Focus on gender inequality

Almost nine months after the revolution in Kyrgyzstan that promised a better life, democracy and equality for the people of this Central Asian nation, women’s groups say there has been little improvement in their lives. "The revolution might have livened up society and brought new hope, but I doubt it will have an effect on the role of a woman in society. Women will never be at the same level in politics with men,” Zamira Akbagysheva, head of leading gender NGO Congress of Women in Kyrgyzstan, said in the capital, Bishkek. Although women in the republic have historically had more freedom and independence than their counterparts in more traditional Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, they remain grossly under-represented in the nation’s power structures. The new parliament has no women deputies at all and there is not a single female among ministers or high-ranking government officials. According to the National Statistics Committee (NSC), women in Kyrgyzstan are better educated than men but, as of May 2005, their average salary was 35 percent less than their male counterparts. Women live longer than men by eight years and make up 52.1 percent of the population. TRADITIONAL ROLES PREVAIL Women continue to occupy traditional posts in health, education and culture, but are still far from the reins of power, say activists. Some women are trying to challenge the status quo. During presidential elections in July, for the first time in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia, a woman ran for the presidency. Toktaim Umetalieva, leader of a local NGO, gathered less then 1 percent of the vote. She put her lack of support down to widespread prejudice against women’s leadership abilities, something that cannot be confronted if women are not put in positions of authority. Others point out that the prejudice is evident across the sexes. "Women comprise 53 percent of all the voters. When they start whining that there are so few women in parliament, who should be blamed? Women themselves do not vote for other women?" Turat Koichuev, a senior (male) official in the Ministry of Finance, said. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Kyrgyz government are trying to address the issue through a programme promoting gender equality in politics in the former-Soviet republic. The two-year project will arrange leadership training and focus on how to organise political campaigns and create a manifesto. SUCCESS OF FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS Women have had more success in business than in the political arena. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, many men lost their jobs in the command economy and could not adjust to the demands of new market conditions. This often stimulated wives to take the initiative to provide for their families. In the first years after independence many of these women formed armies of traders: regularly travelling to China, Turkey, Russia and India to bring back goods for sale in Kyrgyzstan. According to UNDP, in 2000, 7 percent of Kyrgyz women were involved in the trade. Many of those who remained at home started applying for credits and opened their own businesses. The Micro and Small Enterprise Finance Facility (MSEFF), a European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) project, for example, disburses about 3,000 loans monthly in towns and cities around Kyrgyzstan, most of them to women. Clients receive loans up to US $10,000 to open or expand shops, cafes, clinics and other services. "The tendency is clear - women are leading in applying for micro-credits for their businesses. They are the key in the business development of this country,” Ulrich Weber, a loan adviser for the EBRD, said. ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT This newfound economic empowerment is leading to social changes, at least in the cities. Many female entrepreneurs are less interested in marriage that before. "According to tradition, I should have married a long time ago,” said Guliza Kulmanova, a 22-year-old shop owner in Bishkek. “But I have neither the time nor desire to do so.” Women are also becoming less economically dependent on men. "By 25 I was married with two children. My husband's salary was not enough to feed our family. I went out and got educated, got a job and started earning more money than my husband. Then I told him to stay at home with the children. He did not agree and we divorced,” Elmira Toktomatova, 28, a credit expert from a local bank, said. GLASS CIELING Despite these successes, women remain largely barred from the male-dominated powerful networks that control the larger and more lucrative trades, like transport, manufacturing, tourism and finance. "I've earned money to buy an apartment and a car for my son. But it is very difficult for a woman in business to go further. Even in dealing with the bureaucracy, like the tax office, we are disadvantaged. Usually businessmen settle these issues with officials among themselves in a simple manner. They strike deals as they drink vodka or cognac together, in saunas, for example. Women do not have access to these networks,” Uulcha Osmonkulova, a former accountant who runs a small grocery shop in the capital, said. “We need to change our perceptions and the way to do that is for women to start getting involved in politics and to break through into big business – that’s the key,” Gulnara Aitbaeva, chair of the Bishkek Centre for Women, an NGO trying to boost women in business, said.