Throughout the 20th century the female population was more numerous than the male one.
The process of feminisation was steadily going on, but at different rates, a tendency that appears to be
irreversible over the first decades of the 21st century at least. In the countryside this situation correlates
with other phenomena such as migration of male labour to town before 1990 and abroad after that date,
as well as population aging characteristic of the past few decades. Family relationships indicate that
wives continued to be dependent on husbands, a dependence extrapolated to society where women
usually rank second. Requirements and interests differ with each age-group, family size, family
componence and the children’s age. Recent economic and social changes also affected the female
population. Ensuring equal opportunities between men and women, which is a E.U. social policy
priority, is imperative also for Romania in view of its integration into the Community structures.