THE EFFECTS OF GLOBAL UNCERTAINTY ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM DEVELOPING ECONOMIES

Abstract

Global uncertainty, driven by economic volatility, political instability, and global crises, has disproportionately affects women in developing economies. These challenges limit access to education, employment, and resources, hindering empowerment. This study examines the influence of global and domestic uncertainty on women’s empowerment across 114 developing economies over the period from 2002 to 2022. Understanding these relationships is essential to design policies that strengthen women’s resilience and promote inclusive, sustainable development in uncertain global contexts. Employing a dynamic panel data framework and the System Generalized Method of Moments (System GMM), the analysis accounts for endogeneity, persistence effects, and unobserved country-specific heterogeneity. Women’s empowerment is proxied using two widely recognized indicators: the Gender Development Index (GDI) and the Gender Inequality Index (GII). It is found that domestic uncertainty increases gender inequality and reduces women’s empowerment indicating that women are disproportionately affected compared to men. In contrast, global uncertainty proxied by trade uncertainty and policy uncertainty reduces gender inequality and enhances women’s empowerment, suggesting that men may be more adversely affected by global uncertainty than women. Overall, the study underscores that women’s empowerment is highly sensitive to domestic macroeconomic stability and institutional quality. It highlights the importance of reducing uncertainty, strengthening political stability, promoting inclusive economic growth, and expanding both public and foreign investment to achieve sustainable gender equality and human development in developing economies.