Gender Equality

Gender equality is guaranteed in the Cambodian Constitution, which prohibits all forms of discrimination 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:

1. Cambodia ranks 99 out of 145 countries on the Gender Inequality Index (GII) in the Human Development Report 2011. GII is a new measurement replacing the Gender-related Development Index (GDI) and Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM).
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. 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.