World Bank-IFC report finds Government reforms enhance economic opportunities for women, but greater strides needed

A new report from the World Bank and IFC released in Washington on 26 September 2011 finds that women still face legal and regulatory hurdles to fully participating in the economy.

Women, Business and the Law 2012: Removing Barriers to Economic Inclusion finds that while 36 economies reduced legal differences between men and women, 103 out of 141 economies studied still impose legal differences on the basis of gender in at least one of the report’s key indicators. The report also identifies 41 law and regulatory reforms enacted between June 2009 and March 2011 that could enhance women’s economic opportunities