ESA/STAT/AC.187/6
Global Database of Statistics and
Indicators on Gender
Third Meeting of the Advisory Group on Global Database
IAEG-GS
29 January 2009
Presentation prepared by UNSD
Based on the paper by Eva Gisela Ramirez
Interagency and expert group on
gender statistics
• First meeting convened in December 2006 to
promote development of gender statistics
• Agreed to define a Global Gender Statistics
Programme. Two components identified:
– To build a global gender statistics database
– To develop gender statistics capacity through training
courses
• At the second meeting in December 2007 in
Rome,
– Gender Info 2007 was launched.
– Two advisory groups were formed to address the
above mentioned goals.
Advisory Group on Databases
Objectives:
• To develop a framework of statistics, indicators and
metadata
• To review and identify key gender indicators and
statistics required to effectively monitor progress in the
goals of gender equality and development
Membership:
• Countries (6): Canada, Malawi, Mexico (chair), Malawi,
Philippines, Zimbabwe
• International agencies: ECLAC, ESCWA, UNIFEM,
World Bank, World Bank Institute
Global gender statistics database
Uses
• To analyze and compare the situation of women and
men in the world
• To evaluate progress with respect to gender issues and
assess the efficacy of national, regional and international
policies to narrow the gender gap
• A useful tool to evaluate improvements in statistical
capacity to produce gender statistics
Characteristics
• Policy relevance
• Comparability across time and across countries
• Based on harmonized concepts, definitions and methods
UNSD’s Gender Info 2007
• Constructed with available information from the
international statistical system
– Official statistics reported by national statistical
system to statistics offices of international
organizations including UNSD, ILO, UNESCO,
UNAIDS, IPU, WHO, etc.
– Statistics estimated by international organizations
such as UNPD, UNICEF, etc.
• Includes 116 indicators for 6 main topics and 18
sub-topics
• Period coverage: last 2 decades
Table 1. Gender Info 2007 main topics and
subtopics
Topic/sub-topic
Indicators
EDUCATION
44
Enrolment
24
Literacy
Progression and completion
4
10
School life expectancy
2
Teaching staff
4
FAMILIES
14
Childbearing
8
Unions
6
Table 1. (cont.)
Topic/sub-topic
WORK
Economic activity
Employment
Unemployment
Indicators
20
2
14
4
HEALTH AND NUTRITION
24
HIV/AIDS
11
Life expectancy
2
Mortality
5
Nutrition
2
Reproductive health
4
Table 1. (cont.)
Topic/sub-topic
Indicators
PUBLIC LIFE AND DECISION
MAKING
4
Political participation
4
POPULATION
10
Distribution
4
Size and composition
6
TOTAL NO. INDICATORS
116
In spite of the relevance of the greater part of the
indicators, GenderInfo lacks data on subjects that at
present are essential for gender analysis, notably:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Migration
Causes of death
Unpaid work
Work in the informal sector
Informal employment
Time use and balance between family and labour life
Income
Poverty
Family and household dynamics
Participation in political society
Laws and institutions on equality and autonomy of women
Violence against women
Progress of national information systems in the production of
statistics addressing gender issues
Thematic imbalance in GenderInfo 2007
– Many indicators on education, particularly on
enrolment, but none on effective school attendance
(possibly due to small number of countries with such
data)
– Second most numerous indicators are in Health,
mainly on HIV/AIDS, but none on general mortality,
morbidity, deaths by cause (except maternal mortality)
– Limited information on family dynamics, e.g.
household headship by sex , types of household
(nuclear, two-parent, single-parent, with young
children, etc.), power relations in the family
Comparison with other gender
information systems
Comparing with GID-OECD, World Bank and
Global Economic Forum, ECE and ECLAC:
1. All share the same thematic structure and in
each of the themes similar indicator sets,
although each with some additional indicators
2. All initiatives have several years of development
and have had time to make adjustments and
improvements
Table 2. Comparison of the thematic structure of
diverse systems of gender information systems
THEME
Gen
der
Info
GIDOEC
D
Worl Global E
d
Econ C
Bank Forum E
EC
LA
C
Population
10
10
13
5
14
Families
14
5
8
9
22
Work
20
11
9
9
16 11
Education
44
13
11
7
6
21
Health and nutrition
24
9
11
2
4
26
Public life & decision making
4
5
3
Social Institutions, basic
rights
8
13 18
4
Table 2. (cont.)
THEME
Gen
der
Info
GIDOEC
D
Worl
d
Bank
Capabilities & human capital
17
Opportunity
7
Empowerment
3
Vulnerability
12
Population dynamics
8
Key indicators
Gender country profiles
Global E
Econ
C
Forum E
3
8
12
ECL
AC
Table 2. (cont.)
THEME
Gen
der
Info
GIDOEC
D
Worl
d
Bank
Global E
Econ
C
Forum E
Life balance
8
Science and ITC
3
Crime and violence
6
TOTAL
116
61
94
41
ECL
AC
5
82 117
3. GenderInfo does not offer an additional topic
that is different or a “plus” compared to the other
existing systems. Its value rests on the official
characteristic of its data, the institutional status,
the longer period coverage, the integrity of the
database, the versatility of its platform.
4. The GEF presents only a file per country with
the indicator values and composite indexes and
its location in the international ranking.
5. The systems that offer extensive themes are
ECE and GEF. ECLAC has the most number of
indicators.
One of the uses of gender statistics and
indicators is as a tool to monitor
progress in the achievement of
international commitments
A. Comparison of Indicators in GenderInfo
vs. MDG
B. Comparison of GenderInfo vs. ECLAC
on useful indicators to monitor Beijing
Platform for Action
A.GenderInfo vs. MDG Indicators
Goal
Indics
MDG
Indics
GenderInfo
1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
9
2
2. Achieve universal primary education
3
3
3. Promote gender equality and empower women 3
3
4. Reduce child mortality
3
2
5. Improve maternal health
6
5
6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
10
3
TOTAL
34
18
GenderInfo vs. ECLAC for Monitoring Beijing
Critical area of concern
Indics
ECLAC
Indics
GenderInfo
1.
8
0
2. Education and training
11
6
3. Health
10
3
4. Violence against women
6
0
5. Women in armed conflict
1
0
6. Women in the economy
16
1
7. Power and decision making
4
1
Poverty
GenderInfo vs. ECLAC (cont.)
Critical area of concern
Indics
ECLAC
Indics
GenderInfo
8. Institutional mechanisms for the
advancement of women
3
0
9. Human rights
1
0
10. Women and the media
1
0
11. Women and the environment
1
0
12. The girl child
Included in other
goals
TOTAL
62
11
Issues for consideration
• Expansion of thematic coverage
• Inclusion of indicators to monitor
international agreements and resolutions
• Pay attention to related databases and
initiatives
• Software selection– change?