Gender dimensions of Viet Nam's comprehensive macroeconomic and structural reform policies

From a gender perspective, Viet Nam is an interesting case study because it is widely seen as a 'globalization' success story where historically the social and political status of women have been high compared with women's status in many other developing countries. At the same time, there is concern that women's status may be eroding during the country's rapid transition to a market economy. Thus, it is of interest to examine the relationship between gender equality and economic performance, and to assess how women have fared when macroeconomic and structural reforms are judged to have produced successful results for the society as a whole. Viet Nam's recent reform experience is particularly instructive because it helps to identify the preconditions for women to benefit from these reforms. Similar to other rapidly growing Asian countries, Viet Nam's high growth has been accompanied by increased gender inequality as well as increased income inequality. Policy makers are paying more attention to this phenomenon of growing inequality because the country is entering a new development phase which involves an acceleration of the globalization process. At risk are poor households (many headed by single mothers) in rural and remote areas which are least able to cope with the transmission of external shocks. This paper seeks to contribute to a better understanding of macroeconomic policies that benefit women by analysing the links between reform, gender equality, economic development and women's welfare as they played out in Viet Nam during the 1990s, when the government carried out far-reaching and comprehensive reforms. It employs descriptive, narrative and quantitative approaches to explain how macroeconomic and market liberalization policies, although gender-neutral in intent, can give rise to gendered outcomes as a result of various underlying and interrelated factors. These include social attitudes and conventions influenced by patriarchal values, the pattern and structure of occupational segregation and related gender wage differentials, gender differences in education levels, and labour regulations that have the effect of increasing productivity differences between men and women. The main finding of this paper is that the welfare of women in Viet Nam generally improved as a result of macroeconomic stabilization and controlled external liberalization policies adopted by a government that espoused a 'developmentalist state' model..

Gender Inequality in a Globalizing World

Emphasis on market-friendly macroeconomic and development strategies in recent years has resulted in deleterious effects on growth and well-being, and has done little to promote greater gender equality. This paper argues that the example of East Asia states, which recognized their position as late industrializers, relied on a managed-market approach with the state that employed a wide variety of policy instruments to promote industrialization. Nevertheless, while Asian growth was rapid, it was not enough to produce greater gender equality. A concentration of women in mobile export industries that face severe competition from other low-wage countries reduces their bargaining power and inhibits closure of gender-wage gaps. Gender-equitable macroeconomic and development policies are thus required, including financial market regulation, regulation of trade and investment flows, and gender-sensitive public sector spending

Importing Equality or Exporting Jobs? Competition and Gender Wage and Employment Differentials in U.S. Manufacturing

This study investigates the impact of increased import competition on gender wage and employment differentials in U.S. manufacturing over the period from 1976 to 1993. Increased import competition is expected to decrease the relative demand for workers in low-wage production occupations and the relative demand for women workers, given the high female share in these occupations. The findings support this hypothesis. Disproportionate job losses for women in low-wage production occupations was associated with rising imports in U.S. manufacturing over this period, and as low-wage women lost their jobs, the average wage of the remaining women in the study increased, thereby narrowing the gender wage gap