Why policy needs to focus on gender wealth inequality, Pg12

Key Highlights:

• The World Inequality Report (WIR) 2026 and the UN report 'Counting What Counts' are criticized for focusing primarily on women's labor market position, thereby overlooking gender wealth inequality.
• The article highlights that ignoring women's asset ownership leads to a significant mismeasurement of gender economic disparities globally.
• In India, the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24 indicates that a high percentage of women are informally employed, for whom asset ownership is crucial for viable livelihoods.
• Data from sources like NFHS, ICRISAT, and IHDS consistently show that Indian women own land in only 12-16% of rural landowning households.
• The author argues that a mother's asset ownership significantly improves child survival, health, and education outcomes, especially in the Global South.

Gender inequality.png

Detailed Insights:

• Academic research has historically concentrated on women's labor market status, creating a bias that obscures the true extent of gender economic inequality.
• Wealth and asset ownership are critical for women's and children's well-being, impacting productivity, economic growth, and access to decent work.
• For women in the informal sector, particularly in agriculture, owning productive assets like land or equipment is essential for viable earnings.
• The World Inequality Lab has established that inheritance, rather than earnings, is the primary contributor to overall wealth inequality.
• Measuring gender inequality solely by average hourly earnings is problematic, especially for self-employed individuals who do not track hours worked.
• Policies addressing gender wealth inequality are crucial for reducing overall global wealth disparities and must also consider intra-household inequalities.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Gender Wealth Inequality: Disparities in asset and wealth ownership between men and women, often overlooked in economic analyses.
• Informal Sector: Economic activities that are not regulated or protected by the state, characterized by lack of formal contracts and social security.
• Asset Ownership: Legal possession of tangible or intangible property, including land, housing, financial instruments, and productive resources.
• Intra-household Inequalities: Unequal distribution of resources, power, and opportunities among members within the same household.