Resource information
This document provides a gendered
analysis of the horticulture, tourism, and call center
global value chains (GVCs), based on a survey of the
literature and case studies carried out in Honduras, Kenya,
and the Arab Republic of Egypt. The studies focus on export
sectors that have had high female employment and have been
relatively underexplored from the angle of trade and gender
research. The studies show that GVCs and their upgrading
dynamics have important gender dimensions, and that
integration and upgrading are influenced by, and have an
impact on, gender relations. While the conditions and
dynamics in the sectors in concern are very different,
certain broad conclusions are drawn from the results of the
studies. The first is that patterns of job segregation are
observed in all case studies, with women being assigned to
specific jobs, though the reasons for such segregation
differ from sector to sector. The second conclusion is that
women face gender-intensified constraints, though their
extent and articulation may be quite different, depending on
the value chain. The third is that constraints related to
women's primary responsibility for reproductive work
have been identified as important in all three studies. This
social division of labor is deeply embedded in developed and
developing countries, but poor infrastructure, particularly
in rural areas, heightens this challenge for women in
developing countries. This report also suggests appropriate
interventions to improve the constraints faced by women.
