarges networks among women entrepreneurs

KAGIDER is a member of:

World Women Entrepreneurs Association (FCEM)

European Women Lobby (EWL) Mediterranean Business Women

Association (AFAEMME) Balkan Regional Coalition of Women

Business Associations