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Gender Equality
The Impact of Non-tariff Measures on Women’s e-Commerce Businesses in Developing Countries
This paper highlights the importance of understanding the gender-specific barriers to cross-border e-commerce including those posed by Non-tariff measures (NTMs). NTMs while essential for public health safety and environmental protection impose high trade costs that disproportionately affect women-led businesses. These costs are exacerbated by women's lower capacity to understand and comply with NTMs and the concentration of women in micro small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and female-intensive sectors. Some NTMs however can enhance consumer confidence in foreign products potentially benefiting women e-commerce entrepreneurs. To mitigate these challenges domestic policy reforms international cooperation and targeted trade agreements are essential to reduce NTM-related trade costs and support the inclusive development of e-commerce for women. Closing gender gaps in education skills and digital access and creating a supportive business environment are crucial for ensuring equal participation in the digital economy.
Undertake a gender-responsive readiness assessment
Achieving gender equality in sport and scaling the use of sport to advance equality outcomes beyond sport are dynamic and iterative processes. This section provides an overview of activities to determine gaps and needs with respect to existing policies and programmes including factors that hinder or enable positive change.
Close investment gaps: Deliver equal access to funding and infrastructure
By closing funding and infrastructure gaps leaders in government and sport make long-term investments in the empowerment of women and girls the sustainability of inclusive sport systemsand the safety health and wellbeing of communities. This chapter highlights the importance of ensuring that sport participants at all levels including women and girls have equal access to funding facilities and programmes.
Get your head in the game: Harness the power of sport to transform mentalities
Social perceptions and gender roles prevent or limit sport participation and engagement not only for women and girls and can also have negative effects on men and boys. At the same time sport is a powerful tool for social development and values education. Engagement in sport provides women and girls with a vast array of valuable life skills and opportunities thus equipping and empowering them to contribute meaningfully to the development of their communities.
Call to Action
We are at a watershed moment for gender equality in sport. The 2024 Paris Olympic Games are the first in history to achieve gender parity of athletes on the playing field. Over the past few decades the number of girls participating in sport has risen in many countries leading to improved physical and mental health and increased opportunities for millions of women and girls.
Who is this game plan for?
‘Gender gaps in the sports world in terms of women’s and girls’ participation rewards for performance media coverage and sponsorship reveal persistent challenges connected to gender inequality. This is particularly damaging considering that sport can be a tool for women’s empowerment self-confidence and independence. Let’s create a fair world for women and girls in line with UNESCO’s International Charter of Physical Education Physical Activity and Sport!’
Keep your eye on the ball: Measure, evaluate and report impact using a gender lens
Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) are essential components of any policy or programme. They should be planned and budgeted for with gender considerations integrated throughout each stage. Particular attention should be given to who participates in and designs the evaluation what gets measured how data are collected and analysed and how results are acted upon and communicated.
Sport and Gender Equality Game Plan
Guidelines for Gender-transformative Sport Policies and Programmes
The Sport and Gender Equality Game Plan aims to support sport decision-makers in designing and delivering evidence-based policies and programmes that advance sustainable social transformations. The 2024 Paris Olympic Games are the first in history to achieve gender parity of athletes on the playing field. Over the past few decades the number of girls participating in sport has risen in many countries leading to improved physical and mental health and increased opportunities for millions of women and girls. Advances in sport and gender equality can transform lives and uplift communities. Girls who play sport have higher grades are more likely to graduate high school and are less likely to experience an unintended pregnancy. Participation in sport also develops soft skills which can be applied in the labour market. 80% of female Fortune 500 executives played competitive sport at some point in their lives. More broadly sport helps create just peaceful and gender-equitable societies making sport a low-cost high impact investment: every $1 invested in sport generates up to $124 in value.
Acknowledgements
This publication would not have been possible without the valuable contributions of partners experts and practitioners from around the world. UNESCO would like to acknowledge all their inputs and thank them for their time commitment and insights. Special thanks go to Jennifer Cooper at UN Women for her inputs to the manuscript and our Fit for Life Global Alliance Members including Nike whose financial support and technical inputs were gratefully received.
Connect policy and practice: Build capacities and leadership to advance gender equality
Creating and maintaining gender-equitable safe and empowering sport policies and programmes requires specific skills processes and resources. This chapter highlights the need for ministries of sport and sports organizations to advance gender equality through capacity-building for all with a focus on the needs of women.
How was this game plan developed?
Gender equality is one of UNESCO’s two global priorities and a key pillar of Fit for Life (see Box 1). The Sport and Gender Equality Game Plan has been called for by practitioners experts and representatives of the 110 countries participating in UNESCO’s 7th Global Conference of Sports Ministers (MINEPS VII) who noted its role ‘as a central tool to translate relevant international policy frameworks and initiatives into action.’
Why do we need a game plan for sport and gender equality?
‘Every human being has a fundamental right to physical education physical activity and sport without discrimination on the basis of ethnicity gender sexual orientation language religion political or other opinion national or social origin property or any other basis.’
Knowledge is power: Develop targeted policies and programmes informed by data and research
Targeted research and sex-disaggregated data are indispensable to the development and implementation of gender-transformative sport and physical education. Using data and research to inform the development of policies and/or programmes can help identify and tackle gender inequalities including gaps in participation leadership coaching funding and media representation as well as prevent gender-based violence.
Understand key concepts
The following foundational concepts are useful to understand when engaging in efforts to advance gender equality in and through sport.
Keep the playing field safe: Develop and implement meaningful safeguarding strategies and policies
Gender-based violence is one of the most pervasive human rights violations of our time. In sport women and girls are faced with specific risks which are compounded by ineffective or non-existent prevention and response mechanisms.