ECOFIN

Director

Moderator

Vice-Chair

TOPIC PREVIEW: WOMEN IN DEVELOPMENT - In recent years, women as a demographic group have benefited extensively from the opportunities afforded them by microcredit loans. As credit becomes less available with the financial crisis, microfinance institutions that typically lend heavily to low-income women have faced cutbacks. Remittances to low-income countries, which can be an important source of income for female-headed households in the developing world, have also begun to decrease. Assessments by UNESCO (and other institutions) have concluded that the status of women in development has been imperiled by the current financial crisis. Female school attendance has dropped and cutbacks in health care have disproportionately impacted girls and women. As the economic status of women directly impacts the well-being of their children, the implications of the gendered impacts of the global financial crisis extend far beyond the issue of women’s rights. The economic status of women has direct bearing on a nation’s ability to grow and develop, and there is evidence which suggests that gender inequality directly contributes to reduced economic growth. Poverty disproportionately affects women, and initiatives that attempt to improve their status should focus on their potential role as economic agents for growth and development. Delegates can discuss the problem of the financial vulnerability of women and children, as it stems from the lack of women’s economic power and economic opportunity.