Small Gender Gap in African Policy Priorities? Economic Empowerment Narrows Infrastructure Divide

This study examines gender differences in policy preferences across Africa.

Contrary to Conventional Wisdom

Gender gaps are surprisingly small on average but vary significantly by country and domain.

Key Findings

• Women's labor force participation narrows the infrastructure gap
• Social vulnerability widens disparities in clean water prioritization
• The most pronounced gender differences occur where women are least represented in formal politics

Implications

These findings suggest that policies aimed at increasing women's political representation should focus on areas with significant gender preference divergence.