Women comprise 31 per cent of the total official labour force in industrially developed countries and 46.7 per cent world-wide. Many of the economic gains made by women in industrially developed countries since the 1960s are now in serious danger of being eroded, which seems to be a result of the restructuring of both the global and domestic economies. A significant gap exists between the status of women and men in all nations. Surveys reveal increasing gender discrimination in salaries, recruitment, promotion and dismissal, as well as growing professional segregation and the feminization of poverty. According to United Nations statistics, 1.3 billion persons in the world live in poverty and 70 per cent of them are women.
Women are major contributors to national economies through both their paid and unpaid labour.
As far as the latter is concerned, rural women's input and their role as a significant female electorate should not be underestimated. Although the importance of women's biological and social roles is clear, their input in all spheres of life often goes unrecognized. Eradicating poverty will have a positive impact on women's increased participation in the democratic process. The economic empowerment of women, along with education and access to information will take women from the limitations of the household to full participation in politics and political elections. In most countries women are carrying a disproportionate share of domestic work.