Women are studying more, causing the educational gap between women and men in the Caribbean to widen recently in favour of women.
According to the 2016 United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Human Development Report (HDR) for the Caribbean, which focuses on several groups and their “vulnerabilities”, education can be a potential protective factor against women’s disadvantages in the labour market, but women are still earning less than male colleagues and are proportionally holding fewer decision-making positions in the public and private sectors.
“An example of women’s under-representation in politics is that the percentage of women MPs ranged from 6.7 per cent in St. Kitts and Nevis to 25.7 per cent in Antigua and Barbuda in 2014.”
The report launched at Hilton Barbados Resort by UNDP Administrator Helen Clark, stresses that violence against women is a key challenge for the Caribbean, not only threatening lives but also negatively impacting all of society. Different types of violence – physical, sexual, psychological or a combination of them – affect between 20 and 35 per cent of women in Caribbean countries for which data are available.
Youth are also a critical group in vulnerability, the Caribbean report indicated, also pointing out that youth unemployment is a common challenge for both women and men.
“Youth unemployment rates range between 18 per cent and 47 per cent except in Trinidad and Tobago where it is ten per cent. For young women, teenage pregnancy can hinder the possibilities of studying, working – and leaving poverty behind.”
Young men, especially in poor communities, are both the main victims and the main perpetrators of crime in the Caribbean. These vulnerabilities must be addressed in all ages, the report stated, so they do not build up over the life cycles.
On average, the Caribbean has a higher rate of population 65 years old and above, and is ageing faster, than the Latin America region. It is estimated that by 2025, 11.4 per cent of the Caribbean population will be 65 years or above. Older women are more at risk of poverty and chronic diseases than older men – whose life expectancy is lower and who are less likely to access health care and detect disease, especially at earlier stages – but benefit more from family support, according to the report.
“Pension schemes, especially non-contributory ones, are often inefficient and inadequate both in coverage and value. Older women’s contributory pensions tend to be lower than men’s as a consequence of women in their earlier years concentrated in lower remuneration jobs.” (TL)
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