Although many international agreements recognize women's human rights, pervasive gender bias means women are much more likely than men to be malnourished, poor and illiterate and to have less access than men to medical care, property ownership, employment and political power. Gender bias exacts an enormous toll on women's lives, health and potential. It also prevents achievement of sustainable development and population stabilization. Yet experience shows that recognizing and acting upon women's central roles in the development process is a decisive element in achieving improvements in the economic and social well-being of developing countries. Millions of poor women across the developing world are benefiting from microenterprise.
Women tend to contribute a larger share of their income to family welfare than do men.
One study in Mexico found that women contributed 100 percent of their earnings to the family budget, while men contributed at 75 percent, and often less. In Colombia, Ghana and Thailand, among other developing countries, children of educated mothers perform better on preschool tests. Since household food is primarily the responsibility of women in most African countries, raising their productivity in agriculture contributes to better family nutrition and increased income. In addition, evidence suggest that given the same land, input, education and technology, females can equal or surpass males in agricultural output. A study in Kenya showed that female farmers would outproduce men by 6.6 percent in maize yields per hectare.