EXECUTIVE
Based on figures from the International Labor Organization (ILO), at least 90 million women in the Middle East and North Africa are today part of what has been called the “Third Billion”, which is the approximate number of women worldwide who will be claiming their place as employees, producers and entrepreneurs in the global economy by 2030.
Until now, these women have been excluded from economic empowerment by either lack of opportunities or insufficient preparedness. Projected to number around 865 million by 2020, most of these women live in emerging and developing nations. The impact of this geographically dispersed group will be so large — equivalent to that of the billion-plus populations of China and India — that they have been dubbed the Third Billion.
The Third Billion was calculated by combining the forecast for “not prepared” and/or “not enabled” women globally between the ages of 20 and 65 in 2020. “Prepared” refers to having received a sufficient education, usually secondary school. Opportunities for basic education and literacy are prerequisites to women’s economic empowerment. “Enabled” refers to having sufficient social and political support to engage with the labor market. This support spans family, logistical, legal, and financial parameters.
The MENA’s missing share
It is not surprising that more than 10 percent, or about double of the region’s share in world population, of the Third Billion live in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The World Bank places the female labor force participation rate in the MENA at just 26 percent, the lowest of any region globally. Although women have achieved equal, or better, education levels compared to men in most MENA countries, they are not making similar gains at work.
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