Global trade continues to undervalue women’s contributions: UN agency – World

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has stated that global trade despite progress continued to undervalue women’s contributions, and their share of domestic value added to exports remains lower than men’s in all regions.

Statistics released to mark the International Women’s Day show women still contribute less to exports across all sectors, Closing the gap requires expanding their access to high-value sectors, strengthening labour rights and supporting their inclusion in larger enterprises.

UNCTAD’s trade and gender indicators reveal a persistent gender gap in tradable sectors, with women contributing less to domestic value added in exports.

Closing this gap requires country-specific analysis to identify the drivers and barriers shaping women’s participation in high-value sectors, backed by micro-data at the national level to guide policy action.

Labour-intensive and low-tech sectors tend to employ more women, UNCTAD data reveals

Targeted action

To make trade more inclusive, policies must expand women’s access to jobs in high-value sectors, strengthen labour rights and support their integration into larger enterprises engaged in global trade. Without targeted action, trade will continue to undervalue women workers, limiting economic progress and deepening structural inequalities.

Global domestic value added — the portion of an exported goods or service’s value generated within a country — totalled $15 trillion in 2020. Women contributed 40 per cent of exported value in developed economies — twice the share in Africa, according to UNCTAD.

In Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as in Asia’s developing economies, men’s contributions are nearly double. The data, based on labour force surveys, cover both paid workers and the self-employed.

Sectoral trends shed more light on the “value added” gender gap. Women’s share is highest in services — 45pc in developed economies and 43pc in Latin America and the Caribbean. In contrast, they contribute just one third of men’s value added in agriculture and industry. In developing Asia, however, the pattern shifts, with women’s highest share in agriculture (39pc), followed by industry (38pc) and services (36pc).

Globally, industry contributes the most to domestic value added, accounting for 56pc in 2020, followed by services (42pc) and agriculture (3pc), according to estimates by the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development. “Industry” includes non-service sectors such as mining, manufacturing (food, chemicals, machinery, electronics), utilities and construction.

Women’s share of domestic value added in industry exports typically ranges from 20pc to 40pc, but in Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand, it is around half or more — rising to 77pc in Cambodia. This reflects the strong role of export-oriented manufacturing, particularly textiles and apparel, in employing female workers.

The data shows that women’s employment in manufacturing aligns with industry intensity. Low-tech, labour-intensive sectors such as food, beverages and textiles tend to employ more women.

Women’s share of value added in services exports is the highest among sectors but varies widely ranging from 2pc to nearly 60pc in developing economies and between 30pc and 50pc in most developed economies. Economies with lower shares are often driven by manufacturing — a sector that tends to employ women workers.

The data shows that women’s share of employment in the sector tends to be higher in countries where services exports contribute more than 50pc to domestic value added, aligning with World Trade Organisation findings that services trade can promote gender balance.

Yet developing countries struggle to fully benefit from the global shift to services-led growth. They account for just under 30pc of global services export revenues, far below their 44pc share of merchandise trade.

This gap could widen as intangible assets such as brands, designs, and patents become more dominant. Without targeted policies, services trade growth may not create enough high-quality jobs for women in developing economies.

Agriculture employs large numbers of women in developing economies, but structural barriers — such as limited access to land, credit and modern technology — restrict their ability to benefit from trade. Gender norms further confine them to subsistence farming, limiting their participation in export-driven markets.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2025