Trade Openness and Gender Inequality in the High Human Development Countries
In: Journal of development and economic policies: JODEP = Maǧallat at-tanmīya wa-ʾs-siyāsāt al-iqtisādīya, Band 26, Heft 1, S. 5-28
The objective of the study was to investigate the influence of trade openness on gender inequality in countries characterized by high levels of human development. The sample consisted of 39 countries during the period from 2015 to 2019. The study employed panel data analysis using the generalized least squares. The findings reveal the role of trade in promoting gender equality, as indicated by the inverse relationship between trade openness and the gender inequality index, in line with previous findings. Furthermore, the results show that the decrease in gender inequality was primarily driven by the increase in imports as a percentage of GDP. Specifically, the impact of trade openness and imports accounted for approximately 17% of the decline in the gender inequality index. The paper emphasizes the need to assess the effects of trade policy on both women and men and recommends conducting sector-specific studies and having a holistic approach that considers global value chains and finance chains in trade-related policies.