Gender Inequality, Structural Transformation and Growth: The Case of Morocco

Type Working Paper - MFM Global Practice
Title Gender Inequality, Structural Transformation and Growth: The Case of Morocco
Author(s)
Issue 8
Publication (Day/Month/Year) 2015
URL http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2015/12/22/090224b083fddd14/1​_0/Rendered/PDF/Gender0inequal00the0case0of0Morocco.pdf
Abstract
Do persistent gender inequality hamper productivity and growth? This paper investigates the extent to which the persistence of gender inequality might have constrained growth and productivity in Morocco. It does so through an overview of the recent (2000-2011) growth performance and the analysis of the structure of female employment over the last decade. The paper does not attempt to show the link between female employment, gender inequality and growth as this has been already treated extensively in the empirical literature. This analysis builds instead on the assumption, put forth in the theoretical and empirical literature1, that gender disparities and related occupational and market segmentations hamper productivityand growth2. By analyzing the structure of female employment over time and sectoral labor productivity data we examine whether employment opportunities for women are concentrated in sectors where labor productivity (and hence the wage rate) is low or not growing and the reasons that might be behind these outcomes. This is an important question from not only the welfare perspective, but also from the point of view of economic efficiency. Evidence that women are working in low return sectors signals the existence of mobility barriers which prevent them from moving to higher return sectors.

Related studies

»