Blog #5, One-quarter of female led households live in poverty

Summary

This article goes into detail about the poverty rate of households in Turkey.  A little over one-quarter of households run by women in Turkey, are in poverty at 27.2 percent.  Households ran by men have a 20 percent poverty rate.  When looking at research conducted by Bahçeşehir University's Center for Economic and Social Research, they stated that 7.7 million out of the total population of 72 million, live in a household where the primary provider is female.  This leads to poverty being very vast and widespread.  When looking at Turkey, the females are divided into two separate groups.  There is a younger group which is more educated and more attached to the labor market, and an older group that is less educated and more isolated from the labor market.  A study on March 5, showed that female participation in the labor force is at 25.9 percent and male participation is at 69.2 percent.  According to the EU, the average rate of female participation in the labor force in developed countries is at 62 percent, which puts Turkey well under the average.  High-level public officials who are female remained at 9.3 percent.

Analysis

Honestly, these statistics were not very shocking.  Women throughout the entire world are discriminated against on a daily basis.  Specifically within the educational system and the work force.  These statistics proved true in Turkey as well.  In 2013, females in high-level public official positions ranked at 9.3 percent, judges were at 36.3 percent, and the academic staff was at 28.1 percent.  When looking at these numbers, it is evident as to why households ran by women have such a high poverty rate.  They cannot obtain jobs that pay very well.  The president of the Turkish Association of University Women (TÜKD) Nazan Moroğlu told Today's Zaman that Turkey is ranked 120th out of 135 countries with regard to women's employment, and stressed that Turkey does not have much to celebrate on March 8, International Women's Day.  However, the rate for female executives wasn't that far behind global average.  The global average for female executives is 24 percent, and Turkey was at 20 percent.  In Eastern Europe the rate for female executives is at 37 percent, 38 percent in Southeast Asia and China, and the lowest rates for female executives fell in Japan at 9 percent, followed by the United Arab Emirates and India at 14 percent.  

 http://www.todayszaman.com/news-341474-one-quarter-of-female-led-households-live-in-poverty.html