Background
Of the 1.2 billion people who live in extreme poverty worldwide, 70 percent are women and girls. Systematic gender discrimination—the denial of women’s basic human rights—is a major cause of poverty.
Discrimination against women manifests itself in many ways, including:
- Unequal pay—Women work 67 percent of the world’s working hours, and produce 50 percent of the world's food, yet they earn only 10 percent of the world's income and own less than 1 percent of the world's property. (UN)
- Unequal access to education—Girls account for approximately 67 percent of all children denied primary education, and 75 percent of the world’s 876 million illiterate adults are women. (UN, World’s Women)
- Prevalent violence—Domestic violence is the biggest cause of injury and death to women world wide. Additionally, in war and conflict, women typically experience the worst atrocities, including rape, forced prostitution, and mutilation. (World Bank Discussion Paper)
We recognize that women should be valued equally to men, enabled to reach their potential, and permitted to live free from the threat of violence. Of course, men are an important part of the equation. Oxfam strives to promote women as equal partners in community development, and to encourage communities to recognize that if they don’t seize upon what women can offer, they are not leveraging one of their most valuable assets.