Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Acknowledgements T he World Bank team would like to express sincere gratitude to the Government of Saint Lucia, especially to Velda Joseph, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Equity, Social Justice, Local Government and Empowerment (MOEQ); Irene Gaspard, Deputy Permanent Secretary, MOEQ; Kendall Elva, Social Transformation Officer, MOEQ; and Jacqueline M. Massiah-Simeon, Director, Upton Gardens Girl Centre. All of them have supported this technical assis- tance and have provided valuable information and insights. This assessment was produced and financed by the RSR-Gender R19 Grant “Strengthening Women’s Economic Opportunities and Resilience for an inclusive COVID-19 crisis recovery in the Caribbean (P178335).” This grant is under the Rapid Social Response Adaptive and Dynamic Social Protection (RSR-ADSP) Umbrella Trust Fund Program. The RSR-ADSP Program is supported by the generous contributions of Australia, Denmark, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, as well as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, without which this work would not have been possible. This note was prepared by Carmen de Paz (World Bank Consultant) in close collaboration with and under the leadership of Eliana Carolina Rubiano Matulevich (Senior Economist, Poverty and Equity Global Practice) and Clemente Avila Parra (Senior Economist, Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice). It was carried out under the guidance of Pablo Gottret (Practice Manager, Social Protection and Jobs Global Practice) and Carlos Rodríguez Castelán (Practice Manager, Poverty and Equity Global Practice). This note was also enriched with advice and feedback from Timothy Johnston (Human Development Program Leader for the Caribbean). Acknowledgements Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 3 Contents Acknowledgements 3 Executive Summary 6 Introduction 10 Overview 12 Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia 14 What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? 18 The quality of human capital 18 Misallocation of talent 20 Limitations in access to productive assets and finance 24 Cross-cutting phenomena 25 Conclusions and policy recommendations 26 References 36 Contents 4 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Figures Figure 1. The analytical framework 10 Figure 2. Demographic trends in Saint Lucia, 1960 – 2020 11 Figure 3. Labor force participation and employment-to-population rates, by gender, 1991 – 2021 14 Figure 4. Male and female distribution in employment by sector of activity and occupation, 2016 16 Figure 5. Gender gaps by income level 17 Figure 6. Maternal mortality and adolescent fertility rates, Saint Lucia and regional comparators, 2017 and 2020 18 Figure 7. Educational enrollment and completion rates, by gender and level, 2018-2020 19 Figure 8. Scores for Women, Business and the Law in Saint Lucia, 2022 20 Figure 9. Female representation in politics, Saint Lucia and comparators 22 Tables Table 1. HCI and its components, 2020 12 Table 2. Employment status of women relative to men, 2022 15 Table 3. Share (percent) of women managers in the Caribbean, by country and management level, 2017 23 Table 4: Summary of recommendations 32 Contents Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 5 Executive Summary T his note aims to identify gendered barriers the region, another sign of significant progress made to economic inclusion in Saint Lucia, barriers over the last decade, although there is still room for that not only harm the well-being of girls and improvement. women but work against economic growth and poverty reduction generally. The note further aims to inform The country presents some positive female labor market policy developments in this area. Its underlying analysis and entrepreneurship outcomes and trends as well assumes that gender gaps in employment and entrepre- that are atypical of the Latin America and Caribbean neurship are explained by barriers related to gaps in the (LAC) region. For example, women are over-represented accumulation of human capital, especially health and among waged employees, and tend to be present in larger education, the misallocation of talent, and limitations in numbers than men among both professional and clerical access to productive assets, including finance and land support positions across sectors. Women also make up ownership. the majority of lower- and middle-level managers in sev- eral sectors where most employees are men. Saint Lucia is a small upper-middle-income Caribbean Island whose economy depends heavily on tourism. It is In the policy arena, Saint Lucia has made important also prone to natural disasters, rendering its economy progress toward building an adequate institutional and especially vulnerable to external shocks. Over the long legal framework for the promotion of gender equality. A term, the country faces a continuation of rapid ageing National Gender Equality Policy and Strategic Plan was in its population structure. In the near term, the COVID- being developed when the COVID-19 pandemic broke 19 pandemic has had a substantial negative economic out. When it comes to laws affecting women’s decisions impact, reducing income for a majority of households to work, laws affecting women’s pay, gender differences engaged in family farming, fishing activities, and wage in property and inheritance, and laws affecting the size employment. It is estimated that poverty incidence grew of a woman’s pension, Saint Lucia has earned a perfect by 40 percent during the first year of the pandemic, with score in the corresponding indicators of the World Bank’s a projected poverty decline in 2021 (Chen et al. 2021). Pre- Women, Business and the Law scorecard (2022). pandemic poverty levels are expected to be achieved by 2024 (World Bank Macro Poverty Outlook 2022). All these Despite many areas of progress in access to health care, challenges compound, and have been compounded by, schooling, and labor market engagement, women in Saint the economic losses that stem from women’s unequal Lucia remain disproportionately affected by poverty. access to the healthiest sectors of the job market and Overall, labor force participation rates are lower among their general position of social disadvantage. women (63.2 percent) than men (73.3 percent), and wom- en’s unemployment rates are higher as well. Some gender Saint Lucia has achieved exemplary success in girls’ disparities are worst among the poorest and least edu- access to education and is characterized today by a high cated: While women with no education had a workforce degree of gender parity, including not only enrolment participation rate of only 19.4 percent, among men with rates, which are systematically higher among girls than no education participation was more than twice as high boys at all levels, but in school attainment as well. Access (52.5 percent). Men In Saint Lucia also earn significantly to healthcare for girls and women is universal as well. more—on average 27.4 percent more—than women, a The adolescent birth rate remains relatively low for gap that appears to be largely driven by discrimination. Executive Summary 6 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia And between 2006 and 2016, men’s median earnings rose Gender gaps in access to both financing and land notably more than women’s. Men are also more present ownership also persist in Saint Lucia. Up-to-date data in sectors with higher productivity, while the service and analysis on the financial inclusion of women is still industries attract a higher percentage of women. required, but women entrepreneurs report having great difficulty accessing capital partly because of the lack of Saint Lucian women are very active in entrepreneurship, collateral. For rural populations, land is the most rele- the majority of business in the country being owned by vant productive asset, which supports both commercial women, but in common with other countries, these busi- agricultural production and food security for the many nesses are very small and have limited growth prospects. subsistence farmers. As of 2016, women were less likely Two-thirds of micro-enterprises (employing five persons than men to own land but dominated the low-paying jobs or less) are owned by women. Sector-wise, women-owned in the agro-processing sector. businesses operate primarily in the fields of accommoda- tion and food services (tourism), education, and human Youth employment programs exist in Saint Lucia but health and social work. their effectiveness is limited. They tend to be disjointed, underfunded, and misaligned with the labor market. Health challenges remain severe in several areas. The Moreover, there is currently no government-provided maternal mortality rate (117 deaths per 100,000 live births service offering job brokering and work-preparedness in 2017) remains relatively high when compared to the activities for youth or the unemployed, such as national regional average. Mental health is also an area of special employment services. concern. Among adolescents, recent estimates are that 17 percent attempted suicide one or more times in the Especially relevant gaps exist and deserve attention in the preceding 12 months, and girls (35 percent) were twice as area of family policy. For example, publicly provided early likely as boys (16 percent) to consider attempting suicide. childhood care and education is neither universally avail- able, nor does it have the capacity to meet the care needs Although up-to-date data on the incidence of gen- of working parents. As of 2018/19, only 23.4 percent of der-based violence are not available, violence against children under age four living in poor households were women is likely to be relatively high. The rate of violence enrolled in early childhood education. against women by a partner or ex-partner was 419 per 100,000 and that of violence against girls was 1,268 per Access to formal social protection is weak for both men 100,000 girls in 2015, a year when only 1.21 percent and women. More than 70 percent of the Saint Lucia of all the cases reported were effectively prosecuted. population over age 60 are not covered for retirement Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) reported a surge pensions by the NIS, and coverage is especially inadequate in domestic violence cases in Saint Lucia during the coun- among women. Even among women who are covered, try’s mandatory COVID-19 shutdown. the most common complaint among beneficiaries and especially single women is the inadequacy of benefits. Among the forces perpetuating women’s poverty and The legislative and policy framework on GBV also remains unequal access to wealth are traditional gender norms and incomplete. Saint Lucia lacks laws prohibiting this form family-life expectations, which are still very present in soci- of violence, nor are there laws prohibiting conciliation, ety. In common with other Caribbean countries, fathers mediation, or other extrajudicial methods to address are often absent from the household, partly because of the violence. level of consensual unions that tend to be more unstable than formal marriages. Two out of every five households in Women in Saint Lucia are particularly vulnerable to disas- the country are headed by women. The absence of a part- ters. They are generally more severely harmed than men ner is associated with a higher care burden for women who by climate-change linked natural disasters such as floods have dependent children, elderly or disabled dependents. and hurricanes, which represent a special risk to single-fe- In the public sphere, women remain underrepresented in male-headed households due to these women’s limited decision making both in democratic governance and in the access to resources and property insurance. Women´s upper tiers of business management. Only 17 percent of economic participation has also been disproportionately parliamentary seats were held by women in Saint Lucia affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and, most recently, in 2020, compared to an average of 33 percent in the LAC by the consequences of the unfolding global food price region and 47 percent in Grenada. crisis. Executive Summary Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 7 Recommendations for Policy and Action This note recommends a set of policy objectives and suggested actions for Saint Lucia that fall under four thematic pillars, as follows. Pillar A: Strengthen investments in young women’s and men’s human capital. Two objectives support this pillar: (1) Improve the health outcomes of women; and (2) Improve educational outcomes among boys and young men as well as early dropout among girls. To improve the health outcomes of women, two fur- ther goals are proposed: First, reduce the high incidence of maternal mortality, for example by obtaining up-to-date disaggregated data and conducting analyses on what is driving it; and second, by improving the mental health of young women (and men), including clarifying what lies behind the high incidence of suicidal ideation and attempts among this population. To improve educational outcomes among boys and young men and prevent early dropout due to pregnancy among girls, a key medium-term goal will be to encourage boys and vulnerable young men to continue their education beyond the primary and lower-secondary levels, for instance by offering economic incentives at the household level or considering programs focused on male role models for at-risk young men. Pillar B: Improve access to economic opportunity by women and men. Three objectives support this pillar: (1) Increase the labor market inclusion of women and men; (2) Attain a better balance in the distribution of family responsibilities between men and women; and (3) Grant access to productive assets to women entrepreneurs. To increase women’s and men’s inclusion in the labor market, two further goals are worth pursuing. First, ease the transition of young men from school to work, for example by coordinating with employers and ensuring their employment promotion will be required. Second, reduce gender segregation into fields of study, deploying incentives, peer-support, mentorship and other mea- sures to help girls continue choosing nontraditional fields of study such as those in STEM. To promote the attainment of a better balance in the distribution of family responsibilities between men and women, consider two lines of action: first, improve family policies, for example by establishing an adequate paid maternity leave of at least 14 weeks as well as paid leave for fathers and shared parental leave; and sec- ond, by expanding access to quality affordable childcare, especially among the most vulnerable families and children. Finally, to grant women entrepreneurs better access to productive assets, three further goals are proposed. First, expand women’s access to capital and credit, for example through govern- ment-led financial solutions to support women-led firms such as grants, fee reductions, cash transfers, and loans on flexible terms. Second, ensure that women entrepreneurs have ownership and control over land on pair with men´s, for example through legal provisions that are accompanied by actions aimed at strengthening institutional structures. Third, close the gender digital gap, through improved rural access to the Internet and associated devices, as well as through education and training. Pillar C: Decrease the vulnerability of women (and men) to poverty. Two objectives support this pillar: (1) Offer women (and men) access to adequate safety nets; and (2) Tackle the gender dimensions of cross-sectional phenomena such as COVID-19 and disasters. To strengthen safety nets available to vulnerable women (and men), one quick fix may be to strengthen the gender responsiveness of existing social protection programs, while a second (or complementary) approach is to improve and expand for- mal social protection mechanisms available to both women and men. To tackle the gender dimensions of cross-sectional phenomena such as COVID-19 and disasters, include a gender angle in all disaster-risk management policies and institutions and in COVID-19 diagnosis and response, acknowledging the gen- der-differentiated impacts, and in all coping and adaptation mechanisms. Executive Summary 8 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Pillar D: Improve the agency of women. Two objectives support this pillar: (1) Eradicate gender-based violence (GBV); and (2) Strengthen the capacity of institutions to promote gender equality. To eradicate GBV, three further goals should be pursued. First, improve GBV prevention and response systems, includ- ing establishing an adequate legal framework that also explicitly prohibits the use of extrajudicial methods to resolve these cases. Second, end child marriage and unions and related practices, again through the passage of laws. Third, leverage existing safety nets to prevent GBV (including child marriage). To strengthen the capacity of institutions to promote gender equality, two further goals should be pursued. First, continue developing the institutional machinery for gender equality, such as gender-responsive budgeting. Second, improve the availability of sex-disaggregated data and analysis, including the devel- opment of an adequate monitoring and evaluation agenda for specific gender policies. Executive Summary Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 9 Introduction T his note aims to identify gendered barriers to Saint Lucia is a small upper-middle-income Caribbean economic inclusion in Saint Lucia, in turn affect- Island nation with an economy that relies heavily on ing growth and poverty reduction prospects, tourism, yet it is also prone to natural disasters. Like other with the ultimate objective of informing policy devel- small islands in the region, Saint Lucia is highly exposed to opments in this area.1 For that purpose, an adaptation natural disasters of varying intensity and severity, including of the framework devised by Revenga and Dooley (2020) hurricanes, tropical storms, earthquakes, droughts, floods, and the World Development Report 2012 will be used. This and landslides. This vulnerability operates as a major risk framework assumes that gender gaps in employment to the country´s economic prospects, especially affecting and entrepreneurship are explained by barriers related the agriculture, water and fisheries sectors (UN Women to gaps in the accumulation of human capital (health and 2021a). In addition, two thirds of the country´s GDP education), the misallocation of talent (in connection with depend on the tourism sector, which makes its economy care responsibilities), and limitations in access to productive particularly vulnerable to external shocks. Indeed, the assets (including finance). The misallocation of talent is due activity in the sector has stalled as a result of the COVID-19 to market and institutional failures, in the form of formal pandemic and associated containment measures, which (laws) and informal institutions (social norms). The existing has translated into important economic losses over the last gaps are magnified by phenomena such as COVID-19 or two years (World Bank 2020 and 2020a). Both climate-re- climate change, as women and girls tend to bear the brunt lated hazards and the over-reliance on tourism have major of their negative impacts, in Saint Lucia and elsewhere. gendered implications. Figure 1. The analytical framework Drivers of female employment and entrepreneurship Accumulation of human capital Accumulation of health and education and access to services among women and girls. (Mis) allocation of talent Associated with care responsibilities, and related to the prevalence of gaps in formal and informal institutions. Access to assets Limitations in access to finance, or land ownership. Climate change and COVID-19 & food price crisis natural disasters Differenciated economic impacts on women. Women and girls bear the brunt of the negative effects. 1 This note is part of a series of notes produced by the World Bank for Caribbean countries, specifically Dominica, Grenada, and Saint Lucia. Introduction 10 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Figure 2. Demographic trends in Saint Lucia, encouraging the labor force participation of both sexes, 1960 – 2020 with a special focus on women, and designing cost-ef- fective and sustainable systems for welfare and human 140 development addressing childcare needs and support to the vulnerable older people (World Bank 2016). 120 COVID-19 has dealt a severe blow to the economy and 100 to the well-being of families. Short term, the results of the two rounds of the COVID-19 High Frequency Phone 80 Survey conducted in 2020 show substantial negative eco- nomic impacts in the country. The majority of households 60 reported a reduction in total income, both from family farming and fishing activities and from wage employment. 40 Around 28.4 percent of households were affected by job losses, while over one in two experienced food price 20 increases. In the second round, one in four households reported having run out of money or other resources, 0 with rural areas experiencing food insecurity (World Bank 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2020a). Projections based on these results show that Age dependency ratio (% of working-age population) poverty incidence increased by 40 percent in the first Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) round of the survey, while a decline of 10 percent was Source: World Development Indicators, World Bank, accessed in February projected by the second round. Food insecurity appears 2023 to have become much more problematic among poorer households (Chen et al. 2021). This situation is likely to worsen with the unfolding commodity price crisis fueled by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Long term, the country is facing a rapid population ageing process, which has important economic Gender equality in economic participation offers a prom- implications. The share that young people represent ising pathway back to recovery following the pandemic in the total population (183,629 inhabitants registered while dealing with the longer-term consequences of the in 2020), has markedly decreased in the last decades, demographic transition. Promoting gender equality in while the share of older people (above age 65) has labor markets and access to assets has been associated substantially increased. This has led to an important with higher economic growth across countries (Woetzel increase in the dependency ratio (see Figure 2 below). et al. 2015; Aguirre et al. 2012; Cuberes & Teignier Baqué Although the dependency ratio has so far declined 2011), and with significant reductions in poverty and given the share that the working age population repre- inequality, in particular in LAC (World Bank 2012). The sented with respect to dependents (children and older enhanced status of women compared to men in societies, people), it is expected to increase in the future as the including for instance the prevention of extreme forms age composition of the population changes - towards of discrimination such as gender-based violence (GBV), a higher share of older people relative to working age is also known to lead to higher investments and better population. As a late-dividend country, and in order to health and educational outcomes for the next generation continue reaping the benefits of demographic change (Allendorf 2007; Andrabi et al. 2011). Moreover, as seen (in the form of the second demographic dividend) above, Saint Lucia´s current demographic profile requires while beginning to prepare for ageing, Saint Lucia will that women have access to economic opportunities on an need to sustain productivity growth. This would entail equal footing with men. Introduction Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 11 Overview S aint Lucia presents some positive female labor Table 1. HCI and its components, 2020 market and entrepreneurship outcomes and Saint Lucia trends that are atypical for the LAC region. On the one hand, women’s employment appears to be in Boys Girls Overall some ways of higher quality than that of men. Indeed, unlike what is observed in most LAC countries, women HCI 0.58 0.63 0.6 represent a lower share of the vulnerably employed and Survival to age 5 0.98 0.99 0.98 underemployed, part-time employed, and self-employed, while they are overrepresented among waged employees. Expected years of school 12.5 12.9 12.7 In addition, women tend to be present in larger numbers than men among general management, professional, and Harmonized test scores 409 426 418 clerical support positions across sectors. Women are also engaged in large numbers in entrepreneurial activities: 67 Learning-adjusted years of 8.2 8.8 8.5 school percent of all micro-enterprises are female owned. Adult survival rate 0.83 0.9 0.87 Yet important challenges and gaps persist in women’s access to economic opportunity. First, labor force par- Not stunted rate 0.96 0.99 0.98 ticipation rates are lower among women (63.2 percent Source: Human Capital Index (HCI) released in September 2020 of women compared to 73.3 percent of men were active in 2021), while unemployment rates are higher (the unemployment rate in 2022 was 18.9 percent among women compared to 15.1 percent among men). Men tend to be overrepresented among employers and in top children are among the poorest in the country (Leonce management positions, while women are the majority of and Jackman, 2022). contributing family workers. Women still face important challenges to grow their businesses: Only around a third The trends observed in economic opportunity can be of businesses with more than five employees have female explained to some extent by those registered in edu- representation in their ownership, based on data from cation and health investments and outcomes among the World Bank’s World Development Indicators (WDI). In women and adolescents. Saint Lucia is particularly addition, sector segregation persists, with women being exemplary of how educational gaps have been closed largely engaged in lower-productivity activities both as over time: The small existing disparities in education employees and as business owners. Finally, men still earn today are to the advantage of girls, who outperform boys significantly more than women, a gap that appears to both in terms of quantity (years of education) and quality be largely driven by discrimination (Leonce and Jackman (test scores). It is therefore boys that lag behind in this 2022). Likely as a result of all the former, women in area and require more attention. The country has also some age groups are more likely to experience poverty made good progress in granting access to maternal and than men, while single-female-headed households with sexual health services to women and adolescents. It must Overview 12 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia be noted too that the Human Capital Index (HCI)2 is higher as finance and land, which remain important barriers for among girls (at 0.63) than boys (0.58). This is explained them to become entrepreneurs and grow or expand their by their better results across all components of the HCI businesses. Women in agriculture, for instance, are much (see Table 1). However, the maternal mortality rate and less likely to hold the ownership of land than men. In adolescent fertility rates remain relatively high when addition, lack of access to finance has been identified as compared to the regional average, still undermining the the main barrier to female-owned businesses. However, accumulation of human capital and the economic pros- more up-to-date data and analysis on these gaps and how pects of the affected women as well as their families. they affect women compared to men would be necessary to better understand these dynamics and effectively The misallocation of talent in connection to persistent address the existing challenges. discriminatory formal and informal institutions is also likely to contribute to the persistence of gaps in The impact of climate-related hazards and economic economic participation. Despite the positive outcomes shocks such as the crisis unleashed by the COVID-19 in education, women in Saint Lucia continue to be dis- pandemic on women could be particularly large. As proportionately tasked with household and caregiving observed in other neighboring countries, natural and responsibilities, and they are systematically excluded from climate-related hazards pose particular risks for women, decision making in the public sphere. The most extreme especially the most vulnerable, who in the face of such expression of their limited agency is the likely persistence events would, for instance, be confronted with particular of gender-based violence, for instance in the form of (still) difficulties in building back their homes and resuming high child marriage, union or visiting relationship rates: their business activities. The agricultural sector, the main Almost a quarter of all women ages 20-24 were married, contributor to GDP and a key source of employment in a union, or in a visiting relationship before they were for women in the country, has been greatly affected by 18 years old, according to UNICEF data for the year 2012, extreme climate events in recent years. In addition, the a relatively high rate. Important data and analytical gaps existing evidence from St. Lucia and elsewhere indicates exist in the area of gender-based violence, social norms, that women may have been particularly impacted by the and time use. crisis prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic and asso- ciated containment measures. Again, further data and In addition, access to productive assets remains more analysis on the gender dimensions of both phenomena limited among women than men. Saint Lucian women would be useful for the definition of adequate policy face special constraints in accessing relevant assets such responses. 2 The Human Capital Index (HCI) measures the human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18, given the risks to poor health and poor education that prevail in the country where she lives. The methodology used to calculate it is described in World Bank (2018). Overview Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 13 Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia A lthough female labor force participation and percent among men, while the share of women 15+ who employment are high by regional standards, were employed was 47.8 percent in 1993 compared to they remain lower than those of men in Saint 69.2 percent among men. Lucia. As shown in Figure 3, 63.9 percent of women as compared to 73.6 percent of men were actively partici- Different socio-demographic factors appear to be pating in the labor force in 2021, while the employment related to labor force participation for women. First, it rate of women was 50.2 compared to 60.6 among men. must be noted that, based on the 2016 Survey of Living The existing gender gap has been narrowing over the last Conditions-Household Budgetary Survey - SLC-HBS, the decades, as the labor force participation and employment differences in participation between men and women rates of women have increased while those of men have narrow in the 35-44 age group, an age when the repro- decreased. Indeed, female labor force participation (15+ ductive role of women starts diminishing. Education also years old) was 48.5 percent in 1991 compared to 78.9 appears to play a role: While females with no education Figure 3. Labor force participation and employment-to-population rates, by gender, 1991 – 2021 80 90 70 80 60 70 50 60 40 50 30 40 20 30 10 20 0 10 Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male 0 1991 1994 1996 1998 2000 2003 2005 2007 2009 2012 2017 2019 2021 St Lucia Jamaica LAC Dominican Republic Labor force participation (+15) Employment to population % Female Male Source: World Development Indicators, World Bank, accessed in August 2022, national estimates. Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia 14 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Table 2. Employment status of women relative to men, 2022   Female Male Unemployment (% of female/male labor force) 18.9 15.1 Unemployment, youth (% of female/male labor force ages 15-24) 35.9 41.8 Vulnerable employment (% of female/male employment) 18.9 27.8 Wage and salaried workers (% of female/male employment) 78.4 65.9 Self-employed (% of female/male employment) 21.6 34.2 Employers (% of female/male employment), modelled estimate 2.7 6.5 Part time employment (% of total female/male employment) 7.5 8.5 Contributing family workers (% of total female/male employment) 0.15 0.34 Youth not in education, employment or training (% of female/male youth population) 27.3 32.1 Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, accessed in June 2022. had a participation rate of only 19.4 percent, participation Communication, and Construction sectors, while the ser- among males with no education, at 52.5 percent, was vice industries attracted a higher percentage of women, over twice as high. However, the differences in partici- for instance in Accommodation and Food Service, pation rates narrow with educational attainment. Age at Educational, and Public Services. In addition, men are marriage and at first birth also impacts women´s partici- more present than women among employers, which pation in the labor market. Women from higher quintiles confirms that they tend to hold the more senior and of income have their first child at a later age. economically independent positions, and less present among contributing family workers – which underlines Saint Lucian women register higher unemployment the more important role of women in (likely small retail) rates than men. As Table 2 shows, the unemployment family businesses (ILO 2018) (See Figure 4). rate in 2022 was 18.9 percent among women compared to 15.1 percent among men. However, and interestingly, However, the quality of female employment appears the opposite trend can be observed among youth: The to be high compared to that of men. Atypically, vul- unemployment rate is higher among men ages 15-24 nerable employment, self-employment, and part-time than women in the same age group. Indeed, the share of employment are more common among Saint Lucian men NEETs (youth not in education, employment, or training) than women. 2016 SLC-HBS data indicate that a higher is also higher among men than women (32.1 Vis-a-vis percentage of women were involved as professionals, 27.3 percent). This may be an indication of a generational clerical support workers, and in sales and services, while change or just a temporary trend (ILO 2018). Either way, men were more heavily involved as skilled agricultural it deserves further attention. However, it must be noted workers, in craft and related trades, and in plant and that, when unemployed, women tend to stay out of machine operations (see Figure 4). Women are the major- employment for longer periods than men (ILO 2018). ity of managers (at intermediate and lower levels, not the top level) in several sectors in which most employees Men are more present in higher productivity sectors are men. As an example, the sector in which the number and among employers, and less present among of female managers most exceeds the number of male contributing family workers. Based on the 2016 managers is transportation and storage, where there are SLC-HBS, men are overrepresented in the Agriculture, more than 10 times as many female as male managers Hunting, Forestry and Fishing, Transport, Storage and (ILO 2018). Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 15 Figure 4. Male and female distribution in employment by sector of activity and occupation, 2016 Sector Occupations Educational services Elementary occupations Public administration Plant and machine and defence operators and assemblers Other services Craft and related trades workers Transport, storage and Skilled agricultural, forestry communication and fishery workers Accommodation and Service and sales workers food service Wholesale and Clerical support workers retail trade Technicians and Construction associate professionals Manufacturing Professionals Agriculture, hunting, Managers forestry and fishing 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 Male Female Source: 2016 Survey of Living Conditions-Household Budgetary Survey (SLC-HBS) On the other hand, men tend to have much larger average Indeed, previous evidence indicates that, while education incomes than women, especially at higher income levels. alone does not eliminate the gender wage gap except at The median earnings of men increased notably more than the top level of education, it serves to reduce its size (ILO those of women between 2006 and 2016 (2016 SLC-HBS). 2018). Across occupations, education levels, and sectors, men sys- tematically earn more than women (ILO 2018). Interestingly, Although women are the majority of business owners income gaps to the advantage of men are especially relevant in Saint Lucia, most of these businesses are very small for the higher income brackets (above $1000/month), where and have limited growth prospects (ILO 2018). The the share of men is higher than that of women. Conversely, Caribbean has notably fewer female than male entrepre- at income levels below $1000, where women are more pres- neurs, partly due to the prevalence of traditional gender ent, the wage gap is minimal and leans to the advantage of roles that restrict female participation to reproductive women (see Figure 5). In addition, and by type of household, and care roles and low-revenue economic sectors (ECLAC the second lowest average income among women and one 2017). In Saint Lucia, too, men own most of the small and of the largest gender gaps is observed in single-female-care- medium enterprises (ILO 2018). The share of firms with giver households. more than five employees with female participation in ownership, at 32 percent in 2010, was low compared to, Indeed, and despite the positive progress in educational for instance, 76 percent in Saint Vincent or the LAC aver- gaps, men make on average 27.4 percent more than age of 40.2 percent (WDI 2022). However, two-thirds of women with equal qualifications. A recent study found micro-enterprises (employing five persons or fewer) are that, while the explained component referring to the owned by women (67 percent). These are characterized observable characteristics of workers is insignificant, the by their lack of growth or business expansion prospects, unexplained is significant. This suggests that discrimi- and low competitiveness and profitability due to the simi- nation may be at play. Moreover, after controlling for larities among many of them and the reluctance of female nonrandom selection bias, the size of the gap grew to 68.8 owners to take risks (ECLAC 2016). percent. While failing to attain university education results in significant income losses for both sexes, the implica- Female-owned small businesses tend to concentrate in tions are larger for women (Leonce and Jackman 2022). certain industries. The female-owned businesses supported Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia 16 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Figure 5. Gender gaps by income level Kernel distribution 30 80 25 60 20 Percent 15 Density 40 10 20 5 0 0 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 Income Proxy Income Category Males Females Males Females Source: World Bank staff calculations using labor force survey data from 2012 to 2021. Note: The proxy incomes were constructed using the monthly income brackets available. With the proxy, we estimated the approximated kernel density and graphed the distribution. For each income level in the x-axis, the difference in the cumulative probability can be thought of as the difference in probability to attain that level of income. The further to the right the distribution is, the higher the wages. Thus, men’s wages are higher than women’s in this case. by the Small Enterprise Development Unit3 are mainly in the Public Assistance Program (PAP) (see next section) is services-accommodation and food services (tourism), educa- an important economic resource for many elderly people, tion, and human health and social work, which is a reflection particularly for women who work in lower-paying jobs of the prevailing traditional gender roles and stereotypes and, on average, live longer than men (ILO 2018). (ECLAC 2016). The 2009 Enterprise Census found that there are more female than male own-account workers in agricul- Likely as a result of all the above, Saint Lucian women ture, forestry and fishing (with a female–male ratio of 1.33) appear to be disproportionately affected by poverty. Since and accommodation and food services (with a ratio of 1.48). 2006, there has been a consistent although slow decline in This may also reflect microenterprise development in areas the poverty headcount,4 from 28.8 percent in 2006 to 25 per- such as small-scale farming, agricultural marketing, and food cent in 2016 (Central Statistics Office, 2016). However, it has preparation. It may also account for women’s enterprises in solely been driven by the fall in poverty rates among men, as the tourism sector (ILO 2018). during the period the female poverty rates did not change much (from 30.2 in 2006 to 30.4 percent in 2016) (Leonce & Access to formal social protection remains more inad- Jackman, 2022). The 2016 SLC-HBS shows that across all age equate among women. Since more women than men groups the share of the working poor fell for men but not are outside the labor force or unemployed, they tend to for women: Men registered a decline of -1.6 percent points make fewer national insurance contributions than men. compared to an increase of 0.7 among women. In addition, Thus, fewer of them are covered by benefits contingent the overall poverty incidence is higher among women than on payment of these contributions, and instead they men in the 10-20-year-old group, during the peak reproduc- rely on noncontributory benefits to a greater extent tive years (25-40 years old), and among some of the oldest than men. Over 70 percent of the Saint Lucia population age brackets (70-80 years old, 90-95 years old). Single female aged 60-plus years, many of whom are women, are not households with more than four children are among the covered for retirement pensions by the NIS. Therefore, poorest (Leonce and Jackman, 2022). 3 Established in 1994 by the Ministry of Commerce, Business Development, Investment and Consumer Affairs, it provides guidance and technical support to existing and prospective entrepreneurs. 4 The headcount poverty rate is calculated as the proportion of the population living in households with consumption per capita (or per equivalent single adult) less than or equal to the poverty line. Access to economic opportunity by women compared to men in Saint Lucia Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 17 What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? The quality of human capital prenatal care in the country. However, these overall high levels may hide disparities across population groups. On the other hand, the adolescent birth rate, at 38.6 per Maternal health appears to lag behind when compared 1,000 women aged 15–19 in 2020 remains relatively low. to peer countries. At 117 deaths per 100,000 live births in Significant progress has been made in this area over the 2017 (WDI), the maternal mortality rate–a key indicator of last decade, although there is still room for improvement. investments in female health–remains above the regional average and the rate registered in other Caribbean small Mental health outcomes appear to be worse among states (see Figure 6). However, access to maternal services young women in Saint Lucia. A recent study by UNICEF appears to be universal: Already by 2017, 100 percent (UNICEF 2021) highlighted the concerningly high of all deliveries were attended by skilled professionals, prevalence of mental health issues among youth in the and in 2012 around 96.2 percent of women received country. Among adolescents ages 13-17, 26 percent Figure 6. Maternal mortality and adolescent fertility rates, Saint Lucia and regional comparators, 2017 and 2020 140 70 120 60 100 50 80 40 60 30 40 20 20 10 0 0 St. Lucia Caribbean Jamaica LAC St. Vincent Grenada LAC Jamaica Caribbean St. Vincent St. Lucia Grenada small states and the small states and the Grenadines Grenadines Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, accessed in June 2022. What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? 18 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Figure 7. Educational enrollment and completion rates, by gender and level, 2018-2020 120 Enrolment rates, % 120 Completion rates, % 100 100 80 80 60 60 40 40 20 20 0 0 Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Preprimary Primary Secondary Tertiary Primary (2020) Lower secondary (2019) (% gross), 2019 (% net), 2018 (% net), 2018 (% gross), 2020 Source: World Development Indicators, World Bank, accessed in June 2022 seriously considered attempting suicide and 17 percent among boys compared to 0.99 among girls), rate of chil- attempted suicide one or more times in the preceding 12 dren not stunted (0.99 among girls and 0.96 among boys), months. Girls (35 percent) were twice as likely as boys (16 and adult survival rate (0.9 among girls compared to 0.83 percent) to consider attempting suicide. This pattern is among boys). similar among adolescents ages 16-17: Girls (20 percent) were also more likely than boys (13 percent) to have Small gaps remain in educational outcomes, although in attempted suicide one or more times in the past 12 months all cases to the advantage of girls. Saint Lucia, like other (GSGS data). However, no substantial gender differences small Caribbean countries, is characterized by a high are found in alcohol use and abuse among adolescents, degree of parity in access to education. Enrolment rates with more young men than women reporting that they are systematically higher among girls than boys at all lev- had ever drunk to the extent of getting intoxicated, while els (see Figure 7). The differences in completion rates—of the use of marijuana is also higher among boys than girls around 10 percentage points both at the primary and low- (UNICEF 2021). er-secondary levels—again in favor of girls, are even more evident. The share of children out of school is also higher However, men and boys tend to register poorer health among boys than girls: 5.9 percent among boys compared outcomes than women and girls in Saint Lucia. Mortality to only 0.58 percent among girls in 2020. Interestingly, rates, as in other countries, tend to be higher among men among adolescents that trend reverses, with the share of than women in the country: 183 per 1,000 male adults those out of school being higher among girls than boys – among men compared to 86 per 1,000 female adults 9.52 compared to 8.7 percent in 2020 (WDI 2022). This is among women in 2020 (UN World Population Prospects likely to be related to the societal roles assigned to girls 2022). Mortality rates are also higher among male than as caregivers and to early family formation among them. female infants (24 versus 20 per 1,000 live births in 2020), As seen above, harmonized test scores are higher among and among under age five boys than girls (27 versus 20 girls than boys (426 compared to 409 based on the HCI per 1,000 live births for the same year) (UN Inter-agency calculations), as well as learning-adjusted years of school- Group for Child Mortality Estimation). Noncommunicable ing (LAYS) (8.8 compared to 8.2). diseases are more prevalent as a cause of death among men than women: They accounted for 493 of deaths Higher levels of education are more relevant for among men in 2015 compared to 390 deaths among women than for men to participate in the labor market women (WHO). This trend is also shown by the health and secure a job. The majority of those in the labor force components of the HCI, for which all results are higher with post-secondary and tertiary education are women, among girls than boys: Rate of survival to age five (0.98 suggesting that for women, higher levels of education What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 19 can lead to greater levels of labor force participation capacity constraints, primarily linked to funding, which (ILO 2018). Girls that fail to attain adequate secondary hindered the ability to reach enough youth; and (3) education are more likely to be unemployed than boys misalignment between the skills demanded by the labor (Government of Saint Lucia 2019), while unemployment market and those offered in programs. Indeed, despite is lower among tertiary-educated women than men. Saint Lucia’s main growth sectors and emerging sectors These trends suggest that both secondary and tertiary being identified as tourism, construction, manufacturing, education give women an employment advantage. This is “edu-business,” alternative energy, and the creative especially the case for the younger generation (ILO 2018). industries, very few if any interventions sought to prepare youth for careers in these fields—further contributing to the common mismatch between the skills demanded by employers and those supplied in the labor market. Misallocation of talent In addition, there is currently no government-provided service offering job brokering or work-preparedness activities for youth or the unemployed, more broadly, Although Saint Lucia has made important progress in and private channels are limited (ILO 2020a). Regarding building an adequate institutional and legal framework programs for vulnerable youth, interventions also appear for the promotion of gender equality, some relevant to be in need of better coordination and management to gaps remain. The country scores 83.8 out of 100 in the minimize duplication and to ensure effective targeting. WBL 2022 ranking, higher than the LAC regional average Further efforts are required to rehabilitate these youth by of 80.4. When it comes to laws affecting women’s deci- promoting their employment, including via entrepreneur- sions to work, laws affecting women’s pay, laws affecting ship, acknowledging the additional challenges that they gender differences in property and inheritance, and laws are likely to face in an already tight and competitive job affecting the size of a woman’s pension, Saint Lucia gets market (ILO 2020a). a perfect score (WBL 2022). However, and at the same 5 time, in the areas of constraints on freedom of movement Family policies including maternity, paternity, and and marriage, laws affecting women’s work after having parental leaves and quality childcare provision are key children, and constraints on women starting and running for gender equality in labor markets. Maternity, pater- a business, room for improvement exists. One of the nity, and parental leave policies play a significant role in lowest scores for Saint Lucia is on the indicator measuring ensuring financial protection at the time of pregnancy, laws affecting women’s work after having children (40) childbirth, and child raising, and in promoting gender (WBL 2022) (See Figure 8). equality – by enabling women to continue their careers when they become parents. They are also key to support- A recent assessment of youth employment programs ing the health and early development of children (World in Saint Lucia found important constraints to the effec- Bank 2019; UNICEF 2020). International evidence also tiveness of these to ease the transition of young men indicates that paternity and shared parental leaves with (and women) into work. These challenges included: (1) some embedded incentives (such as quotas for fathers) the disjointedness of programs and the lack of a central- are the most effective to rebalance the distribution of ized body to coordinate and manage them effectively; (2) childcare responsibilities between mothers and fathers, Figure 8. Scores for Women, Business and the Law in Saint Lucia, 2022 Grenada - Scores for Women, Business and the Law 2021 WBL 2022 Mobility Workplace Pay Marriage Parenthood Entrepreneurship Assets Pension Index Score 75 100 100 80 40 75 100 100 83.8 Source: WBL 2022 5 https://wbl.worldbank.org/content/dam/documents/wbl/2022/snapshots/St-lucia.pdf What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? 20 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia preventing discrimination. There is also evidence from program. Private childcare and preschool services exist in different countries that access to quality childcare can Saint Lucia, but are unaffordable to low-income and poor significantly benefit women’s labor market participation, families (UN Women 2022). Only a fifth of people in the increase household’s earnings, and bring strong economic services sector surveyed in 2016 stated that government value to the entire society and economy. In any case, after-school or daycare services were in close proximity family policies need to prioritize the well-being of children. to their place of work (ILO 2018). Generally, women liv- ing on lower incomes in the Caribbean obtain childcare There is a need to move toward a care society and econ- support from either friends or female family members, or omy that adequately recognize the value of care work in else through “child-shifting”6 (ILO 2018). The small share Saint Lucia. Despite care work being fundamental in our of people working fewer than 48 hours per week also societies, as proven during the COVID-19 pandemic, the suggests that part-time options are limited in the country burden of it, in the form of both formal but especially infor- (ILO 2018). mal work, falls on women and girls globally, in the Caribbean and in Saint Lucia. This operates as a fundamental barrier to Access to social protection also remains limited, the economic inclusion of women on an equal footing with especially for the most vulnerable. The main social men and generally makes them more vulnerable to eco- assistance program in the country is the Public Assistance nomic dependency and poverty. It is therefore crucial that Program (PAP), initiated by the 1968 Public Assistance Act. this type of work becomes adequately acknowledged and According to this act, the PAP is expected to provide direct rewarded. For that purpose, services and public policies that financial support to needy persons. On a monthly basis, can better redistribute some of the care burden between a representative from the household receives a cash women and men need to be put into place. These include, allowance, which varies depending on number of mem- fundamentally, paid maternal, paternal, and parental bers of the household. More than half of beneficiaries of leaves, early childhood care and education (ECE) services, the program are women. The most common complaint and older-people care. among beneficiaries and especially single women is the inadequacy of benefits. With the development and launch Especially relevant gaps exist and deserve attention of the 2015 National Social Protection Policy (NSPP), the in the area of family policy in Saint Lucia. First, the policy environment of PAP significantly improved, as the country does not have in place the minimum 14 weeks of NSPP gave clear priority to women and children and high- maternity leave established in ILO Convention No. 183 – lighted the importance of addressing their unique needs which has not been ratified. Only a maternity leave of 13 (UN Women 2016). The Ministry of Equity, Social Justice, weeks is mandated by the Labor Act, and it applies only to Local Government and Empowerment (MOEQ) is cur- women who have been employed on a continuous basis rently finalizing a graduation strategy from poverty and for eighteen months or more. Moreover, the law does not the PAP, which aims to connect current beneficiaries to set a period of paternity or shared parental leave, ignor- complementary interventions to get them out of poverty ing the role of fathers in child raising (ILO 2018). (and transition them out of social assistance). An updated social protection policy is also in the approval process. Moreover, important gaps remain in early childhood care and education provision. Over the past few decades, In the last years, the Government of Saint Lucia has made the Government of Saint Lucia has adopted policies relevant efforts to strengthen the institutional frame- aimed at facilitating affordable childcare and preschool work for gender equality. Up until recently, the Division for children under the age of five (UN Women 2022). of Gender Relations, the entity in charge of gender equal- However, publicly provided early childhood care and ity within the former Ministry of Education, Innovation, education is neither universally available, nor does it have Gender Relations and Sustainable Development, lacked the capacity to meet the care needs of working parents a national gender policy and focal points across sectors – who often work outside of the opening hours of these and agencies, and the country’s policies did not undergo facilities. (ILO 2018). In the academic year 2018/2019, only rigorous gender analysis (Ranjitsingh 2016). The gender 23.4 per cent of children aged 0-4, living in poor house- support of the agenda failed for years to garner the  holds were enrolled in an early childhood education (ECE) Ministry of Finance, which kept it on the fringes (Stuart 6 A phenomenon by which children are moved to live in another household. What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 21 2016). The lack of a holistic and consistent approach to Figure 9. Female representation in politics, gender mainstreaming was identified as a barrier to Saint Saint Lucia and comparators Lucia’s inclusive growth, contributing to inconsistencies 50 experienced by employees across different sectors 45 (Chaitoo, Allen, & Hustler 2016). In 2019, a public gender 40 mainstreaming project was implemented, and different focal points were named from various departments,7 35 a preliminary step toward setting focal points across 30 sectors. A National Gender Equality Policy and Strategic 25 Plan was under development at the onset of the COVID- 20 19 pandemic, based on a consultation and assessment of 15 the status of the national mechanism and enabling envi- ronment for gender equality. Today, the gender equality 8 10 agenda falls under the Ministry of Public Service, Home 5 Affairs, Labor and Gender Affairs. 0 Grenada LAC St. Lucia St. Vincent There is evidence that traditional gender norms are still % of women in ministerial cabinets % of women in parliament very present in society. The prevailing social norms in the Source: World Development Indicators, World Bank, accessed in June 2022. Saint Lucian society are of a patriarchal nature. However, women are often the only head of household, while men are not involved in or are entirely absent from it. Indeed, households in Saint Lucia are headed by females in two Saint Lucia compared to an average of 33 percent in LAC out of every five cases (LCS 2016). It is likely that the and 47 percent in Grenada (see Figure 9). With regard to gender gaps in labor force participation and employment the private sector, although women have made it to the can be partly explained by greater time allocation to middle and higher ranks of business management, it is reproductive tasks by women than by men. Indeed, the men that still dominate at the top level (ILO 2018). burden of domestic chores is primarily shouldered by Saint Lucian women, preventing them from engaging The data indicate that although women have made it to fully in the formal sector. The higher rate of underem- the middle and higher ranks of business management, ployment among men may indicate that they have more it is men that still dominate at the top level (ILO 2018). available time as a result of a lower level of involvement A recent survey found that 28 percent compared to a than women in reproductive work (ILO 2018). Stuart sub-regional median of 30 percent of women were pres- estimates that unpaid work in the home contributes up ent in companies at junior management in Saint Lucia, 25 to 39 percent of a country’s GDP. Policy makers have not compared to 30 in the region at middle management, 32 placed any monetary value on reproductive work, putting compared to 30 percent at senior management and 18 women who engage in this work at a disadvantage (Stuart compared to 10 percent at the top executive level (ILO 2016). More data and analysis on the issue of gender 2017) (see Table 3). norms and roles, including on time use, is necessary in the Saint Lucian context. Although comparable and up-to-date data on the incidence of gender-based violence (GBV) are unavail- Women remain underrepresented in decision making able, the phenomenon is likely widespread in the both in the public and private spheres. Only 15 percent country. That is especially the case with regard to sexual of all ministerial positions were held by women in 2019, violence against women, as reported by various official far below the average of 33 percent in LAC, and the data and specialized sources over time (Ranjitsingh 2016; US registered by other peer countries. Moreover, only 17 Department of State 2021; UNFPA 2020; ECLAC 2016).9 percent of parliamentary seats were held by women in According to data from the Division of Human Services 7 Including the Central Statistical Office, Health, Sustainable Development, External Affairs, Economic Development and Ministry of Equity. 8 https://thevoiceslu.com/2020/08/the-gender-agenda/ 9 Recent studies conducted in Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago indicate that 27-40 percent of women reported having experienced violence at the hands of their partners.  What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? 22 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia and Family Affairs, the rate of violence against women Table 3. Share (percent) of women managers by a partner or ex-partner was 419 per 100,000 in 2015, in the Caribbean, by country and management while that of violence against girls was 1,268 per 100,000 level, 2017 girls (UNFPA 2020). Roungement (the practice of parents   Junior Middle Senior Top accepting monetary compensation to settle rape and sexual assault cases out of court) has been reported to Antigua and Barbuda 37 38 45 25 be still in use in the country, despite being prohibited by law (US Department of State 2021). Anecdotal evidence Bahamas 45 25 25 10 suggests that parents often do not report these cases due Barbados 25 23 20 2 to fear of retaliation, the length of judiciary processes and the stigma associated with them. The COVID-19 pandemic Belize 21 20 27 6 and associated lockdown measures have likely made things worse, as evidence across countries shows (de Paz Dominica 2 23 50 13 et al. 2021). NGOs reported a surge in domestic violence cases in Saint Lucia during the country’s mandatory Grenada 32 50 40 20 COVID-19 shutdown. Guyana 28 25 26 20 GBV bears large costs not only for women and their Jamaica 50 50 40 33 children, but for the entire society. GBV leads to large losses in terms of education, employment, and civic life Saint Kitts and Nevis 14 4 0 0 for the women who experience it. There is evidence from Saint Lucia 28 25 32 18 various countries that episodes of GBV force women to lose time from paid work and therefore negatively affect Saint Vincent and the 24 17 11 4 businesses through reduced productivity, absenteeism, Grenadines and increased leave and sick days, as well as victims exiting the workforce (ILO 2020; IFC 2021). Children also Suriname 30 30 25 10 suffer, both directly and indirectly, the consequences of Trinidad and Tobago 37 50 33 20 GBV in the family (UNICEF 2021). Overall, this phenom- enon is highly costly to societies. The economic costs of Sub-regional median 30 30 30 10 lost productivity due to domestic violence conservatively Source: ILO 2017 range from 1.2 to 2 percent of GDP across countries (World Bank 2013). The legislative and policy framework on GBV remains incomplete. Saint Lucia is lacking specific legislation on been made available. The Department of Gender GBV. Although women and girls are granted protection Relations operates a residential facility for victims of against violence in the Domestic Violence Act and the domestic abuse, the Women’s Support Center. However, Criminal Code, none of these instruments specifies the NGOs reported that challenges facing victims of abuse criminalization of violence against women. Femicide is included a lack of adequate shelters, an extensive court not incorporated into the national legislation of Saint case backlog, a lack of capacity to prosecute, the lack of Lucia. In addition, there is no legislation prohibiting technical resources at the forensic laboratory, unfriendly conciliation, mediation, or other extrajudicial methods social services agencies, and insufficient victim assistance to address violence. Saint Lucia does not have a national training for police officers. The Saint Lucia Crisis Center, plan to address GBV. In addition, only 1.21 percent of all an NGO, continued to receive monthly government the cases reported in 2015 were effectively prosecuted assistance and maintained a facility for female victims (UNFPA 2020). of domestic violence and their children and a hotline for support, but it reported that funding was insufficient to The Government has deployed some efforts to provide meet the needs of all survivors seeking assistance. The an adequate response to GBV, but important gaps police also faced problems such as lack of transportation, remain. Shelters, a hotline, police training, and detailed which at times prevented them from responding to calls national policies for managing domestic violence have in a timely manner (US Department of State 2021). What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 23 The incidence of child marriage is high, with important Land is a very relevant asset for rural populations. costs for girls, their families, and the Saint Lucian econ- Agriculture is a key source of employment, especially omy. Almost a quarter of women ages 20-24 were married, among low skilled workers. For rural populations, in a union or in a visiting relationship before age 18 as of land is the most relevant productive asset, one that 2012. This rate is above those registered in other peer coun- supports agricultural production and provides food tries for which data is available, such as Jamaica (9 percent security. Indeed, higher levels of land security are in 2011) or Trinidad and Tobago (11 percent in 2011), but associated with higher investments and productivity in within the regional average (1 in 4 girls under 18 overall agriculture, while land rights for women are correlated in 2012) (UNICEF, 2022; World Bank WDI). 10 Although the with higher well-being for them and their families (FAO legal minimum age for marriage is 18 for men and women, 2018). Indeed, legal titles to land or other property are exceptions (between 16 and 18 years old) are allowed with a prerequisite as collateral for most financial credit parental consent. Child brides are at greater risk of having institutions to approve agricultural credit. Access to poor health outcomes, dropping out of school, earning less credit, in turn, is necessary to modernize production income over their lifetime, and living in poverty compared to and increase the productivity of crops. This can have girls that marry at later ages (World Bank 2017). Additionally, important repercussions for GDP growth. Closing these girls are more likely to be victims of intimate partner gender gaps in agricultural productivity could entail an violence and experience restricted physical mobility. increase in agricultural output in developing countries by 2.5 to 4 percent (World Bank 2012). Owning assets, especially land (the primary means of production in agriculture), is also an important leverage point for Limitations in access to empowerment in climate risk financing and insurance productive assets and finance (Caribbean Policy Development Center 2021). Gender inequalities persist in the agricultural sector, Gender gaps in access to finance persist in Saint Lucia. as women face high barriers to access productive The lack of adequate access to finance has been high- inputs and assets. The Agricultural Census of 2007-2008 lighted as a major constraint for female entrepreneurs in showed that 29.7 percent of those responsible for the the Caribbean region. Women’s access to finance remains rural exploitation of property in Saint Lucia were women, limited to the informal or semi-informal sector, and almost at par with Jamaica (30.2 percent) and much above mostly involves small amounts, which restrict growth. The the shares observed in Trinidad y Tobago (14.7 percent) concentration of women in crowded and less productive or Belice (8.1 percent). The 2016 CDB Gender Assessment sectors of the economy that are linked to the household (Caribbean Development Bank 2016) found that women also constrains their access to finance, as they are not were less likely to own land than men but dominated generally attractive to commercial financial institutions. the agro-processing sector. It was found that prospects The 2010 Enterprise Survey (the last one available) indeed for expansion and sales were obstructed by the lack of identifies access to finance as the most important barrier standardization and certification, partly because most to businesses owned by women (and the second most goods were produced in private homes (Ranjitsingh important among male-owned businesses) (World Bank 2016). A gender digital divide especially affecting women 2015). This is also the case in Saint Lucia, where women in the rural sector is also likely to exist in the country, face challenges in accessing finance and with regard to given evidence from other LAC countries (IADB 2022). knowledge of systems for registering and running busi- This is particularly relevant given the potential role of nesses. As indicated by the ILO assessment, while they e-commerce for women entrepreneurs to circumvent have generally accessed microfinance opportunities there obstacles related to care, access to markets, and gender is a need for gender sensitivity and options for proving norms (Rubiano Matulevich and Iavocone 2021). Up-to- creditworthiness in the full range of financial institutions date data and analysis on access to productive assets (ILO 2018). Up-to-date data and analysis on the financial would be important to better understand the barriers inclusion of women in Saint Lucia are required. and dynamics at play in Saint Lucia. 10 https://www.unicef.org/lac/media/8256/file/Profile%20of%20Child%20Marriage%20in%20LAC.pdf What drives female employment and entrepreneurship in Saint Lucia? 24 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Cross-cutting phenomena W omen´s economic participation has been resources and insurance for hazard-proofing their prop- disproportionately affected by the COVID- erties. In addition, women, who make up the majority of 19 pandemic (de Paz, Gaddis & Muller market vendors, are unable to generate an income in the 2021). A growing body of new data confirms that more aftermath of such disasters. Because they have limited women than men have globally shouldered a larger share access to finance – with the exception of microfinance of the negative economic impacts of COVID-19 and lost – and insurance, the possibilities for recovering their their income-generating activities due to the COVID-19 businesses are more constrained (UN Women 2021a). pandemic (e.g., Center on Gender Equity and Health Across the region, women from the lower-income brack- 2020; Bundervoet et al. 2021; Cucagna & Romero 2021; ets also have more limited access to smart phones and Kugler et al. 2021). The COVID-19 pandemic has also led weather system apps being used by service providers to increased hours of unpaid domestic work performed in early warning and communication systems. Another by women and raised the incidence rates of GBV, includ- gender-related implication is reduced access to health ing IPV and child marriage (Cookson et al. 2020; Gibbons facilities and supplies (UN Women 2021b). et al. 2020; UNICEF 2021c). The existing evidence and projections of impacts indicate that women in Saint Lucia Women are also likely to disproportionately suffer the have been particularly affected by the negative implica- consequences of the unfolding food price crisis. The tions of the crisis (see UNDP 2020 and UN Women 2021). Russian invasion of Ukraine has worsened an ongoing However, the existing surveys have not yet obtained increase in the price of commodities and energy, and sex-disaggregated data. ultimately basic foods, that is expected to have major repercussions across developing countries. The negative Women from Saint Lucia also appear to be generally impacts of this trend are likely to be taken on to a large more affected by natural disasters and climate change extent by the most vulnerable, including poor women and than men. Flooding represents a special risk to single girls. As an example, the 2007-08 food price crisis and a female headed households with poor housing and insuf- second price spike in 2010-11 had devastating impacts on ficient resources to build back better. In addition, women the world’s poorest people, deepening their poverty and and girls are more vulnerable to water-borne diseases seriously undermining their right to food. Smallholder due to their roles within the household. Hurricanes and farmers and women (60 percent of the world’s chronically tropical storms pose special risks for women living in hungry people in 2009) were disproportionately affected female headed households due to their limited access to (OXFAM 2019). Cross-cutting phenomena Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 25 Conclusions and policy recommendations Based on the analysis presented in this note, the follow- • The misallocation of talent in Saint Lucia, as reflected in ing priority gaps can be identified. the gaps highlighted above, is largely related to the con- tinuing prevalence of patriarchal social norms around the • Like other countries in the sub-region, Saint Lucia is role of women in the public and private spheres. This is a somewhat atypical country in the LAC region with for instance illustrated by the comparatively low presence regard to the status of women relative to that of men of women in representative institutions as well as among in certain important areas, including education and, to managers at the top level. The most extreme expression a lesser extent, employment and entrepreneurship. of their lack of agency is the persistence of gender-based Women and girls outperform men and boys in edu- violence, a phenomenon that is likely to be widespread, cational outcomes, both from the quantity (years) and as shown by the high prevalence of child marriage in the quality (test scores) perspectives. They also show rela- country. Similarly, important legal and policy gaps persist, tively high labor force participation and employment as well as capacity and enforcement challenges. rates, own many of the microbusinesses, and repre- sent a minority among vulnerable, underemployed, This section offers a summary of general recommenda- self-employed, and part-time workers as well as a tions that, based on the existing international literature on majority of wage employees. Unemployment rates what works best and the available knowledge of the Saint and the share of NEETs are also higher among young Lucian context, could serve as inputs for the authorities in males than females. Gaining a better understanding the country in the policy making process aimed at bridging of what explains these trends would be important in some of the observed gender gaps. The following priority order to inform efforts elsewhere in the region, and to pillars have been identified: (1) Strengthen investments close the existing gaps affecting men and boys. in young women and men´s human capital; (2) improve • However, it must also be noted that important gender access to economic opportunity for women and men; (3) gaps to the detriment of women remain and require decrease the vulnerability of women to poverty; and (4) attention. Concerning human capital accumulation, improve the agency of women. Under each of the pillars maternal mortality continues to be relatively high, specific objectives, policy areas and actions are proposed while young women show comparatively worse men- below (see Table 4 for an overview). tal health outcomes than men. Overall, women show higher unemployment rates, are overrepresented in Pillar A: Strengthen investments in young women and sectors and occupations that are less productive and men’s human capital more poorly paid, and are overrepresented among unpaid domestic workers. They also make systemati- Objective A.1: Improve the health outcomes of women cally less money than men, a gap that is not justified by observable characteristics. Partly as a result of all Policy area A.1.1: Reduce the incidence of maternal mor- these factors, access to social protection (especially tality – International experience indicates that access to social insurance) remains limited and vulnerability to adequate maternal services is key in this regard (Sully et al. poverty remains high. Households with single female 2019). It has for instance been found that maternal deaths heads are among the poorest in the country. in LAC are most often due to health-system related delays Conclusions and policy recommendations 26 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia and as the result of the poor quality of care (UNFPA 2017). – Medium term, a key goal will be to encourage young High overall coverage rates of maternal health services and vulnerable men to continue their education beyond in Saint Lucia may hide gaps in access related to income, the primary and lower-secondary levels. This, again, location, or even ethnic group. In addition, the discrepancy would first require improving the understanding of what between high prevalence rates of maternal mortality and is driving early dropout among them through adequate similarly high coverage of maternal health services may be qualitative and quantitative analysis. Boys’ underachieve- related to gaps in the quality of these services and their ment in education has indeed been a consistent trend lack of friendliness or adaptation to specific groups of across Caribbean countries that has been debated for women. One of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and decades now. Behavioral, environmental, and personal associated lockdowns in the LAC region has been worsen- factors are at play (Jackman and Webb 2019). Programs ing maternal and neonatal health due to the suspension that inform and educate children and their families about or limitation of related health services (Castro 2020). the benefits of continuing education as well as financial Obtaining up-to-date disaggregated data and conducting support and incentives to complete education have been analyses on the drivers of maternal mortality and the shown to be helpful across countries. Early warning factors that make certain women more vulnerable should systems to identify youth at risk of dropping out also therefore be a priority in Saint Lucia. Lifestyle-related need to be in place, as well as the capacity for schools to noncommunicable diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, intervene, for instance through counselling (World Bank and HIV, are among the main indirect causes of maternal 2016). It is also important to ensure that young women do death in Caribbean countries, although unsafe abortions not remain excluded from education when they become may soon come close according to UNFPA. Health preven- pregnant, while addressing their specific needs and chal- tion strategies and actions that consider these factors are lenges (CDB 2016). therefore required to address them. Pillar B: Improve access to economic opportunity by Policy area A.1.2: Improve the mental health of young women and men women (and men) - It is important to clarify what lies behind the concerning trend uncovered by a recent Objective B.1: Increase the labor market inclusion of UNICEF study regarding the high incidence of suicidal women and men ideation and attempts among young people, especially young women, in Saint Lucia. Among young children, Policy area B.1.1: Ease the transition of young boys from early childhood education and parental training, as school to work – Based on the recent ILO assessment of well as nutritional and stimulation interventions, have programs aimed at increasing the employment rates of been shown to be effective in the prevention of mental young people in Saint Lucia, further efforts are required health problems throughout the lifetime, especially in to improve coordination between the existing programs, lower and middle-income countries (Baker Henningham to develop the programs’ capacity (particularly through 2014; Klasen and Crombag 2013). Later in life, trauma adequate funding), and to better connect youth with the treatment and class-based adolescent interventions have labor market demands (for instance with regard to the also led to positive outcomes (Klasen and Crombag 2013). skills that are needed in the faster-growing or emerging Interpersonal or soft skills training, emotional regulation, sectors of the economy including tourism, construction, and alcohol and drug education are universal health pro- manufacturing, “edu-business”, alternative energy, and gram components that are also associated with positive the creative industries) (ILO 2020a). The Ministry of effects for mental health (Skeen et al. 2018). Increasing Youth Development and Sports in Saint Lucia recently awareness on the importance of mental health and its announced the launch of a web and mobile app called social and economic benefits and reducing stigma and Skill 758 that would serve as a skills database and misconceptions are also necessary parallel actions. employment directory to connect skilled young people to job opportunities. With regard to programs attempting Objective A.2: Improve educational outcomes among to reintegrate vulnerable youth, further efforts to coor- boys and young men (and prevent early dropout due to dinate and ensure their employment promotion will be pregnancy among girls) required to ensure their effectiveness given the special - difficulties that these youth face (ILO 2020a). Work experi� Policy area A.2.1: Prevent early dropout from the edu- ence opportunities in collaboration with employers offer cational system among men (and pregnant women) special potential and could be expanded. Employment Conclusions and policy recommendations Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 27 services for all the unemployed should also be developed, Policy area B.2.2: Expand access to quality affordable while the convenience of implementing subsidies or pub- childcare – As seen in the analysis presented above, lic works programs could be considered (ILO 2020a). important gaps remain in access to early childhood edu- cation and care in Saint Lucia, and especially so among Policy area B.1.2: Reduce gender segregation into fields the most vulnerable families and children. Enhancing the of study – Incentives, peer-support, mentorship, and availability/accessibility of quality childcare and making other measures may be required to help girls to continue the schedule of school-age children compatible with work choosing non-traditional fields of study such as STEM demands are measures that have shown a positive impact (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in larger on the labor market inclusion of women with children numbers. As an example, female engineers have been (Halim et al. 2021). Expanding access to these services shown to be more likely to become partners or senior either through increasing the number of centers or executives when supported by male mentors (World through subsidies to attend privately run ones would be Bank 2020). International evidence, especially from LAC, a costly endeavor, based on a recent estimation exercise. indicates that other potentially effective interventions However, the expected benefits of such a policy, in the include reducing biases in learning materials, encour- form of improved labor market inclusion, better child out- aging participation in STEM extracurricular activities, comes, and improved equality of opportunity for children, engaging parents of girls into STEM related activities and are likely to outweigh the fiscal costs (UN Women 2022). promoting a safe and inclusive learning environment Safeguarding the well-being of children should always be (World Bank 2021c). At the same time, boys should also the priority in this area. be encouraged to join nontraditional areas (e.g., nurses). A project geared to train females to be better equipped Objective B.3: Grant access to productive assets to to pursue lower-skill job opportunities in the construction women entrepreneurs sector in Saint Lucia may have contributed to an increase in the number of females employed in the infrastructure Policy area B.3.1: Expand access to credit by women - and construction industry based on a recent labor market It is fundamental to ensure that women have access, needs survey conducted in Saint Lucia (Jordan 2020). both as individuals and as entrepreneurs, to financial services and products without gender biases being Objective B.2: Attain a better balance in the distribution reproduced in respect of risk assessment, credit histo- of family responsibilities between men and women ries, sureties and collateral, and interest rates (ECLAC 2021b). Governments can use a variety of financial Policy area B.2.1: Improve family policies – An adequate solutions to support women-led firms, such as grants, paid maternity leave of at least 14 weeks should be made fee reductions, cash transfers, and loans on flexible available to women, following the international (ILO) rec- terms (Rubiano Matulevich & Iavocone 2021). New data ommendations, based on evidence of its association with from the Caribbean show that high collateral require- female employment (Amin et al. 2019). Paid leave available ments and interest rates are among the top barriers for to fathers and shared parental leave (preferably with women-owned and -led businesses looking for financing embedded incentives for fathers to take up their share of (IDB 2021). A new tool to be explored in this regard that the leave) should also be considered for formal-sector work- has shown potential in other contexts is the use of psy- ers (WBL 2021; Amin et al. 2016). Setting up a leave to care chometric testing as a replacement for collateral (Alibhai for sick dependents and adopting policies that allow flexible et al. 2022). Efforts to improve financial inclusion in the work schedules are additional recommended measures. Caribbean, including Saint Lucia, must incorporate both Adequate (noncontributory) child benefits and subsidies, the public and private sectors. especially for vulnerable families, are key in improving the coverage of protection mechanisms for informal workers Policy area B.3.2: Ensure that women entrepreneurs and their children. It must be noted in this regard that have ownership and control over land on par with children (and households with single women and more men´s – Legal provisions in this area should be accom- than five children) are particularly affected by poverty in panied by actions aimed at strengthening institutional the country (UNICEF 2017; Leonce and Jackman 2022). The structures, to ensure the effective implementation of main social assistance program for vulnerable families is laws, policies and programs related to women’s rights the PAP. While this program has improved in recent years, to land and other productive resources (OHCHR 2016). A it still presents important limitations (see below). better understanding of the barriers facing Saint Lucian Conclusions and policy recommendations 28 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia women in this area would be required to inform the women should be considered. Another quick fix in this response. However, complementary (and required) mea- area may be to strengthen the gender responsiveness sures to promote gender equality in land tenure include of social protection programs (and especially the PAP) by campaigns and incentives encouraging joint titling, considering the specific vulnerabilities of certain groups interventions to facilitate access to the services of land of women relative to other beneficiaries. All these issues registration offices by women or training the intervening should be considered in the process of PAP reform and in staff on gender issues and barriers to women, among the drafting of the update of the Social Protection Policy others. Easing access to technology, market information (underway), as well as the Graduation Strategy for PAP and agricultural inputs for women farmers will also be beneficiaries (underway). required in Saint Lucia, especially considering the import- ant role they play in agro processing. Policy area C.1.2: Improve and expand formal social pro- tection mechanisms available to women (and men) - Long Policy area B.3.3: Close the digital gap, with a special term, increasing the coverage of existing social protection focus on rural areas - Closing the gap in access to digital mechanisms to provide an adequate cushion to all women technologies will also be critical to support female eco- and men in the country, including informal workers, will nomic activity. The COVID-19 pandemic has incentivized be necessary. The different needs and alternatives for this the use of mobile wallets across the LAC region, though will have to be carefully examined. In any case and given usage rates are still low. The use of digital transactions women´s more patchy and shorter working lives due to (both mobile banking and e-commerce) also increased, their caregiving role, the time they dedicated to those signaling the importance of digital technologies to stay tasks needs to be compensated for in the formal system. economically connected and/or to receive monetary Legal provisions in this regard need to be accompanied by support (World Bank & UNDP 2021). Bridging the digital a true commitment and actual contributions to the fund divide requires improved access to the Internet and on behalf of those women so that it does not become an associated devices, as well as to education and training. empty promise that generates unrealistic expectations. It To encourage women´s participation in digital learning, must be noted in this area that employed women – more these programs need to be contextualized and adapted than employed men – have a higher propensity to contrib- to their different needs and aspirations. Women should ute to social security (ILO 2018). also be better represented in the development of learn- ing and education policies, governance, and the design Objective C.2: Tackle the gender dimensions of cross-sec- of learning materials and applications. Policies to make tional phenomena such as COVID-19 and natural access to ICT more equitable will need to incorporate all disasters relevant stakeholders (UNESCO 2022). Policy area C.2.1.: Include a gender angle in all DRM Pillar C: Decrease the vulnerability of women (and policies and institutions and in COVID-19 diagnosis men) to poverty and response – DRM-related policies and plans at the national level need to be gender- responsive, acknowl- Objective C.1: Offer women (and men) access to ade- edging the gender differentiated impacts, and in coping quate safety nets and adaptation mechanisms. Building knowledge about the gender implications of natural disasters and climate Policy area C.1.1: Strengthen safety nets available to change and building capacity in the relevant institutions vulnerable women (and men) - Since more women than will also be crucial. Climate change mitigation measures men are outside the labor force or unemployed, they also need to be gender-responsive to be effective and tend to make fewer national insurance contributions than leave no one behind (OHCHR and UN Women 2020). men. Therefore, fewer of them are covered by benefits It is also important to consider gendered aspects of contingent on payment of these contributions, and they warning and communication systems – for instance the tend to rely on noncontributory benefits to a greater lack of access of vulnerable women to smart phones extent than men (particularly the PAP). However, these and apps often used by service providers. Similarly, all benefits do not reach all people in need due to coverage policies and programs – particularly in the area of social gaps, are generally set at a very low level, and are means- protection – aimed at alleviating the impacts of the tested (ILO 2018). In view of the existing assessments, COVID-19 and food price crises need to bring a gender improving the adequacy of benefits for vulnerable angle into. Conclusions and policy recommendations Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 29 Pillar D: Improve the agency of women of its negative impacts. Safe space programs for girls to develop skills and alternate life choices offer special Objective D.1: Eradicate gender-based violence potential. A regional example of this type of intervention is provided by Guatemala’s Abriendo Oportunidades Policy area D.1.1: Improve GBV prevention and response program, which has expanded to other countries in the systems – Long-term, and to effectively prevent and region (see the Girls not Brides and Population Council respond to GBV, an adequate legal framework needs case study).12 Keeping girls in school is one of the most to be in place. In that regard it would be necessary to protective factors against early marriage and pregnancy modify the current legislation to harmonize it with the (Wodon et al. 2017). Convention, including the incorporation of all forms of violence against women11 and importantly feminicide Policy area D.1.2.: Leverage safety nets to prevent gen- (UNFPA 2020). It would also be important to enact laws der-based violence (including child marriage) - A growing that explicitly prohibit the use of methods to extrajudi- body of evidence suggests that SSNs that are adequately cially resolve these cases (UNFPA 2020). Moreover, a designed can lead to an abatement in gender-based comprehensive strategy and plan for the prevention of violence, even when that is not among their explicit objec- and response to GBV will need to be put in place. On the tives (World Bank 2022). The same evidence suggests that response side, it would be important to ensure that all cash programs are most effective when accompanied service providers involved (and not only the police) receive by complementary measures (cash Plus). In the short adequate training through the mainstream curricula. It is term, quick wins could be gained from reinforcing social also crucial to ensure that all survivors have adequate assistance programs, such as the Public Assistance access to specialized services, shelter, and support Program (PAP), to incorporate behavioral components (psychological, legal, etc.). One-stop service provision has that can help reduce the incidence of GBV, such as regular proved to be particularly effective in other settings. On the meetings or counselling on gender equality/GBV related prevention front, evidence from low- and middle-income issues. Evidence from programs in Bangladesh, Burkina countries shows that economic empowerment programs, Faso, and Tanzania indicates that this can be an effective community mobilization interventions, and school-based, approach in reducing the risk of IPV (see for instance mass media, and edutainment programs and campaigns, Ismayilova et al. 2018; Roy et al. 201; Kapiga et al. 2019; among others, can be effective in decreasing intra-partner and Messersmith et al. 2017). violence (IPV) and changing related perceptions among participants (Kerr-Wilson et al. 2020). Objective D.2: Strengthen the capacity of institutions to promote gender equality Policy areas D.1.2: End child marriage and related prac- tices – For this purpose, the legislation allowing marriage Policy area D.2.1: Continue developing the institutional under the age of 18 (with parental consent and the permis- machinery for gender equality – Continuing the recent sion of the attorney-general) would need to be reformed efforts to build capacity across institutions and levels is to prohibit any type of exception. However, legislation necessary to adequately reflect and respond to gender alone has proven not to be effective to end this practice gaps and barriers to equality in all areas. Strong coordi- across countries, while social and customary norms nation mechanisms are also required for this purpose. continue legitimizing it (Wise et al. 2017). To attain real A tool that is particularly promising in this regard is change, it is important to address the underlying causes gender-responsive budgeting (Khalifa & Scarparo 2020; of child marriage, including poverty or adverse social IMF 2021). The capacity of individuals (public officials) in norms. Working with communities, parents, schools, and charge of dealing with all these issues needs to continue the boys and girls themselves to reduce the acceptance being strengthened through information and training on and perpetuation of child marriage and early unions is these different mechanisms. Legislation, regulation, and particularly important, by (for instance) raising awareness policies in the area of gender equality are a first clear step. 11 Including obstetric violence, sexual harassment in places other than work and school and typifying sexual violence against women and girls in armed conflicts. 12 The program aims to help rural girls to stay in school and develop skills and offers coaching on their sexual and reproductive rights. Almost all participating girls did not marry for the duration of the program and most of them expressed a desire to postpone childbirth after the program. It also helped to bring about positive change in beliefs and views regarding early marriage in the communities. The success of Abriendo Oportunidades has led to its replication in other LAC countries, including Mexico and Belize. Conclusions and policy recommendations 30 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia However, implementation and enforcement challenges behaviors, access to protection and social services, and often prevent the application of these tools. Adequately health care (UNICEF 2021). Important data gaps also assessing and addressing implementation and enforce- exist in the areas of GBV and entrepreneurship, access ment challenges is therefore key for policy effectiveness. to assets by women, and time use. However, Saint Lucia also shows some atypically positive outcomes in this area. Policy area D.2.2: Improve the availability of gender-dis- Better understanding what explains these results would aggregated data and analysis – There is a need to better be important to inform efforts elsewhere in the region. In assess gender inequalities in Saint Lucia. This is the case connection with this, and to allow for institutional learn- with regard to inequalities affecting young people, ing and effectively account for the gendered impact of including the way they affect tertiary education, TVET, and policies, an adequate monitoring and evaluation agenda employment, as well as exposure to different types of vio- for specific gender policies as well as monitoring and lence, abuse and exploitation, engagement in offending evaluation across the board are required. Conclusions and policy recommendations Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 31 Table 4: Summary of recommendations Pillar A: Strengthen investments in the human capital of young women (and men) Objective A.1: Improve the health outcomes of young women Recommended Recommended actions Timeline Responsible agencies policy Policy area 1. Improve data availability and analysis that allows to better under- Medium/ Ministry of Health, A.1.1: Reduce stand the drivers of this phenomenon and assess the accessibility long- term Wellness and Elderly the incidence and quality of maternal and reproductive health services. Affairs of maternal 2. Ensure high-quality standards of reproductive services and Ministry of Public mortality their coverage across groups with different socio-demographic Service, Home Affairs, characteristics. Labor and Gender 3. Develop and implement health prevention strategies that ade- Affairs quately acknowledge the indirect repercussions of unhealthy lifestyles and diseases on pregnancy related outcomes. Policy area A.1.2: 1. Assess the underlying factors behind the concerning high rates Medium/ Ministry of Health, Improve the of suicide ideation and attempt among youth, and especially long- term Wellness and Elderly mental health of among young women. Affairs young women 2. Develop comprehensive plan to address mental health Ministry of Public (and men) issues among young people (with a special focus on women) Service, Home Affairs, combining preventative policies from early age (adequate Labor and Gender early childhood care and parenting) to class-based interven- Affairs tions and trauma treatment in adolescence. Ministry of Education, 3. Soft skills training and alcohol and drug education have also Sustainable shown positive impacts as part of overall health programs. Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training Objective A.2: Improve educational outcomes among boys and young men (and prevent early dropout due to pregnancy among girls) Policy area A.2.1: 1. Improve understanding on what drives boys’ drop-out at Short/ Ministry of Public Prevent early higher levels. medium/ Service, Home Affairs, dropout from 2. Raise awareness about the economic benefits of school for boys. long-term Labor and Gender Affairs the educational 3. Strengthen financial support and incentives for families to Ministry of Education, system among keep at-risk boys and girls in school (subsidies, CCTs). Sustainable men (and 4. Develop the capacity to identify students at risk of dropping Development, pregnant women) out and enable schools to intervene (counseling, tutoring). Innovation, Science, 5. Ensure that pregnant young women can return to education Technology and and address their specific needs. Vocational Training Pillar B: Improve access to economic opportunity by women and men Objective B.1: Increase the labor market inclusion of women and men Policy B.1.1: Ease 1. Improve the coordination between the existing programs and Short/ Ministry of Public Service, the transition develop their capacity (particularly through adequate funding) medium/ Home Affairs, Labor and from school to 2. Better connect existing programs with the labor market long-term Gender Affairs work, especially demands (for instance with regards to the skills that are Ministry of Finance, among women needed in the higher growing or emerging sectors of the Economic Development economy including tourism, construction, manufacturing, and the Youth Economy “edu-business”, alternative energy, and the creative industries). Ministry of Education, Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training Coordination with the private sector Conclusions and policy recommendations 32 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Recommended Recommended actions Timeline Responsible agencies policy Policy area B.1.2: 1. Continue promoting the presence of women in STEM Short/ Ministry of Public Reduce gender fields through peer support, role models and soft skills medium- Service, Home Affairs, segregation into development. term Labor and Gender fields of study 2. Other potentially successful interventions include promoting Affairs safe and inclusive learning environments, engaging parents, Ministry of Finance, promoting participation in STEM extracurricular activities and Economic Development reducing biases in learning materials. and the Youth Economy 3. Promote the presence of boys in non-traditionally male fields Ministry of Education, of study (e.g., nurses). Sustainable Development, Innovation, Science, Technology and Vocational Training Ministry of Tourism, Investment, Creative Industries, Culture and Information Objective B.2: Attain a better balance in the distribution of family responsibilities between men and women Policy area B.2.1: 1. Ensure that a minimum 14 weeks paid maternal leave is in Medium/ Improve family place. long-term Ministry of Public policies 2. Implement paternity and/or shared parental leave (with Service, Home Affairs, embedded incentives for fathers up-take). Labor and Gender 3. Provide (non-contributory) child benefits and subsidies, Affairs especially to vulnerable families. Ministry of Finance, 4. Explore ways of expanding formal benefits to informal sector Economic Development workers. and the Youth Economy 5. Provide leave to care for sick relatives. 6. Establish legal entitlement for parents to benefit from flexible working arrangements. 7. Enhance the availability/accessibility of quality childcare, always prioritizing the wellbeing of children. Objective B.3: Grant access to productive assets to women entrepreneurs Policy area B.3.1: 1. Legally provide for gender equality in access to credit. Medium/ Ministry of Finance, Expand access to 2. Use of grants, fee reductions, cash transfers, and loans on long-term Economic Development credit by women flexible terms for women entrepreneurs. and the Youth Economy 3. Explore the replacement of collateral by psychometric testing. Ministry of Commerce, Manufacturing, Business Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Policy area 1. Improve the understanding of barriers to women´s access to Short/ Ministry of Public B.3.2.: Ensure productive resources such as land. medium/ Service, Home Affairs, that female 2. Legally recognized their equal rights in this area, including the long- term Labor and Gender entrepreneurs acquisition, administration, control, use, and transfer of land. Affairs have ownership 3. Improve the capacity for institutions to apply the legal rights of Ministry of Finance, and control over women in practice, for instance through training. Economic Development land on pair with 4. Explore the use of co-titling programs, adaptation loans, and the Youth Economy men´s facilitating access to registration offices, etc. Ministry of Commerce, 5. Ease access to technology, market information, and agricul- Manufacturing, tural inputs for women farmers and food producers. Business Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Conclusions and policy recommendations Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 33 Recommended Recommended actions Timeline Responsible agencies policy Policy area 1. Assess the gender digital divide in Grenada and the particular Short/ Ministry of Public B.3.3: Close the contextual needs. medium- Service, Home Affairs, digital gap, with a 2. Improve access to the Internet and associated devices among term Labor and Gender Affairs special focus on women, especially the most vulnerable and living in rural Ministry of Finance, rural areas areas, and provide access to adequately adapted learning Economic Development programs. and the Youth Economy 3. Policy design and implementation will need to engage all Ministry of Tourism, relevant stakeholders and effectively include women at all Investment, Creative levels. Industries, Culture and Information Pillar C: Decrease the vulnerability of women (and men) to poverty Objective C.1: Offer women (and men) access to adequate safety nets Policy area C.1.1: 1. Improve the adequacy and coverage of minimum social Short/ Ministry of Public Strengthen protection benefits (social assistance) for the most vulnerable medium/ Service, Home Affairs, safety nets women (and men). long-term Labor and Gender available to vul- 2. Make existing programs, such as the Public Assistance Affairs nerable women Program and its graduation strategy more gender responsive Ministry of Finance, (and men) by considering the specific vulnerabilities of certain groups of Economic Development women relative to other beneficiaries. and the Youth Economy 3. Consider gender angle and related issues in the new Social Protection Policy (underway). Policy area C.1.2.: 1. Explore options to expand the coverage of social protection to Medium/ Ministry of Public Improve and informal workers. long- term Service, Home Affairs, expand formal 2. Account for time dedicated to childcare in pension benefits, Labor and Gender social protection creating a special fund and making contributions to it on Affairs mechanisms behalf of caregivers. Ministry of Finance, available to Economic Development women (and men) and the Youth Economy Objective C.2: Tackle the gender dimensions of cross-sectional phenomena such as COVID-19, natural disasters Policy area 1. Bring a gender angle to data collection and analysis of the Short/ Ministry of Public C.2.1.: Include a impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and DRM. medium- Service, Home Affairs, gender angle in 2. Ensure that all (mainly SP) programs and projects addressing the term Labor and Gender all DRM policies various impacts of the pandemic incorporate a gender angle. Affairs and institutions 3. Mainstream gender in all DRM policies and programs. and in COVID-19 4. Consider gaps in access to ICT in early warning and communi- diagnosis and cation systems. response 5. Make climate change mitigation measures gender responsive. 6. Raise awareness about the gender implications of DRM and climate change. Pillar D: Improve the agency of women Objective D.1: Eradicate gender-based violence Policy area D.1.1: 1. Reform the legislation to incorporate all forms of violence Medium/ Ministry of Public Improve GBV against women and regulation of femicide. long-term Service, Home Affairs, prevention and 2. Enact laws that prohibit the use of methods to settle cases Labor and Gender response systems extrajudicially. Affairs 3. Develop a comprehensive strategy for the prevention of GBV. Ministry of Home 4. Explore the use of community mobilization interventions, Affairs, Justice and school-based, mass media and edutainment programs and National Security campaigns, among others for the prevention of GBV. 5. Strengthen one-stop service provision and referral systems. 6. Improve the response capacity to provide support, shelter, and counselling to survivors. Conclusions and policy recommendations 34 Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia Recommended Recommended actions Timeline Responsible agencies policy Policy area 1. Modify legislation to prohibit marriage below 18 years old Medium/ Ministry of Public D.1.2: End child under all circumstances. long- term Service, Home Affairs, marriage and 2. Adopt awareness raising, information and education Labor and Gender related practices interventions working with communities, parents, schools and Affairs children. Ministry of Home 3. Offer access to safe spaces and empowerment programs for Affairs, Justice and (vulnerable) girls (Abriendo Oportunidades). National Security 4. Ensure that girls (and boys) stay in school. Policy area D.1.3: 1. Reinforce existing economic empowerment programs (PAP) to Medium/ Ministry of Public Leverage safety incorporate behavioral components that can help reduce the long-term Service, Home Affairs, nets to prevent incidence of GBV, such as regular meetings or counselling on Labor and Gender gender-based gender equality/GBV related issues. Affairs violence Objective D.2: Strengthen the capacity of institutions to promote gender equality Policy area 1. Continue building capacity across levels and sectors. Medium/ Ministry of Public D.2.1: Continue 2. Strengthen coordination mechanisms. long term Service, Home Affairs, developing the 3. Improve the capacity of public officials with regards to these Labor and Gender institutional mechanisms. Affairs machinery for 4. Explore and expand gender-responsive budgeting. gender equality 5. Assess and address implementation and enforcement challenges. Policy area D.2.2: 1. Expand efforts to collect sex-disaggregated data and to Short/ Ministry of Public Improve the conduct the necessary analysis to understand trends in medium Service, Home Affairs, availability of gender gaps, drivers and barriers. term Labor and Gender gender-disaggre- 2. Place a special emphasis on understanding the atypically Affairs gated data and positive outcomes observed in the country and what factors National Statistical analysis contribute to explain them. Office 3. Develop monitoring and evaluation agenda and system to improve institutional learning. 4. Engender monitoring and evaluation across policies and programs. Conclusions and policy recommendations Breaking Barriers to Women’s Economic Inclusion in Saint Lucia 35 References Aguirre, D., Hoteit, L., Rupp, C. & Sabbagh, K. 2012. 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