Paper Details

Economic development and women empowerment are interconnected: Despite being a part of our society, women have fewer rights than men. It is gender discrimination that prevents women from eliminating poverty and advancing in their lives. Sometimes, their contributions to the economy are ignored and underestimated. They are not seen as integral to economic development policies and programs. It is only by "empowering" women that we can reduce the gap between men and women and create equal playing fields between both sexes. UNDP focuses on gender equality and women's empowerment because they are embedded in the Millennium Development Goals and a way to achieve sustainable development. The empowerment of women also involves understanding their rights, having self-confidence, and having control of their lives. If women are empowered they can change their economic status as well as the status of society. Economic development and women's empowerment are bidirectional, defined as improving women's access to development's components - especially health, job opportunities, education, equal rights, and political participation. There are many aspects of empowerment, such as economic, social, political, and personal, that run parallel to one another. A sustainable route of growth can be attained by providing equal opportunity to men and women in all aspects of life, including decision-making. Thus Women's conditions should be improved for the welfare of society. Hence this paper examines the relationship between women's empowerment and economic progress.

Gender equality, Women Empowerment, Economic development, Discrimination, UNDP.