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Women behind the wheels
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Gender Equality
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Cambodian students hold up a banner reading “Women are the backbone of the national economy” as they march through Takeo province’s village on 19 February 20010 in a campaign to advocate for gender equality and empowerment of women in Cambodia.Photo: UNDP/Munthit KerGender equality is guaranteed in the Cambodian Constitution, which prohibits all forms of discriminations against women (Article 45). Both men and women should have equal opportunity to exercise their civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights. Cambodia became a State Party to the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1992, from when key gender related laws and policies have been passed including the Law on the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Protection of Victims.
More than half of Cambodia’s population are women (51.35 percent), yet they do not share half of the wealth, resources and voice.
Key Facts about Gender Equality in Cambodia:
- Cambodia ranks 116th out of 155 countries and 91st out of 109 countries respectively on the Gender-related Development Index (GDI) and Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM).
- Over the past decade, there have been improvements on the status of women in Cambodia. Yet, they remain less visible in public sphere. Women comprise 34 percent of civil servants and hold 22 percent of seats in the National Assembly.
- Almost the same number of boys and girls attend school until the age of 14. However, fewer girls continue in higher education. Adult literacy rates are also unequal: only 70.9 percent of adult females are literate, compared to 85.1 percent of their male peers.
- The number of men and women in the total workforce is almost the same (49.4 percent women). However, more women are self-employed or unpaid family workers (83 percent of female employment vs. 76 percent of male employment). This informal economy provides low, irregular income and unstable employment. More importantly, because many tend to operate unregistered, there is little or no access to organized markets, credits and training institutions and to other public services.
- Like many other countries in East Asia, Cambodia has the Law on Prevention of Domestic Violence and Protection of Victims. Despite the law, 22.5 percent of married women experienced violence within their homes and up to 89 percent do not report the incident, according to a survey by Ministry of Women’s Affairs in 2009.
Asia-Pacific Human Development Report - Gender Equality
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Bringing gender issues to youth and people at the grassroots
At a rural market in Takeo province, Chin Chanthy was waiting for clients at ... -
Striving to reduce gender disparity in Cambodia
Cambodia will not spare any efforts in working to enhance employment opportunities for women ...
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Talking about domestic violence (Eng)
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Cambodia Gender Assessment 2008
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A fair share for women
This report assesses the gender "terrain" in Cambodia. The assessment is based on a ...
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